Seán Doherty

Dr.

Profile Photo

Dr Seán Doherty is a composer and musicologist. He was introduced to music through the Irish fiddle tradition of his hometown of Derry. He read music at St John’s College, Cambridge, after which he completed a PhD in musicology at Trinity College, University of Dublin. His compositions are frequently performed, broadcast, and commissioned both nationally and internationally.

He is the subject leader for music on the BRelEd programme, an undergraduate degree in post-primary teaching, and co-ordinates modules on harmony and counterpoint, composition, historical musicology, and Irish traditional music. He teaches modules on composition, arranging, and historical musicology on the MA in Choral Studies. He supervises PhD students in both musicology and composition.

Peer Reviewed Journal

Year Publication
2022 Seán Doherty (2022) 'Melodic Structures in the Double Jigs of O’Neill’s The Dance Music of Ireland: 1001 Gems (1907)'. Journal of the Society for Musicology in Ireland, 17 :19-45. [Link] https://doi.org/10.35561/JSMI17222
2022 Seán Doherty (2022) 'Toward 'Transcendence': Music and Meditation in Michael McGlynn's 'O Maria''. Choral Journal, 62 (7):8-19. [Link]
2018 Seán Doherty (2018) 'The Mass 'Transubstantiated' into Music: Quotation and Allusion in James MacMillan's Fourth Symphony'. Music and Letters, 99 (3).
2022 Seán Doherty (2022) '‘I am because you are’: A critical reflection on composing choral music to promote social inclusion for asylum seekers in Ireland'. International Journal of Community Music, 15 (3):341-353. https://doi.org/10.1386/ijcm_00067_1

Book Chapter

Year Publication
2019 Seán Doherty (2019) 'God Calls Samuel: Composer's Reflection' In: Annunciations: Sacred Music for the Twenty-First Century. Cambridge, UK : Open Book Publishers.

Conference Contribution

Year Publication
2019 Seán Doherty (2019) Musica Scotica Annual Conference The Mass ‘Transubstantiated’ into Music: Quotation and Allusion in James MacMillan’s Fourth Symphony Stirling, UK, 02/05/2019-05/05/2019.
2018 Seán Doherty (2018) Society for Christian Scholarship in Music The Mass ‘transubstantiated’ into Music: Quotation and Allusion in James MacMillan’s Symphony No. 4 Wake Forest, North Carolina, 08/02/2018-10/02/2018.
2015 Seán Doherty (2015) Society for Music Education in Ireland Annual Conference Vocal Pedagogy in Sacred Harp Singing: A Comparative Solmization Survey Dublin Institute of Technology, 06/11/2015-08/11/2015.
2021 Seán Doherty (2021) Society for Musicology in Ireland Annual Conference 2021 Melodic Structures in Irish Traditional Music Online, 27/05/2021-30/05/2021.
2021 Seán Doherty (2021) North Atlantic Fiddle Convention Melodic Structures in Irish Traditional Dance Tunes Online, 23/06/2021-26/06/2021.

Encyclopedia Entry

Year Publication
2013 Seán Doherty (2013) 'Jewett, Randall'. Dublin: ENC
2013 Seán Doherty (2013) 'Godfrey, Thomas'. Dublin: ENC
2013 Seán Doherty (2013) 'Rogers, Benjamin'. Dublin: ENC

Book Review

Year Publication
2018 Seán Doherty (2018) Review of The Masses of Seán and Peadar Ó Riada: Explorations in Vernacular Chant, by John O’Keeffe. BREV

Thesis

Year Publication
2014 Seán Doherty (2014) Solfaing: The History of Four-Syllable Solmization to the Present Day. THES

Invited Seminars

Year Publication
2021 Seán Doherty (2021) Composing 'Anlatamiyorum'. INVS

Online Article

Year Publication
2022 Seán Doherty (2022) You're not singing any more: where do soccer chants come from?. ELEA [Link]
Certain data included herein are derived from the © Web of Science (2023) of Clarivate. All rights reserved.

Professional Associations

Association Function From / To
Contemporary Music Centre, Ireland Represented Composer 01/05/2013 -
Society for Musicology in Ireland Member 01/01/2012 -
International Council for Traditional Music Ireland Member 01/01/2011 -

Honors and Awards

Date Title Awarding Body
01/06/2013 West Cork Chamber Music Festival Young Composers’ Bursary West Cork Chamber Music Festival
01/08/2011 Jerome Hynes Composition Award National Concert Hall
01/04/2011 Feis Ceoil Choral Composition Award Feis Ceoil
01/05/2014 West Cork Chamber Music Festival Young Composers’ Bursary West Cork Chamber Music Festival
01/05/2014 Feis Ceoil Choral Composition Award Feis Ceoil
01/09/2014 Choir & Organ Magazine Composition Award Choir & Organ Magazine
01/05/2016 Feis Ceoil Choral Composition Award Feis Ceoil
01/05/2013 Historic Scotland 'Fragments' Composition Award Historic Scotland
01/03/2012 St Giles’s Cathedral Composition Award St Giles’s Cathedral
01/09/2012 Choir & Organ Magazine Composition Award Choir & Organ Magazine

Committees

Committee Function From / To
Acadamh Ceoil Chaoimhín Úi Dhochartaigh 01/03/2022 -

Employment

Employer Position From / To
Music Promise, Derry-Londonderry UK City of Culture 2013 Co-ordinator of Exceptionally Talented Programme 01/09/2013 - 01/05/2014
Dublin City University Assistant Professor 01/01/2015 -

Education

Start date Institution Qualification Subject
01/09/2005 St John's College, University of Cambridge BA Music
01/09/2009 Trinity College, Dublin PhD Music

Other Activities

Description

Creative Outputs

Year Title Type
2021 Only Child Composition
2021 Rádán Composition
2021 Clandeboye Overture Composition
2017 Divisions II Composition
2021 The Way We Tell A Story Composition
2020 Night Piece Composition
2017 The Beauty (Of It) Composition
2018 Waking Beauty Composition
2020 Mother Composition
2016 Bridal Song Composition
2016 In te, Christe Composition
2019 Song Seeking Project Composition
2019 Time Composition
2017 Snow Dance for the Dead Composition
2016 Lament for the Poets 1916 Composition
2019 I am the World Composition
2015 String Quartet No. 3: ‘The Devil’s Dream’ Composition
2017 An Irish Airman Foresees his Death Composition
2016 Together Composition
2020 I Hear an Army Composition
2016 A Crazed Girl Composition
2017 God Calls Samuel Composition
2015 Hive Mind Composition
2018 The Happy Grass Composition
2018 The Destroyer Composition
2020 Anlatamıyorum Composition
2020 Stella celi exterpavit Composition
2015 Divisions Composition
2020 Cantilena Composition
2018 'Fr. McCarthy’s Lament' and 'Prof. Boole’s Farewell' Composition
2020 The Arctic Violin Composition
2016 No Go Composition
2017 All Against All Composition
2020 Hail! Gladdening Light Composition
2016 All the Things Magicians Do Composition
2016 It’s Strange About Stars Composition
2018 Epiphany Composition
2022 My Dove, My Beautiful One Composition
2023 Sonatina Composition
2022 The Eternal Rebel Composition

Media

Title Year Type Authors
Shock Waves 2021 Radio Interviews BBC Radio 4
Undersong 2019 Radio Interviews RTÉ Lyric FM, The Lyric Feature
Dermot Dunne Feature 2021 Podcast Kaleidoscope Night

Research Interests

  • Music Composition
  • Historical Musicology
  • Choral Music
  • Irish Traditional Music

Research Projects

Title Role Description Start date End date
The Forgotten Female: Twentieth Century Irish Art Music and the Cultural Politics of Revival [Orla Shannon] DCU PI 01/10/2018 30/09/2021

Current Postgraduate Students

Student Name Degree Supervision
Della Vecchia ,Martin Mario PhD Supervisor

Teaching Interests

Music History; Harmony; Counterpoint; Contemporary compositional techniques; Aural and keyboard skills

Modules Coordinated

Term Title Subject
2022 Introduction to Harmony and Counterpoint A MC112
2022 Intermed Harmony and Counterpoint A MC206
2020 Composition, Theory and Applied Techniques 2 MC102
2022 Advanced Harmony and Counterpoint MC309
2022 Intermed Harmony and Counterpoint B MC213
2022 Description of 2021_MC516 MC516
2022 Composition MC519
2022 Contemporary Composition MC401
2020 Historical Approaches to Choral MC515
2022 Technology Portfolio Irish Trad Music MC310