Brian was born in Belfast. His huge body of work reflects an obsessive love of music creation in all its forms. It includes operas, orchestral works, large-scale community oratorios, film and dance scores as well as numerous ensemble, solo, chamber pieces. 

His music has been performed all over the world and commissioned by many international artists and organisations including: Welsh National Opera, Scottish Chamber Orchestra, RTE National Symphony Orchestra, Ulster Orchestra, Wexford Festival Opera, Northern Sinfonia, BBC Radio 3, BBC Concert Orchestra, National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain, Scottish Ballet, Opera Theatre Company, Bath International Music Festival, Glasgow International Music  Festival, Lyric Youth Opera, Music Network, London 2012 Olympics Festival, Roald Dahl Foundation, 4-mality percussion ensemble, Belfast Festival at Queens, Edinburgh Jazz Festival, Live Music Now, Sonorities Festival of New Music, Homecoming Music Festival (Moscow).
Together with his own 12 -piece ensemble (BBC Radio 3 music award winners) he has toured extensively throughout USA, Russia, France, Portugal, Germany, Scotland, Malta, Cyrus, Poland, Scotland, Ireland, England, Belgium, and the Netherlands and has appeared at some of the world’s leading international music festivals/venues including several appearances at the Bath International Music Festival (UK), Queen Elizabeth Hall, Southbank (London,UK), Gulbenkian Institute (Portugal) , Washington National Library of Congress (USA), Ouest Nord Ouest Festival, (France), Glasgow International Festival (UK), Kościół Św. Jana, Gdańsk (Poland), Festival d'été de Valence (France), Novgorod Municipal Theatre (Russia), Festival Sous les Pommiers, (France) Homecoming Festival (Russia), Dublin Festival (Ireland), Moving on Music Festival (UK), Sonorities Festival of New Music (UK) and The International House of Music (Moscow, Russia).

For the last four years he has been the Associate Composer with the Ulster Orchestra in Belfast and is currently Visiting Professor of Creative Arts at the University of Ulster. 
Brian has also collaborated with and written for some of the worlds most internationally established artists across many different genres including Seamus Heaney (poet), 4-mality percussion ensemble, Joanna MacGregor (piano), Billy Jenkins (guitar), Keith Tippet (piano), Paul Dunmall (saxophone/reeds), Roman Mints (violin), Matthew Bourne (piano), David Holmes, Snow Patrol, Duke Special, Keiji Haino (guitar), Joe Morris (guitar), LAU (BBC Folk award winners) as well as film makers, sculptors and animators including Eduard Bersudsky, Jari Neimenin, Joel Simon, John McCluskey and John Mcilduff.
He has won a number of awards for his work including a British Composers Award for Opera, BBC Radio 3 Jazz award for best new work, Major Individual Artist Award (Arts Council of Northern Ireland), First Trust/University of Ulster Distinquished Graduate Award, the MCPS Joyce Dixey Award for Composition and the Bass Ireland Award. Recently his opera Shelter Me form the Rain won the 2011 Irish Allianz Arts and Business Award for “best use of creativity in the community” and his large scale children’s oratorio Rain Falling Up was shortlisted for a 2011 British Composers Awards.  The junk opera Postcards from Dumbworld was also shortlisted for a 2011 Irish Times Theatre Award. 
Last year together with writer/director John Mcilduff he was awarded the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad Artist Taking the Lead award for the enormous sonic installation Nest. Brian also recently completed the score to John McIlduff’s debut feature film Behold the Lamb as well as the short film opera: To Do List. 
His recent orchestral works have included:
Strange Attractors (40’) for orchestra and LAU commissioned by the Sage Gateshaed/ PRS foundation; My cow’s not pretty, but it’s pretty to me - recorded for BBC Radio 3 Hear and Now performed by the Ulster Orchestra and Praise aloud the trees for double orchestra and choir, a collaboration with Nobel laureate poet Seamus Heaney commissioned by BBC Radio 3 and premiered by the Ulster Orchestra/RTE Concert Orchestras and Horizon voices in Belfast 4 March 2012
He is currently working on Nest (60’): a multi media installation for symphony orchestra, chorus, sonic processing, 5000 objects and film (commissioned by London 2012 Festival); an opera with writer Owen McCafferty (commissioned by  Northern Ireland Opera) and a violin concerto for violinist Darragh Morgan (commissioned by the RTE National Symphony Orchestra). 

His latest 8 - piece ensemble Melonhead makes its debut appearance at the Moving on Music festival in March 2012.




Hi my name is Jess. i write songs with guitar, piano and viola then mix them together on lexicon/cubase. Thanks for checking my music out

Belfast musician, Rachael Boyd uses piano, strings and electronics to create contemporary and richly textured folk-leaning compositions. Her music has been described as tragic yet powerful and mesmerising with hushed vocals, bittersweet piano and electronic flourishes. 
Her latest EP, 'Too High' was released by US label Abandon Building and featured remixes from artists such as Kelpe and Sun Glitters. Rachael has also remixed other artists including The Polyphonic Spree, Little People and Pick A Piper (drummer from Caribou). 

Her influences range from Sufjan Stevens, The Flashbulb, Baths and Broken Social Scene to romantic classical composers such as Debussy and Chopin.

RTE Radio1 folk award nominee Ciara O’Neill has been on quite the musical journey over the last
eight years. Originally from Co Armagh and now based in Belfast her debut album ‘The Ebony
Trail,’ (2016) set the foundations of a career notching up praise from BBC 6 Music’s Tom Robinson, Hot Press magazine and more along the way.
But it wasn’t just the press that sat up and took notice of her haunting folk songs; music lovers
and industry folk from across the Atlantic saw something special in both Ciara’s songwriting and
her ability to silence a room with her voice. Receiving publishing interest after a chance meeting at
the Belfast Nashville Songwriting Festival she found herself flying back and forth to the USA
working with some of the finest songwriters Music City had to offer. It was there she sowed the seeds of what was to become her second album ‘Arrow’ (2018).
Just as Ciara was starting to think about her third album, the world locked down due to the
pandemic and finding comfort once again in her guitar she began creating an EP ‘La Lune’ (2022).
Supported by the Arts Council of Northern Ireland, Ciara’s most recent single ‘La Lune’ topped the airplay charts of BBC Radio Ulster and RTE Radio1, it was also this song which led to
Ciara being nominated for best emerging artist at the 2022 RTE Radio1 Folk awards.
In addition to writing solo, Ciara is also a keen collaborator and has worked with many world class
songwriters and artists over the years including Grammy winner Don Henry, Grammy
nominated Drew Ramsey and Gary Burr as well as Northern Irelands finest Ryan McMullan, Gareth Dunlop and Ciaran Lavery.
On the live front Ciara has lots of highlights too, most notably playing in front of a US TV audience
of 60 million for Music City Roots, showcasing at Folk Alliance in Kansas City, representing
Northern Ireland in Brussels for culture night and representing Belfast as a UNESCO city of music
in London, Ontario in July 2023 where she played the main stage at Home County Music and Arts
Festival. Her numerous performances at the iconic Nashville venue the Bluebird Cafe and her
recent sold out headline shows for the Cathedral Quarter Arts Festival and Sound of Belfast also rank high among her ever growing list of achievements.
With a focus on her beautiful vocals and raw, poetic songwriting Ciara’s music is sure to appeal to
music lovers across the board including fans of other Irish artists Saint Sister and Lisa Hannigan.
Her new EP ‘Woman’ will be out in 2024.
‘Mesmerising, it takes you away like all good music should’
Ralph McLean BBC Radio Ulster
‘Ciara and her songs carry everything with such conviction, it makes her almost transparent.’
Folk Radio UK
‘Your new favourite, beautiful album.. 9/10’
Americana UK
‘A must listen for folk fans’
Hotpress Magazine

The captivating, charismatic and multi-instrumentalist songstress; Shauna Tohill is one of the most promising artists to come out Northern Ireland and is rapidly making a name for herself throughout the industry.  

Shauna has a diverse style of writing but concentrated on creating her unique brand of high energy alternative rock/pop music regularly - which has been performed live under the synonym of 'Silhouette'.  If you had to describe it by comparing - it could be described a fusion of Jessie J's attitude and hooks, Tori Amos's percussive piano and wacky ways combined with Nine Inch Nails chords and passion.  

In the last couple of years she has toured all over Europe as a musician.  She joined Snow Patrol as a guest vocalist at the MTV EMA’s, the Q Awards followed by an entire European tour last year.  She has sessioned for and tour managed various N.I outfits (such as RAMS' Pocket Radio) and has even had her song 'Can't Keep Up' used as the Northern Irish Tourism Advertising anthem throughout the years of 2012 and 2013.  

In the last year she (as Silhouette) has supported big artists such as Blondie, Imelda May, One Republic and Jake Bugg as well as playing at various big summer festivals including the likes of V Festival, Kendal Calling and Electric Picnic.

Shauna is currently working on her debut album due to be released in late 2014 and has written some pieces of music for an upcoming independent film ‘Noirland’ in Northern Ireland.  To keep up to speed about all things Shauna Tohill, visit www.silhouetteofficial.com. 

Triona is a singer/songwriter who comes from a small rural area called Teconnaught in County Down. At the young age of 16 Triona opened for Joan Armatrading (2012) in Vicar Street Dublin. In 2013 Triona was presented with the Cel Fay bursary award for young musician of the year. In 2014 she was chosen by Panart’s to fly to Nashville, TN  where she showcased her music in iconic venues such as the famous Bluebird cafe and Music city roots show.
In 2015 Triona was invited along to open for Van Morrison in the 3 Arena Dublin. Triona has toured along with top Irish artists Brian McFadden and Nathan Carter on their UK and Irish tours and also had the privilege of playing alongside top artists such as Kodaline, Gabrielle Aplin, Gavin James, Hudson and Taylor and the Coronas. Triona is currently flying back and forth to Nashville, TN to work on projects with some of Nashville’s top grammy award winning songwriters and producers. 

jmpconway is following