Frank Corcoran

irish composer

IRISH TIMES 18 MARCH 2015 ON FRANK CORCORAN’S CELLO CONCERTO

In between, the orchestra’s principal cellist, Martin Johnson, gave the first performance of Frank Corcoran’s Cello

Concerto.

Corcoran long ago established a reputation as being something of a wild man, musically speaking, among Irish

composers. Rawness and roughness are his stock in trade. He prefers the jagged, the shrill, the disruptive to the

smooth, the sweet or the calming.

His note about the new concerto refers to the idea of the solo instrument singing in all registers. On a first

hearing it sounds as if his concern to allow the cello breathing space has created something of a Jekyll and Hyde

effect, with the orchestral ranting standing distinctly apart from the cello’s often more plaintive cries.

mdervan@irishtimes.com

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