The Arts Council have invited That’s Life to showcase our band Electric Dreams at this year’s Festival Makers Conference! The event will be in Galway Rowing Club on May 11, hope to see you there!
Category: Disability Arts
‘New Arrival’ – In Flow album launch
Very proud to be finally launching ‘New Arrival’, the album of new original music composed and performed in collaboration with In Flow gamelan ensemble! Also launching on the night is the wonderful documentary on the project by AMW Visual.
This Wednesday 25 May, 7pm at Nuns Island Theatre
A lot of work has gone into this, more than any other individual project I have ever been involved in!
I have been working together with That’s Life on In Flow since 2015. After taking on the facilitation of the ensemble in 2017 I collaborated with six musicians with intellectual disability to develop improvisational techniques and compose music which showcased this. This culminated in performances at Galway Jazz Festival and in the recording of this album.
This project is truly incredible and the dedication, creativity and focus that all the musicians involved have put into this cannot be understated. It is a massive achievement for all involved and I could not be more proud of everyone!
As with everything That’s Life is involved in, this truly is Arts & Disability at its finest. This could not have happened without the generous and continued support of all the funders, and I want to give my thanks in particular to Arts Council Ireland, Galway City Council and Galway and Roscommon ETB.
Interviewed by RTE Entertainment about Electric Dreams
Beyond chuffed to see this brilliant write-up on Electric Dreams yesterday in Entertainment on RTÉ!
I was interviewed by Harry Guerin about our approach to making music, and I meant everything I said. Inclusion is deeply important in our society and we really want that message to come across in our music.
Hotpress review of ‘Behind the Mask’
Delighted that Hotpress Magazine have given a glowing review for Electric Dreams’ album ‘Behind the Mask’
Lucy O’ Toole wrote “ As well as boldly breaking down barriers through their music, with Behind The Mask Electric Dreams have crafted one of the catchiest and thrillingly original Irish pop albums of recent memory. “
Electric Dreams album out now!
‘Behind The Mask’ out now
Electric Dreams bring their unique brand of feel-good grooves and catchy hooks to the table with their debut album ‘Behind The Mask’. A diverse bunch, the band’s sound sits snugly in between pop, RnB and indie, and their music comes with a message of inclusion and community.
Crisp beats, sparkly guitars and melodic synths come together with upbeat lyrics to make for an unforgettable sound. Entirely written and recorded by the band in their Galway-based studio, the six track album was polished off by veteran producer Bob Macciochi of SC Mastering, UK.
Electric Dreams are supported by That’s Life; the award-winning arts programme of the Brothers of Charity Services, Galway. That’s Life offers people with intellectual disability opportunities to discover and realise their artistic potential, through working with established artists and participating in high-quality arts programmes.
In Flow – a huge success at GJF 2019!
Thanks to everyone who came down to the In Flow shows last week at Galway Jazz Festival! Was an absolute blast performing with the whole ensemble, which featured the wonderful Matthew Jacobson on drums, as well as Andrew Madec, Simon Kenny and Alain Halimi!
AMW Visual also did an absolutely amazing job on the visuals and documentary.
Thanks to the whole team at Galway Jazz Festival for having us, Ellen Cranitch, Ciarán Ryan and Matthew Berrill did a fantastic job on putting together the best festival yet!
Huge thanks to That’s Life, Arts Council Ireland and Galway and Roscommon ETB for their generous support and funding for the project. Onward and upward for In Flow!
Invited by Arts Council Ireland to showcase ‘In Flow’
Absolutely thrilled and highly honoured to have been invited to do a showcase performance with ‘In Flow‘ at Places Matter 2019, the Arts Council Ireland conference on building inclusion in the arts!
Â
Inclusivity in the arts is something which I and everyone at That’s Life feel very passionately about, and we are delighted with this wonderful opportunity.
Â
We will perform tomorrow with the eight-piece gamelan ensemble plus guest Matthew Jacobson on drums, really looking forward to it!
Â
Thanks to Arts Council and Galway City Arts Office for their funding support, without it this inclusive arts project would not be possible.
‘Play, Explore, Perform’ music making workshops with That’s Life
I will begin work very soon on my workshops for which I have received the Arts Participation Bursary Award 2017.
Applicants should have a keen interest in music and be available for workshops in Galway City on
Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10.30am-3pm. Auditions will take place at That’s Life Studio,
Woodlands Centre, Renmore on Tuesday 24th October from 10.30am-12.30pm.
For all enquiries and to register for auditions, please contact Andrew Madec on 086-1527040.
Arts Participation Bursary Award 2017
It is my great honour to announce that I have been awarded the Arts Participation Bursary Award 2017 by Arts Council Ireland!
I am very aware of how competitive the landscape is in Ireland for artistic funding, so I am simply overwhelmed with joy (and totally chuffed) that the Arts Council have deemed me worthy of this bursary. It will support me to develop my arts practice to a degree that wouldn’t be possible otherwise, and for that I am so grateful to them.
My proposal is to explore and develop improvisation as a tool to make music with a group of adults with intellectual disability. Over the course of a year, I will continue working with That’s Life​, the amazing organisation who time after time deliver innovative arts projects involving adults with ID. They have pledged an enormous level of support in this proposal, I wish to acknowledge this and thank them from the bottom of my heart.
There were a great many other people who contributed to this huge proposal and application. Too many to name here, but I thank them greatly too.
I will be sharing more details about the proposal as I begin working on it, but for now..CELEBRATIONS!
