Ciarán Farrell is an Irish composer who has been active in his field since graduating from Trinity College Dublin in 1997. He has composed works for orchestra, ensemble, choir, and solo instruments, as well as for TV and film productions.
History
Farrell was raised in a music-loving household and growing up he studied piano and clarinet at the Royal Irish Academy of Music. In his teens he took up the guitar and later went on to study the classical guitar at the Dublin Institute of TechnologyConservatory of Music and Drama. He received his degree in music from Trinity College, Dublin, and he also took classes with Ennio Morricone at the Accademia Musicale Chigiana in Siena, Italy. He has received commissions from the BBC, RTÉ Performing Groups, RTÉ lyric fm, saxophonist Gerard McChrystal, the Smith Quartet, Katie McMahon, Concorde Contemporary Music Ensemble, and John Feeley, amongst others. He has also worked with Irish dance theatre companies, Cois Ceim and Irish Modern Dance Theatre. Farrell has also worked on numerous TV and film productions including the internationally broadcast series Divine Magic and Eyes on the World. Other production companies he worked with include C4, Discovery Channel, RTÉ, TG4, Littlebird Pictures, Decent Suit and Non Fiction Films. In his early years as a composer he composed music for numerous commercials/inserts including the Heineken and Shell campaigns. The first solo collection of Farrell's music, [|Perfect State], was released on the RTÉ lyric fm label. Less than three weeks after its official launch at the Clarence Hotel in Dublin on 24 September 2007, Perfect State entered the HMV classical charts in Ireland at No. 13 and made its way to No. 1. This album features performances by some of the foremost musicians between Britain and Ireland including the RTÉ Concert Orchestra, Craig Ogden, Gerard McChrystal and the Smith Quartet. His second solo collection, Jolt, was released in December 2011 and features Irish guitarist Damien Kelly. Less than a week after its release on iTunes it made its way to the No. 1 position in the Irish classical iTunes charts. On 7 December 2012 a new album of solo guitar music, 'New Frontiers', was launched at the Royal Irish Academy of Music. The thirteen tracks on the album once again performed by guitarist Damien Kelly include unique new music for bottleneck slide and also music for guitar with digital delay. His music has been released on numerous other CDs including Gerard McChrystal and Craig Ogden's Pluckblow, Music for Saxophone and Guitar, released on the Meridian Records label; Katie McMahon's album Shine, of which he wrote the title track; and John Feeley's album E-Motion, of which the original solo guitar version of "The Shannon Suite" can be heard.
Discography
''Redbrick Duo''
Guitarist Damien Kelly and flautist Jessica Lipstone, , play Farrell's three movement work, 'Three Piece Suite' on this title.
Perfect State, RTÉ lyric fm Composer: Ciarán Farrell. 1. "Perfect State" –RTÉ Concert Orchestra conducted by David Brophy 2. "The Shannon Suite" –Craig Ogden, ; Gerard McChrystal, 3. "Around and About" –Sinead Farrell, ; Roger Moffat, 4. "The Pilgrim's Return" –Smith Quartet; and Gerard McChrystal, 5. "Hopkins on Skellig Michael" –RTÉ Concert Orchestra, conducted by David Brophy; speaker Barry McGovern
''Pluckblow''
Virtuosos Gerard McChrystal and Craig Ogden play an arrangement of Farrell's three movement work, 'The Shannon Suite' on this release.
''E-Motion''
Guitarist John Feeley plays the original solo guitar version of, 'The Shannon Suite' on this title.
''Shine''
Singer Katie McMahon uses Farrell's song 'Shine' as the title piece for this release.
''Contemporary Music from Ireland – vol. 5''
'Source', from Farrell's seven movement orchestral work, 'Hopkins on Skellig Michael' is featured on this CD from the Contemporary Music Centre in Dublin. Performed by the RTÉ Concert Orchestra, conducted by David Brophy; speaker Barry McGovern; poem by Paddy Bushe. The full piece can be heard on, Perfect State.
Press
It's rare to come across contemporary music that's as melodic and appealing as Ciarán Farrell's. – The Daily Mail.
Perfect State is a remarkable body of work. – TV Now.
This first full recording of Ciarán Farrell's offers ample evidence of a productive first decade a jobbing composer, showcasing as it does a vital, fast-maturing voice distinguished by melodic and harmonic fluency and an appreciable facility for writing music that communicates with a clear directness of intent....an accomplished, magnificent and mature work. – JMI – Journal of Music Ireland.
The music on this album is a testament to the vitality of Irish musicians not alone in the rock or traditional sphere but in something totally new. – The Word.
Ciaran Farrell's Shannon Suite sets the standard. – BBC The Complete Guide to Classical Music.
The music of Ciaran Farrell excelled. – Tribune Magazine.
