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The always incredible New Music Dublin festival r
eturns for 2024, stretching over the four days of the 25th to the 28th of April. In partnership with the National Concert Hall, Culture Ireland and the Arts Council of Ireland, and Directed by Red Note Ensemble composer/director John Harris, the festival once again has summoned an exhaustively inventive lineup of composers, ensembles and organizations from across the country and indeed, the globe. WORDS Adhamh O’Caoimh “We don’t just host a festival; we create a space where the new, the unknown, and the unheard can flourish,” John Harris explains. “Our programme is a testament to the vibrant creativity alive in Ireland and around the world, offering something truly new for everyone.” This year’s festival promises a host of premieres including ambient and classical masterminds A Winged Victory for the Sullen. Attendees can also look forward to the National Symphony Orchestra performing Jóhann Jóhannsson’s Symphony, A Prayer to the Dynamo, and a further two world premieres from the RTÉ Concert Orchestra. A Prayer to the Dynamo, Jóhannsson’s final symphony, was inspired by his fascination with technology, and in particular field recordings he made at Iceland’s Elliðaár power plant. Underpinned by the hypnotic reverberations of these recordings, Jóhannsson’s masterwork precedes a set from two of his contemporaries and collaborators, celebrated, archetypical ambient music duo, A Winged Victory For The Sullen. Elsewhere, the best vocalist Ireland has ever produced, Iarla Ó Lionáird, will be performing as a soloist alongside the National Symphony Orchestra. Ó Lionáird is the featured soloist in Buckley’s Tuile agus Trá, which forms the centerpiece of a programme which opens with SLEEPTALKER by 2023 recipient of the NCH Jerome Hynes Young Composer Award Robin Haigh and closes with Crash Ensemble founder and famed composer, Donnacha Dennehy’s Violin Concerto performed by internationally acclaimed soloist Stephen Waarts brings the evening to a thrilling conclusion. Also returning, Brian Irvine’s Totally Made Up Orchestra will be performing their inclusive and always-surprising musical tradition at New Music Dublin. A recurring highlight of the New Music Dublin lineup, The Totally Made Up Orchestra is a group that blends composition, improvisation, words, sounds, movements, noise, gesture, humour to result in this unique and captivating performance. Led by composer Brian Irvine, musicians and music lovers “of any age, any instrument and any ability are encouraged to join this ‘beautiful, monster, music machine phenomenon’, the only requirements being a desire to be heard and to make music with others, 21