Seán Doherty (composer)
| Seán Doherty | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1987 |
| Occupation | Composer |
| Works | List of compositions |
| Home town | Derry |
| Website | http://seandohertymusic.co.uk/ |
Seán Doherty (born 1987) is an Irish composer, musicologist and singer from Derry.
Life
Doherty was taught by such performers as James Byrne, Tommy Peoples, and Liz Doherty — the latter introducing him to the fiddle music of Shetland, Norway, and Nova Scotia. Though studying classical violin with Michael d'Arcy, he felt his interest shift towards choral music, and consequently sang with the Ulster Youth Choir, Codetta Chamber Choir, The Beboys, Emmanuel College Cambridge Chapel Choir, Opera Ireland chorus, the choir of St Patrick’s Cathedral, Dublin, and New Dublin Voices.
Doherty read music at St John's College, Cambridge, where both Roger Parker and Stefano Castelvecchi served as his director of studies. At Cambridge he began to study voice formally with Stuart MacIntyre, and in Dublin with Robert Alderson. He became interested in the problems associated with notated accidentals in fifteenth-century manuscripts. This led to his postgraduate proposal to Trinity College, Dublin, where he completed his Ph.D. under the supervision of Andrew Johnstone.
Solfaing, the subject of his thesis, became standard in England during the seventeenth century, and was later transmitted to America by the vogue for metrical-psalm singing. It still thrives throughout America in the 'Sacred Harp' shape-note tradition. A grant allowed him to conduct research in the American south, where he worked from archival sources and sang with groups of shape-note singers. In addition to his research activities, Doherty lectures at Trinity College, Dublin, and has written for the Encyclopaedia of Music in Ireland (Dublin, 2013).
Doherty won the Feis Ceoil's choral composition competition in 2009 and 2011. In 2010, he was awarded a prize at the inaugural Early Music Scholars Competition in San Francisco. His work was one of five shortlisted items performed by the Chalice Consort under guest directors Davitt Moroney, Jeremy Summerly, David Trendell, and Geoffrey Webber. In 2011, he won the Jerome Hynes Composition Competition.
He received commissions to write pieces for the 2012 London Olympics and for the city of Derry/Londonderry in 2013. Also in 2012, he won the St Giles's Cathedral Edinburgh composition competition and the Choir and Organ Magazine composition competition.
Doherty is a member of the Irish Composers' Collective[1] and the Association of Irish Composers,[2] and is represented by the Contemporary Music Centre, Ireland.[3]