Lecturer in Popular Music

MA, BSc, ARIAM

David studied piano, violin, viola, clarinet, chamber music, orchestra, choir, theory and harmony at the Royal Irish Academy of Music for over 18 years and was awarded the Coulson scholarship and A.R.I.A.M, before plunging into a busy career that to date has included work as M.D., orchestrator, keyboard player and producer in Theatre, Radio, Music Tech, TV, Studio and Education.

He spent 3 years with Riverdance - The Show as Musical Director and subsequently Production Director with responsibility for the artistic well-being of all three touring productions worldwide.

In addition, he produced the soundtrack for the multi-million selling DVD -  Riverdance – Live at Radio City Music Hall N.Y.

Recording credits include work with Irish luminaries such as Donal Lunny, Davy Spillane, Sinead O Connor, Phil Coulter, Brian Kennedy, Declan Masterson, Van Morrison, Kate Bush, Sharon Shannon, Brendan Power, Liam O Connor , Noel Eccles, Tommy Fleming, Gavin James, Danny O Reilly, Ryan Sheridan, Paul Walsh (Royseven) and Bressie.

Film credits include Circle Of Friends, Some Mother’s Son and co-composer for The Sun, Moon and Stars (Blue Light Productions) and Up The Country (Asylum Productions).  Additionally he has provided soundtracks for several award winning documentaries by Kairos Productions and was responsible for the production music and opening sequences of two Eurovision Song Contests – 1994 & 1995 with live viewerships in excess of 200 million each.

Theatre credits include a commission to score the Abbey Theatre’s production of The Hostage and he conducted two chamber operas by Michael Scott based on Yeats’ plays – Purgatory and The Dreaming of the Bones. 

David is a multi-award winning MD in musical theatre and has also scored the orchestrations for eight original musicals – the latest being Find Your Way Home  - which premiered at Symphony Hall, NY, in July 2017.

He was Musical Director and Supervisor for all five series of RTE’s The Voice and Series 1 of Dancing With The Stars – for Screentime Shinawil and RTE and has also worked with and for, BBC NI and UTV.

He has held MD/ Supervisor positions at most of the major theatres in Ireland including Cork Opera House, The Olympia, The Gaiety Theatre, The Abbey Theatre, National Concert Hall, Wexford Opera House, Belfast Opera House, Millenium Forum, (Derry) and The 3 Arena.

He was MD and Producer for singer Tommy Fleming for 20 years, touring internationally and arranging and producing 15 albums including the now 20 times platinum Voice of Hope, and four live DVD’s, including several with the RTECO and for Universal Music Ireland. In fact, David has played with and orchestrated for both the RTECO and the RTE National Symphony Orchestra. And in 2017 he provided Orchestrations for RTECO with Jenny Greene.

He has also engaged by international stars such as Josh Groban, Gary Barlow, Paul Potts and Frankie Valli for their Irish tours, in addition to production work for Kelly Clarkson (X-Factor UK) and Prodijig (both Footstorm and Revolution ).

2006 saw him collaborate as co-composer of the soundtrack for the cartoon Zombie Hotel,  a 28 episode cartoon series for French company Alphanim - which was broadcast worldwide, including - UK (BBC), Australia (ABC2), Canada (Tele-Quebec), France (France3),  Russia (REN TV), Europe (Disney Channel) and America (HBO).

He has been MD for over 50 musicals having played his first, aged 12 and been MD at age 15 and now, 40 years later, he is recognized as one of Ireland’s foremost MD’s with particular regard to his specialization in song interpretation.

He has also played with many of the UK touring shows at BGET, including Dirty Dancing, Grease, Sound of Music, Oliver, and The Lion King, which he also covered in Birmingham.

In April 2012 he was engaged by The Abbey Theatre as Music Supervisor for their critically acclaimed world premiere of Alice In Funderland, which was nominated for Best Production at the Irish Times Theatre Awards 2013.

In 2017 he was MD for two musicals in Ireland, both of which were nominated for Best Overall Musical and came first and second respectively – Parade and Legally Blonde.

In 2018, he is nominated twice for Best Musical Director – for JCS and West Side Story!!!

He has seen all sides of the Musical Theatre world, having also been a producer for Goldenboy Productions Limited, for their three full scale, professional productions in Ireland.

David was delighted to have been awarded a first class honours M.A. in Music, from CIT CSM in 2017 and to continue to work with his colleagues and students on the BAPM degree.

He was also awarded a distinction by both U.C.L.A. and Screen Training Ireland for the first two modules of the U.C.L.A. film scoring  programme and was also awarded the inaugural IMRO Copyright Scholarship on their Specialist Copyright programme at Griffith College.

Finally, David is currently Production Director at Raglan Road in Walt Disney World Orlando, Florida and has been for three years now, responsible for 18 hours of live music, 365 days a year and where 18 young Irish musicians are in residence on six month tours. An incredible opportunity for Irish musicians covering folk, trad, roots, bluegrass, celtic rock and orchestral styles.

 

David is delighted to have made industry connections and created positions for many BAPM students already – both in Ireland, UK and USA, in theatre, TV, studio and live work. And also to now be able to bring musicians in the other direction, ie. Back to CSM – having interfaced with our own talent.

David has worked with the following Irish, international and corporates:

Gavin James 
The Coronas                    
Ryan Sheridan
The Heathers
Kelly Clarkson
Josh Groban
Gary Barlow
The Commitments
The Drifters
RTECO
NSO
Van Morrison
Kate Bush
Paul Potts
Frankie Valli
The Trans Siberian Orchestra
The Finn Brothers
The Stunning
Elvis Costello
Brian Kennedy
Damien Dempsey
Donal Lunny
Andy Irvine
Liam O Maonlai
Jim Murray
Martin O Connor
Maire Breathnach
Nollaig Casey
Davy Spillane
Maurice Lennon
Moving Hearts
Riverdance
Rebecca Storm
Paul Harrington
Sharon Shannon
Ragus
Royseven
Phillip King
Richie Buckley
Ralph McTell
The Strypes
The High Kings
Prodijig
Extreme Rhythm
Mario Rosenstock
Joan Rivers
Shane Mc Gowan

Sharon Shannon
Mundy
Paddy Casey
Jerry Fish
Picturehouse

Una Healy
Olly Murs
Dolores O Riordan

Emotional Fish

Mick Hanly

The Corrs

Dolores Keane

Sean Keane

Eileen Ivers

Bill Whelan

Brendan Power

Eoin O Neill

Declan Masterson

Anto Drennan

Jason Duffy

Keith Duffy

 

Pat O Connor (Director - Circle of Friends)

Terry George (Director - Some Mother’s Son)

Gerry Stembridge (Director - Guiltrip)

Alan Parker (Director - Evita)

Howard Blake (Composer - The Snowman)

 

Folens Publishers
Gill & Macmillan
Carroll Education

St Pat’s College, Drumcondra
 

MCD

Peter Aitken
 

RTE
TV3
BBC
UTV

PBS (USA)

 

Universal Music Ireland

EMI

Dara Records

 

The Irish Times

ESB

Music Generation

Reault

Phillips

Irish Ferries

O2

Mack USA

Budweiser

The EU Comission

The Irish Government

The President of Ireland