Dún Laoghaire Summer Organ Concerts: David Adams featuring a new work by Donnacha Dennehy, commissioned by DLOC in memory of David Connolly
St Michael’s Church
In memory of dear friend and artistic director David Connolly who passed away in April 2020 at the age of 37, Dún Laoghaire Summer Organ Concerts has commissioned Donnacha Dennehy to compose a new work for organ through an award from the Arts Council. This will be performed on 11th September at 8pm as part of the closing concert of the series, which is given annually by David Adams. The programme also features a work by composer Eric Sweeney.
David Adams studied organ and harpsichord in Dublin, Freiburg and Amsterdam, winning prizes at international competitions in Speyer, Lüneburg, Bruges and Dublin. Since his début recital at St. Paul’s Cathedral, London, at the age of 16, he has performed throughout Ireland, the UK and Europe, and is a regular guest at major international festivals. He is much in demand as an ensemble player in the fields of Early and contemporary music and has premiered many new works, including works by Gerald Barry, John Buckley, Raymond Deane, Donnacha Dennehy, Gráinne Mulvey, Jonathan Nangle, Kevin O’Connell, Kevin Volans, Jennifer Walsh, Sebastian Adams and numerous compositions written specially for him. In addition to solo CDs recorded on the organs of Trinity College Dublin and the National Concert Hall in Dublin, he has recorded for Naxos, Black Box and Wergo. Recently he recorded CDs of eighteenth-century Irish music (with Bill Dowdall) and works by Benjamin Dwyer (with Maya Homburger and Barry Guy).
David has taught at conservatories in Freiburg, Berlin and The Hague, and now lectures in organ and harpsichord at the Royal Irish Academy of Music in Dublin, where he is also Head of the Early Music Dept. As part of his work in RIAM he has directed over 20 opera productions since 2007. In 2007, also, he was awarded a PhD from the Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam for his work on Max Reger and Karl Straube. In the last five years David has given organ recitals in Ireland, France, Germany, The Netherlands and New York. Since Covid-19 landed David has performed with the Irish Chamber Orchestra and the RTÉ Concert Orchestra, recorded for Kaleidoscope and directed the opera La serva padrona by Pergolesi for RIAM. He also gave the opening recital of the Pipeworks Festival in June 2020 in St. Patrick’s Cathedral, marking its 40th anniversary.
Programme
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750) - Fantasia in G, BWV 572 (Pièce d'orgue)
Eric Sweeney (1948–2020) - The Bright Seraphim
François Couperin (1668–1733) - Messe pour les couvents Élévation: Tierce en taille
Donnacha Dennehy (b.1970) - The Arborist [Commissioned work in memory of David Connolly, funded by the Arts Council]
Dudley Buck (1839–1909) - The Last Rose of Summer, varied for the organ, op.59
J.S. Bach - Fantasia and Fugue in G minor, BWV 542
Tickets
Tickets will be available on-the-door, however for this concert prebooking online has been advised by Dún Laoghaire Summer Organ Concerts.
Book online through Eventbrite.