Seóirse Bodley

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Seóirse Bodley (first name pronounced [ˈʃoːɾˠʃə]; born 4 April 1933) is an Irish composer and former associate professor of music at University College Dublin (UCD). He has been Saoi of Aosdána since 2008.[1]

Biography

Bodley was born in Dublin and studied at the Royal Irish Academy of Music.[2] In 1955, he obtained a Bachelor of Music degree from UCD. From 1957 to 1959, he studied composition and conducting at the Musikhochschule, Stuttgart, and a year later obtained a Doctorate in Music from UCD. From 1959 until his retirement in 1998, Bodley lectured at the university's music department.[3] During the 1960s, Bodley was conductor of the Culwick Choral Society. In 1982, he became a founder-member of Aosdána and was conferred with the distinction of Saoi by President Mary McAleese in November 2008.[4]

Music

Bodley's first significant composition was his Music for Strings, given its première on December 10, 1952 by the Dublin Orchestral Players under the baton of Brian Boydell.[5] Among his subsequent works are seven symphonies, five for full orchestra and two for chamber ensemble.[6] He has also composed a wide range of instrumental and vocal music, including an orchestral piece A Small White Cloud Drifts over Ireland (1975), A Girl, a setting for mezzo soprano and piano of poems by Brendan Kennelly (1978), and four string quartets, the most recent composed in 2007.[7]

Bodley's early compositional style was influenced by Irish traditional music. In the 1960s, following several years at the Darmstadt New Music Summer School, Bodley's music became more avant-garde. For the remainder of the decade, he was, according to the Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians "the principal Irish exponent of post-serial compositional procedures".[7] In more recent years, Bodley's compositions have reflected both Gaelic and European influences. Examples of his mature style can be found in Phantasms (1989), a 20-minute chamber piece for flute, clarinet, harp, and cello, and his String Quartet No. 2 (1992).[7]

Probably Bodley's most widely heard work is his orchestral arrangement of the traditional Irish tune, "The Palatine's Daughter", which was used as the theme music for RTE's rural drama series, The Riordans. He also wrote the music for the RTÉ television series Caught in a Free State.

References

  1. ↑ "Achill artist honoured by President McAleese". Mayo Advertiser. 5 December 2008.
  2. ↑ The Irish Times, "SEOIRSE BODLEY WINS £1,000 MACAULAY FELLOWSHIP", July 2, 1962
  3. ↑ Klein, Axel, Irish Classical Recordings: A Discography of Irish Art Music, Greenwood Press, 2001
  4. ↑ Irish Independent, "Presidential approval for honoured artists", November 25 2008
  5. ↑ The Irish Times, "Symphony Concert", December 11, 1952
  6. ↑ Contemporary Music Centre profile
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Grove Music Online

External links

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