Vincent O'Brien (composer)
Vincent O'Brien (9 May 1871 – 21 June 1948), Irish organist, music teacher and composer. O'Brien was an important figure in early 20th-century Irish music. For some, he is mainly known as the first teacher of singers such as
Life
O'Brien was born in
He was the founding conductor of the Dublin Oratorio Society (1906), the Brisan Opera Company (1916) and conducted at many ad hoc events. In 1925, he became the first music director of
Among his teaching positions, he taught at the diocesan seminary at
In 1932, O'Brien received a doctorate honoris causa from the National University of Ireland.
Of his two sons, Oliver O'Brien (1922–2001) largely followed in his father's footsteps, as organist and director of the Palestrina Choir, of Our Lady's Choral Society, music teacher at Carysfort College and as teacher in various Dublin schools.[7] Vincent's other son Colum O'Brien was organist in the Pro-Cathedral.
Music
Before his work for the Palestrina Choir, O'Brien's musical interests were very broad, culminating in 1893 in the composition of the full-scale opera Hester. As a church music composer, he followed Cecilian ideals, with a number of hymns, motets and other choral works. He also composed a number of songs for voice and piano, with The Fairy Tree (1930) being a particular favourite of John McCormack's.
Selected compositions
Opera
- Hester (Dublin, May 1893)
Choral
- Oft in the Stilly Night (Thomas Moore) for male choir (1904)
- An Easter Hymn (biblical) for tenor, chorus, organ or orchestra (1910)
- A Lament (An mangaire súgach) for male choir (1913)
- Hymn to Christ the King (E.P. Donnelly) for tenor, mixed chorus, organ (c.1932)
- Three Motets (biblical) for male choir (c.1940). Contains: Ecce sacerdos magnus; Justorum animae; Terra tremuit.[8]
- The Crib (R. O'Farachain) for voice, chorus, piano (1943)
- Cór na scol [14 choral pieces ed. from traditional melodies] (c.1943)
Orchestral
- Gaelic Phantasy (c.1927)
- Ceol sreath (1940) for piano and string orchestra
- Fáilte don éan (1941) for piano and string orchestra
- Miniature Overture (n.d.)
- Three Irish Tunes (n.d.)
Songs
- A Song for the Pope ('Dr Murray') (1893)
- The Fairy Fiddler (Nora Hopper) (1929)
- The Fairy Tree (Temple Lane) (1930)
- Baby Aroon (M. O'Brien) (1935)
- Green Isle of Glory (Michael Courtenay Burke) (1938)
Recordings
Historical recordings (gramophone re-issues on CD)
- The Fairy Tree, recorded by John McCormack (tenor) with Edwin Schneider (piano), originally recorded in 1930, on: John McCormack: The Minstrel Boy, ASV Living Era CD AJA 5224 (CD, 1997).
- Baby Aroon, recorded by John McCormack (tenor) with Edwin Schneider (piano), originally recorded in 1935, on: John McCormack: I Hear You Calling Me, Symposium Records 1166 (CD, 1998).
Modern recordings
- The Fairy Tree, recorded by Robert White (tenor) with Stephen Hough (piano), on: Bird Songs at Eventide, Hyperion CDA 66818 (CD, 1995).
- The Fairy Tree, recorded by Bernadette Greevy (mezzo) with Hugh Tinney (piano), on: A Sheaf of Songs from Ireland, Marco Polo 8.225098 (CD, 1998).
References
- ^ "O'Brien, Vincent", Dictionary of Irish Biography
- ^ Axel Klein: Die Musik Irlands im 20. Jahrhundert (Hildesheim: Georg Olms Verlag, 1996), p. 442.
- ^ Kieran Daly: "O'Brien, Vincent", in: The Encyclopaedia of Music in Ireland, ed. Harry White & Barra Boydell (Dublin: UCD Press, 2013), p. 743.
- ^ Kehoe (2017), chapters 3 and 4; see Bibliography.
- ^ Daly (2013), p. 744; see Bibliography.
- ^ Daly (2013), p. 744; see Bibliography.
- ^ Choir Chiefs death ends century of family link Irish Independent, 19 September 2001.
- ISBN 1-851-82-507-X.
Bibliography
- Kieran Daly: Catholic Church Music in Ireland, 1878–1903. The Cecilian Reform Movement (Dublin: Four Courts Press, 1995), ISBN 1-85182-204-6(paperback).
- Axel Klein: Die Musik Irlands im 20. Jahrhundert (Hildesheim: Georg Olms Verlag, 1996), ISBN 3-487-10196-3.
- Kieran Daly: "O'Brien, Vincent", in: The Encyclopaedia of Music in Ireland, ed. Harry White & Barra Boydell (Dublin: UCD Press, 2013), p. 743–744.
- P. J. Kehoe: The Evolution of the Radio Éireann Symphony Orchestra, 1926–1954 (Doctoral thesis, Dublin: DIT, 2017), https://arrow.dit.ie/appadoc/87.