Mystery Man Paul Tiernan at the Coastguard Station

The name of singer songwriter Paul Tiernan was hitherto unknown to me. The poster pic of the artist in top hat and false music hall moustache suggested a performer with a theatrical sensibility and the addition of violinist Marja Gaynor, a major mover and shaker on the classical scene in Cork suggested a performer of some substance. The duo drew an near capacity house to the upstairs gallery at Tramore Coastguard Station on Friday night for a programme of bittersweet, elegant self penned songs (with a few covers) infused with the spirit of French chanson

A skilful player, Tiernan at times used his guitar like a percussion instrument, tapping the strings to release an eerie floating harmonic. His dark wry lyrics and appealing melodies reminded me at times of Randy Newman and Gilbert O Sullivan. He was wonderfully well-aided and abetted by the Gaynor who added mellifluous lines and Grapelli-esque riffs on violin. The whiff of a boulevard was evoked with interludes on a demonic melodica and drones on a gaudy concertina. Gaynor displayed her penchant for early music with a rumbustious Baroque partita.

Local lass, Anna McSweeney was in fine voice accompanying herself on guitar in a short supporting set.

A look through Tienan's biography shows an impressive music pedigree name checking big names among his  collaborators and citing excellent reviews from international music press.  He is promoting his 6th solo album, The Mystery of Others on this tour. If you've not heard him yet, let Paul Tiernan be a mystery to you no longer.  Do catch him on the remaining dates on this tour.


Thurs 25th Feb  White Horse Inn Ballincollig with Grainne Hunt and Marja Gaynor

Thurs 3rd March Hole in the Wall Kilkenny  with Marja Gaynor

Sunday 20th De Barras Clonakilty with The Vespertine Quartet
 

Classy Finnish at the Bello Bar

       Lisa Dowdall John O Brien                                                                                    photo Juraj Jablonka

Kaleidoscope, the monthly classical music salon  has moved to a new base at The Bello Bar at Portobello, Dublin. There was a big Cork contingent in the line up last Wednesday for an evening with a strong Finnish flavour.

Marja Gaynor presided as well as playing violin and viola. We heard Lisa Dowdall play Sibelius' Valse Triste on viola accompanied by John O Brien. John played a charming waltz by Merikanto.  There were polskas from a viola duo and Baltic Folk inspired jazz from a quartet with Carolyn Goodwin and Franco Turrisi.

Most intriguing was a preview of a brand new opera by John O Brien based on Wilde's story, The Nightingale and the Rose with singers Camilla Griehsel and Mark Chambers. It is hoped that it will come to production in The Everyman in 2017.  I look forward to it.

Punk Baroque Delight : Dido and Aeneas Cork

The production  of Dido and Aeneas at Cork Opera House last night combined superb singing with innovative staging, inventive orchestration to produce a fresh contemporary take on the English Baroque opera classic.
Originally produced  in 17th century for a London  girls' school, it is  rare gem in that it combines an English libretto and with loads of singable tunes and remains for me  one of the most appealing and accessible works in the genre . Although frequently performed as a concert piece ( my review of  Waterford International Music Festival here) , in this fully staged production, director John O Brien places the action in a Gothic world intensified by the extreme angles of a set of giant geometric shapes which rotate and glide throughout the production combined with projected nocturnal skyscapes.  The lighting is subdued exaggerating the shadows and intensifying the dark world of seething emotion.

While the staging is impressive, the most innovative aspect of the production  is in the treatment of the orchestration.  There is no need to book a ticket near the front if you like to peer into the pit. The curtains open with the musicians on stage in gothic costumes elevated from their usual position in the pit to taking on the role of  all singing, dancing players . The original string orchestration by violinist Marja Gaynor is rejigged for a  salon ensemble of violin/viola, clarinet/sax. accordion and cello all performed theatrically from memory , quite a feat.  The baroque elements are mixed with other genres in the musical cauldron and there is a strong whiff of Klezmer with the high clarinet and sax lines. The tango treatment of one of the numbers reminded me of the orchestration of Roxanne in Baz Luhrman's  Moulin Rouge   It is a tight ensemble piece with eight players in total.  Cara O Sullivan looks suitably regal and also sings role of sorceress as an altar ego. It is lovely to hear two local divas of international standing with Mary Hegarty playing Belinda.  A punk looking Catrin Johnsson  completes the  coven . Simon Morgan recently seen in Opera in the Open (my review here)  sings the role of  heart breaker Aeneas , the jaunty sailor and spooky spirit, the latter a device requiring him to sing while operating a ghostly ventriloquists dummy .
All elements old and new combine to produce a theatrical delight that should work really well on the festival circuit in medium sized theatres with flytowers.

Irish Times Review here