The St James' Lunchtime Concert on Wednesday the 6th of November at 1:15pm is 'Creatures and Landscapes' presented by Daniel Kearney - Piano. Tickets are $10.

This programme is an exploration of the unique and creative ways in which composers have used music and the piano to describe the sights and sounds of nature. Utilizing the perspectives of many different genres including baroque, romanticism, impressionism and folk music, the performer and listener will go on a journey together through time and place. A swan on a French river, a Russian Lark, A volcano overlooking the sea in Indonesia, chattering monkeys beside a lake, the soft glow of twilight. These pieces and many more will invite the listener to let their imagination run wild and to enjoy the genius effects, harmonies and rhythms that the composers have used to bring nature to life through music.

Programme:

'Sheep May Safely Graze' BWV 208 - J. S. Bach (1685-1750) transcribed for solo piano by Egon Petri (1881-1962)

The Swan - Camille Saint-Saëns (1835-1921) transcribed for solo piano by Leopold Godowsky (1870-1938)

The Lark - Mikhail Glinka (1804-1857) transcribed for solo piano by Mily Balakirev (1837-1910)

'Chattering Monkeys at the sacred lake of Wendit' from the Java Suite - Leopold Godowsky

At Twilight, Op. 111 - Mel Bonis (1858-1937)

'We’ll No Longer Go To the Woods' from Images Oubliées - Claude Debussy (1862-1918)

Autumn Moon on a Calm Lake - Chen Peixun (1921-2006)

Ritual Fire Dance - Manuel De Falla (1876-1946)

Zephyr, Bringer of Spring, Op. 57 no. 4 - Moritz Moszkowski (1854-1925)

'The Bromo Volcano and the Sand Sea at Daybreak' from the Java Suite - Leopold Godowsky

Daniel Kearney is an Irish classical pianist from Dungarvan, Co. Waterford. After having studied with some of Ireland’s most prominent concert pianists including John O’Conor and Finghin Collins he went on to win numerous national competitions including the Cross Border Orchestra of Ireland’s Soloist competition. After this competition he performed in an arena tour of Ireland with the orchestra, playing to a total of almost 38,000 people. He was also a recipient of the inaugural William Finlay Award for gifted young pianists from the Dublin International Piano Competition which included masterclasses, mentorship and a recital in the John Field Room of the National Concert Hall, Dublin. Having been selected for a number of internation masterclass programmes including the Schiermonnikoog Island Jong Talent Festival in The Netherlands and the Aurora Festival in Sweden, he went on to receive a full scholarship from from the Royal College of Music, Sweden, for six masterclasses conducted over zoom with professor Peter Jablonsky during the Covid 19 pandemic. Some of Daniel’s festival appearances include a recital in the Large Room at City Hall, Waterford, as part of the Imagine Arts Festival, a recital in Freemason’s Hall, Dublin, as part of the Royal Irish Academy of Music’s festival celebrating the 150th year since Debussy’s birth and a performance aboard the Dunbrody Famine Ship, as part of the opening of the New Ross Piano Festival. Daniel was awarded the Ted and Mary O’Regan Arts Bursary from Waterford Youth Arts which funded a recital tour of Europe which included performances in Helsinki, London, Paris, and Edinburgh as part of the Fringe Festival. In the Autumn of 2022 he received the Agility Award from the Arts Council of Ireland which is a bursary designed to help professional freelance artists further their careers.