Bill Whelan facts for kids

William Michael Joseph Whelan, born on May 22, 1950, is a famous Irish composer and musician. He is most known for creating the music for "Riverdance". This amazing seven-minute piece of music, with its new style of Irish stepdance, first appeared at the 1994 Eurovision Song Contest. It became a huge stage show that people loved all over the world!

The "Riverdance" music was so popular that it won him a Grammy Award. It was released as a single in 1994 and quickly became number one in Ireland for 18 weeks. The album also did very well, reaching number 31 on the music charts in 1995. Bill Whelan also made a special orchestra version of Riverdance. It was first played by the Ulster Orchestra in 2014.

About Bill Whelan's Life

Bill Whelan grew up in Limerick city, Ireland. He studied law at University College Dublin and King's Inns. In 2011, he received a special award from University College Dublin for his amazing work in Irish music.

While Riverdance is his most famous creation, Bill Whelan has worked on many exciting music projects since the 1970s.

Bill Whelan as a Producer

As a music producer, Bill Whelan has helped create music for many famous artists. He worked with U2 on their War album. He also worked with Van Morrison, Kate Bush, and The Dubliners. He helped other Irish bands like Planxty and Stockton's Wing too.

Bill Whelan's Compositions

Bill Whelan has composed many important musical pieces:

• Music for W.B. Yeats Plays: From 1989 to 1993, he wrote original music for fifteen plays by the famous writer W. B. Yeats. These plays were shown at the Abbey Theatre in Dublin.
• The Seville Suite: This piece from 1992 was inspired by the journey of Red Hugh O'Donnell. He was an Irish leader who traveled to Spain in 1601. The music combines orchestra sounds with Celtic Music instruments like Uilleann Pipes and bodhrán. It also includes Galician instruments.
• The Spirit of Mayo: In 1993, he wrote this piece to honor Mayo 5000. It was performed by a large orchestra with 85 musicians. It also featured a powerful drum group and a 200-person choir.
• The Connemara Suite: This work from 2009 features the Irish Chamber Orchestra. It includes soloists playing different instruments and even dance percussion.

In theatre, Bill Whelan was nominated for an award for his work on H.M.S. Pinafore. He has also composed music for films. These include Dancing at Lughnasa (starring Meryl Streep) and Lamb (starring Liam Neeson).

Bill Whelan's Career Highlights

Here are some important moments in Bill Whelan's musical journey:

• 1970: He composed the main music for the film Bloomfield.
• 1979: He joined the band Planxty as a keyboard player.
• 1980: Bill Whelan helped arrange and produce "What's Another Year" for Johnny Logan. This song won the Eurovision Song Contest that year.
• 1981: He composed "Timedance" with Dónal Lunny. This piece was performed by Planxty during the Eurovision interval.
• 1983: He produced the song "The Refugee" on the U2 album War.
• 1984: He created the film music for Lamb with Van Morrison.
• 1987: Bill Whelan produced "Hold Me Now" for Johnny Logan. This song also won the Eurovision Song Contest.
• 1990: He produced and played keyboards on Andy Irvine's album Rude Awakening.
• 1992: He was asked to compose The Seville Suite.
• 1993: He composed the orchestral work The Spirit of Mayo.
• 1994: He composed Riverdance for the Eurovision Song Contest. It was a huge success and led to the famous stage show.
• 1997: He received a Grammy Award for the Riverdance album.
• 2000: Riverdance opened on Broadway in New York City.
• 2006: He received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Meteor Music Awards.
• 2008: He released his Celtic orchestral album The Connemara Suite.
• 2022: Bill Whelan's autobiography, The Road To Riverdance, was published.

Bill Whelan's Music Contributions

Bill Whelan has played keyboards or helped arrange music on these albums:

• The Woman I Loved So Well (Planxty) (1980)
• Words & Music (Planxty) (1983)
• Rude Awakening (Andy Irvine) (1991)
• East Wind (Andy Irvine & Davy Spillane) (1992)
• The Seville Suite (1992)
• Riverdance: Music from the Show (1995)
• The Connemara Suite (2008)
• Riverdance A Symphonic Suite (2018)