2019 Waltons Music for Schools Competition Finalists Concert Adjudicators

We’re delighted to announce the two adjudicators of our 2019 Waltons Music for Schools Competition Finalists Concert – Dónal Lunny and Evelyn Grant. The Finalists Concert will take place in the National Concert Hall on Tuesday, 7 May.

Evelyn Grant

A member of a well-known musical family from Dublin, Evelyn Grant studied the flute in Germany before returning to Ireland to teach at the Cork School of Music. Her radio career began on RTÉ Cork local radio, and she has been a regular presenter on RTÉ lyric fm since its inception. She recently hosted a number of ‘In Conversation’ events with prominent musicians at the West Cork Chamber Music Festival.

Evelyn has for many years been involved in a huge range of music and arts outreach projects and was the first person in Ireland to receive an MA in Community Music (from the University of York). She was subsequently awarded a PhD for her research on ‘Social Inclusion in Music Education’ from University College Cork. In 2007, Evelyn researched and presented a six-part documentary series for RTÉ lyric fm entitled Passions and Policies – Music Education in Ireland.

As founder of Cork Music Works, which provides performance opportunities for people with learning disabilities, Evelyn was named as an awardee of Social Entrepreneurs Ireland. With her husband, cellist Gerry Kelly, she founded the Cork Pops Orchestra, and is its musical director and conductor. The CPO has performed to over 10,000 school children annually for over 20 years.

Dónal Lunny

One of Ireland’s most innovative and influential musicians, Dónal Lunny has been at the forefront of the evolution of Irish music for more than five decades. A multi-instrumentalist, he was a founding member of no less than three world-renowned trad supergroups (Planxty, The Bothy Band and Moving Hearts), as well as Coolfin, Mozaik, LAPD and Usher’s Island; and he has performed and recorded with a veritable who’s who of great Irish musicians, including Andy Irvine, Matt Molloy, Christy Moore, Tríona Ní Dhomhnaill, Liam O’Flynn and Tommy Peoples.

In addition to his instrumental work, Dónal founded the Mulligan record label; he has produced albums for such Irish and international artists and groups as Altan, Baaba Maal, Paul Brady, Clannad, Elvis Costello, Indigo Girls, Christy Moore and Sinéad O’Connor; and as an arranger he has worked with an array of international artists, including The Waterboys, Fairground Attraction and Eddi Reader.

Finally, Dónal’s film and television work includes writing original music for such acclaimed television series as Bringing It All Back Home and A River of Sound, performing for the film This Is My Father and composing soundtracks for the Turkish film Teardrops and the Irish film Eat the Peach.

Produced by Waltons New School of Music and generously supported by RTÉ lyric fm, the Waltons Music for Schools Competition is a non-profit annual national event celebrating and supporting music in Irish schools.

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