David Flynn (composer) facts for kids
David Flynn (also known as Dave Flynn, born in 1977) is an Irish composer and musician. He is also the founder and artistic director of the Irish Memory Orchestra.
Many of his musical pieces mix traditional Irish music with modern classical music and jazz. Dave is a talented multi-instrumentalist. He plays many types of music, including classical, jazz, rock, and traditional Irish music. His main instrument is the guitar.
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Early Musical Journey
Dave Flynn grew up in Dublin, Ireland. When he was younger, he briefly learned piano and tin whistle. But it was in his early teenage years that he truly fell in love with music. He taught himself to play rock guitar.
Later, he became interested in classical guitar. He learned to read music and played classical guitar by listening to recordings. At just 16 years old, he wrote his first piece for classical guitar.
After finishing school in 1995, Dave studied rock music in Dublin. Around this time, he started writing songs. He performed at local gigs, where other famous musicians like Glen Hansard also started out. Later, he developed a strong interest in traditional Irish music. He learned this music from recordings and workshops at Irish music festivals.
Learning Music Formally
In 1998, Dave began studying classical music at the DIT Conservatory of Music and Drama. He first studied classical guitar part-time. In 1999, he joined the full-time music degree course, focusing on composition.
Dave became very dedicated to composing. In 2002, he won the IMRO Composition Award for his string orchestra piece called Mesh. While at DIT, he also helped start the Dublin Guitar Quartet. He left the quartet in 2003 to move to London. There, he became the first person from Ireland to be accepted into the master's degree in Composition at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. He earned his master's degree in 2004.
He returned to DIT in 2006 to work on a PhD. His research was about how traditional Irish music could lead to new music. He finished his PhD in 2010.
Becoming a Professional Composer
Early 2000s Works
Dave Flynn started his professional composing career in the early 2000s. Other musicians and groups performed his music. He also played many of his own guitar pieces. His music from this time was often inspired by composers like John Adams and Philip Glass.
In 2004, Dave's string quartet piece Slip was chosen for a workshop at the Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival. This led to him winning the Young Composers Award. As part of his prize, he was asked to expand Slip into his String Quartet No. 2 "The Cranning". This piece was performed in 2005 and received praise from critics. They noted how he included traditional Irish music without making it sound like a movie soundtrack.
Music critic Michael Dervan wrote that Flynn was trying to bring traditional Irish music into classical string quartet music. He said that parts of the performance of this minimalist-influenced work came together perfectly.
In 2004, Dave also helped create the Young Composers Collective (YCC) in Ireland. He wrote an article saying that older music groups were not supporting young composers enough. This article caused some discussion. But it helped the YCC give many new young composers a chance to have their music played. The YCC later became the Irish Composers' Collective.
In 2005, Dave caused more discussion with his article "Looking for the Irish Bartók." He asked why established Irish classical composers were not working with traditional Irish music and musicians. Even though some older composers criticized his ideas, traditional Irish musicians liked his article. This led to Dave connecting with the famous traditional Irish fiddler Martin Hayes and guitarist Dennis Cahill.
In 2006, the Masters of Tradition Festival asked Dave to write a piece for Hayes, Cahill, and classical violinist Ioana Petcu-Colan. The piece, called Music for the Departed, was first performed at the festival in August 2006. When it was performed in New York in 2010, it was called "A magnificent new work."
2010s and Beyond
Dave Flynn continued to work with Martin Hayes on other projects. In 2010, Hayes performed Aontacht, a concerto for Irish fiddle and orchestra. This was with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra in Ireland's National Concert Hall. A new version of Music for the Departed was also played, with a string orchestra added.
Critics praised Aontacht. One reviewer said that Dave's writing showed he had studied Hayes's music for years. They also noted how the piece pushed the fiddle player into new musical areas.
Dave kept creating new concert works with traditional Irish musicians. These included The Forest of Ornaments for flautist Harry Bradley and Five Études for Uilleann Pipes for uilleann piper Mick O'Brien. These pieces were first performed at the 2011 Masters of Tradition Festival.
In 2014, the Crash Ensemble performed Dave's piece "Joy." Dave and Niwel Tsumbu were the electric guitar soloists.
This was followed by his first opera, "Mná Brian Boru." It was commissioned to celebrate 1000 years since the death of Brian Boru, an ancient Irish king. This opera used the traditional Irish sean nós style of singing instead of classical opera singing. It was performed in both English and Irish.
Also in 2014, Dave released a solo electric guitar album called "Winter Variations."
In 2016, "Calmly Awaiting the End" was first performed. This piece for uilleann pipes and string quartet was composed after Dave won the Éamonn Ceannt Commission Competition. It was later chosen by RTÉ to represent Ireland at the 2017 International Rostrum of Composers.
In 2019, Dave Flynn became the first Composer-in-Residence at Farmleigh, Ireland's state guest house. For this role, he wrote two new works. He also created the Farmleigh Music and Arts Festival.
The Irish Memory Orchestra
In 2012, Dave Flynn started the Clare Memory Orchestra. This unique orchestra combines musicians trained in classical music, traditional Irish music, jazz, and other styles. In 2016, it was renamed the Irish Memory Orchestra. The orchestra performs Dave's compositions and arrangements entirely from memory, without sheet music.
In 2013, Dave composed 'The Clare Concerto'. This hour-long orchestral work was first performed by a 70-piece Clare Memory Orchestra. This project earned Dave and the orchestra an award nomination.
The Irish Memory Orchestra often features well-known Irish musicians as guests. These include accordionist Máirtín O'Connor and fiddler Liz Carroll. The orchestra's string section has musicians skilled in both Irish fiddle and classical string techniques. The wind section mixes uilleann pipes, wooden flute, tin whistle, and oboe. The rhythm section includes Irish Harp, Guitar, Double Bass, and Percussion, including the bodhrán (a native Irish drum). The horn section features ancient Irish horns alongside modern instruments. Niamh Varian-Barry, a former lead singer of the group Solas, is the orchestra leader.
In 2017, Dave finished his first symphony, "The Memory Symphony." This symphony is special because it was written to be played without sheet music. It can also include any musical instrument. It was first performed by the orchestra and guest Mairtin O'Connor in Dublin's Christchurch Cathedral.
He completed two more symphonies in 2019: "The Clare Symphony" and "The Vision Symphony." "The Vision Symphony" was created to help blind and vision-impaired musicians perform with orchestras. Its first performance, featuring the Irish Memory Orchestra and blind musicians, was praised as "boundary breaking."
Based in County Clare, the orchestra has performed at festivals in Korea and Moscow. They have also played at the National Concert Hall in Dublin with Martin Hayes and the RTÉ Concert Orchestra.
Other Works and Publications
Besides his work with traditional musicians, Dave Flynn's music is performed by classical musicians and groups worldwide. These include the Prague Chamber Orchestra and the Dublin Guitar Quartet.
Violinist Irina Muresanu recorded Dave's solo violin piece "Tar Éis an Caoineadh" on her 2018 album. She often performs it in her concerts, and it has received great reviews.
Dave's music has also been featured on radio shows in New York and Ireland. His main publisher is his own company, Frisbee Publications. Some of his guitar works are also published by Mel Bay and Reed Music.
Traditional Music Career
Beyond composing and playing classical guitar, Dave Flynn regularly performs traditional Irish music. His first recording, 'Draíocht', was released in 2006. It mixes traditional Irish music with new compositions and songs. Many of the songs were co-written with poet Pádraic Ó'Beírn. Critics praised 'Draíocht' as a surprising and interesting debut.
Dave's second album, Contemporary Traditional Irish Guitar, came out in 2009. This album features solo guitar versions of music by famous 20th-century traditional Irish composers like Paddy Fahey and Liz Carroll. It also includes one of Dave's own pieces, The Mahatma of the Glen. The album received good reviews from both folk and classical music magazines.
As a traditional guitar accompanist, Dave Flynn has played with many well-known Irish traditional musicians. These include Martin Hayes, Paddy Glackin, and Máirtín O'Connor.
Personal Life
Dave Flynn lives in both Ireland and New Zealand. He divides his time between these countries with his wife, Celia.
Awards
- 2002 – IMRO Composition Award, Feis Ceoil, Dublin
- 2004 – Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival Composers' Award – For the String Quartet Work 'The Cranning'
- 2015 – Allianz Business to Arts Award with the Irish Memory Orchestra and ESB
- 2016 – Eamon Ceannt Memorial Commission Competition Winner
- 2019 – Galway Music Residency Commission Winner
Recordings
- Draíocht (2006)
- Contemporary Traditional Irish Guitar (2009)
- Winter Variations – New Music for Electric Guitar (2014)
- D.F.F. – Pouric Songs (2014)
- Shadowplay – New Irish Music for Flute and Guitar (2016)
- Genre Jumping – The Best of Dave Flynn Vol. 1 – Chamber Music (2017)
- Genre Jumping – The Best of Dave Flynn Vol. 2 – Celtic Strings (2017)
- Genre Jumping – The Best of Dave Flynn Vol. 3 – Indie Pop (2017)
- Stories from the Old World – Music for Strings, Pipes and Voices (2018)
- Dun Laoghaire Guitars (2020)
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