Laura Heneghan: Reflections on the LEGATO early-career composer development programme
LEGATO is a new international composer development programme devised by partner organisations across three countries - the Contemporary Music Centre Ireland, New Music Dublin, Sound Festival Scotland and Festival Ensemble(s). Six composers, two from each participating country, were selected through an open call process. These six composers are Laura Heneghan, Paul Scully, John Aulich, Monika Dalach Sayers, Anne Castex and Vincent Portes.
Irish composer Laura Heneghan shares her experience following the initial workshops in Paris in September 2024.
Laura Heneghan.
The first phase of the LEGATO programme began in September 2024 when I travelled to Paris, and it was an incredibly enriching experience. The weekend consisted of meeting my fellow composers and our mentors, Jérôme Combier and Laura Bowler. There was a welcoming sense of community as we spent Friday and Saturday getting to know each other, sharing our work, and discussing our aspirations for the programme and our final compositions.
The standout moment of the weekend was undoubtedly the one-on-one tutorials with our mentors. Each session offered a chance to dive deeper into our compositions. My tutorial with Laura Bowler was particularly impactful. We discussed my vision and the inspiration behind my piece, exploring the best ways to shape these ideas into a finished work. She challenged me to explore new concepts that pushed me beyond my usual creative boundaries. Her suggestions for incorporating extended techniques on instruments were eye-opening, and she provided valuable resources for further exploration. I felt inspired and ready to experiment with my work in ways I hadn’t considered before.
LEGATO composer mentors Laura Bowler (credit: Robin Clewley) and Jérôme Combier (credit: Agathe Poupeney).
In addition to the tutorials, we had the opportunity to attend a variety of exciting contemporary music concerts during the Festival Ensemble(s). These performances were inspiring and I particularly enjoyed that each performance not only influenced my own ideas for my composition but also provided me with new pieces to listen to, enriching my repertoire and enhancing my palette. I particularly enjoyed that each concert began with students from the Conservatoire performing two brief yet powerful pieces. My favourite were two movements taken from Frédéric Pattar’s Marche.
Théâtre L’Échangeur - CIE Public Chéri, Bagnolet; the venue where the concerts took place during the festival. The first image is from the venue's facebook page. The second image is from an ensemble performance captured by Laura Heneghan.
Connecting with the LEGATO mentors, participating composers and meeting with other composers at the festival was equally rewarding; hearing about their influences, unique approaches and work opened my eyes to different perspectives. The encouraging environment created a space for us to openly share ideas and insights, adding to my understanding of the creative process. I feel that each of our styles contrasted greatly but this made the experience even more interesting!
Looking ahead, I’m excited about the next part of the programme at New Music Dublin in April, where drafts of our works will be showcased in a public workshop. This will offer a glimpse into the development of our compositions, and I am excited to see how our experiences throughout the programme will influence the final pieces.
After New Music Dublin, I’ll return to Festival Ensemble(s) in Paris in September 2025 for the premiere of my work, followed by the UK premiere in Aberdeen, Scotland. Paris was an inspiring start to this journey, and I’m excited to see how these experiences will shape my work moving forward.
Canal Saint-Martin, close to the area where the composers participated in their workshops (credit: Laura Heneghan).
LEGATO is principally funded by Diaphonique, the Franco-British-Irish fund for contemporary music and supported by the Vaughan Williams Foundation.
