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Vincent Kennedy is one of Ireland’s leading composer-conductors. His music has been performed across the world and he travels regularly with his music. Vincent received his earliest music education in Trumpet and at an early age he won the National Music Competition in Trumpet for under 18s and became the youngest member of the Irish National Youth Orchestra. Aged 14 he won adult national music competition (Feis Ceoil) in Trumpet playing and was performing Trumpet with the Irish National Symphony Orchestra when aged 19. As a composer Vincent came to prominence when he won RTÉ Music Prize for his composition Soliloquy and March in Memory of Michael O’Hehir.
In 2009 the Dublin Philharmonic Orchestra premiered Vincent’s work for Violin and Orchestra Dreams in New York as part of a 48 City concert tour of USA. Vincent conducted the European premiere in Tirana in 2017 and the Irish Government asked Vincent to prepare a hand written score of the slow movement which was placed inside a time capsule on the Viking ship the Sea Stallion along with other artefacts when it visited Dublin. The time capsule will remain with the Sea Stallion at Roskilde, Denmark for 250 years. Vincent conducted a brilliant performance of his music The Chronicles of Meath, described by many as one of the highlights of the 12th World Harp Congress in Sydney.
For the 14th World Harp Congress Cardiff, Vincent has been commissioned to write music for the Ensemble Telyn Cymru (100 Welsh Harps Ensemble) based on Dylan Thomas’s poem Fern Hill for performance at Wales Millennium Centre. His music What’s a Heaven For? (2006) commissioned by the Rathfarnham Concert Band Society was performed at the World Association of Symphonic Bands and Ensembles (WASBE) and is a test piece in the National Band Championships in Ireland. Vincent’s 2nd violin Concerto Dóchas, Grá agus Suaimhneas, Saoirse was premiered in France in January 2018 commissioned and performed by Marie Cantagrill and the Orchestre Chambre D’Arriege. He has just completed a piano trio for the Greek Galan Trio (http://www.galantrio.com/) who recorded his previous piano trio in 2018.
Vincent describes his compositions as music of people and place and the titles of his works, particularly his commissioned works, are testament to this. These include Legends and Lore (2018) a music cantata which resulted from a Creative Ireland award through South Dublin County Council, the premier of which he conducted to a sold out Dublin Civic Theatre recently. A CD of this work (his 9th CD of musical works) has just been released. Other music include Tommy Donnybrook, Symphony Number 1 - The Hook - A Place and A People, Dublin – Overture to My City ,The Kilcormac Cantata and The Wicklow W. Vincent has also been commissioned as part of the peace process in Ireland and his works The Winds of Change and Where the North Wind Blows were performed by cross border, cross generational groups. Other works include The Happy Prince a setting of Oscar Wilde’s children’s story with Little John Nee for Orchestra and youth choir. In 2013 Vincent was commissioned to write music to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the death of President John F Kennedy. Following this Vincent completed and conducted the concert stage performance of a complete cantata called John F. Kennedy - The Torch Still Burns Brightly.
Because of his association and reputation with the symphonic wind band movement at home and abroad Vincent was a member of the International Jury at the 2018 Italian Flicorno d'Oro which is one of Europe’s largest and most prestigious wind band music competitions. He is also a member of the Artistic Committee of the 2021 GMBC - Genève Music Band Contest. In July 2018 Vincent was in France as a member of the jury of the Marie Cantagrill International Violin competition.
Vincent has set the words of The Canticle of Creation by Saint Francis in ten songs for Harp, Soprano and Trumpet. This setting was commissioned by the Irish Franciscans and toured Ireland in 2017. It was also performed during the visit of Pope Francis to Dublin in August 2018 at the time of the World Meeting of Families. In 2016 Vincent was commissioned to compose IRISHMEN AND IRISHWOMEN for Orchestra for the celebration and remembrance of the 1916 Easter Rising. This is a 40 minute, 13 movement work for Orchestra and Chorus that closed a yearlong national remembrance of the 1916 Easter Rising in April 2017. That live concert performance has recently been released on CD.
The movement called Arbour Hill is often heard performed by the RTÉ Concert Orchestra. In addition to his conducting engagements and directing workshops at home and abroad, Vincent is the musical director of the Rathfarnham Concert Band Society and the Donegal Youth Orchestra and has demonstrated a very strong commitment to working with young people in music. The Donegal Youth Orchestra will be giving the world premiere of a major Colmcille suite by Vincent in Donegal in 2021. This project is being supported by Creative Ireland and Donegal County Council and is a significant part of the Colmcille1500 celebrations. Vincent is also preparing his scores for a recording he will conduct and produce with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra later this year. Vincent is completing a number of chamber music commissions for international groups to add to the ever increasing performances of his chamber music world wide which includes his Meditation on the Book of Kells from his suite for Oboe, Cello and Harp.
