Lecturer

Email: padhraic.ocuinneagain@tudublin.ie

MA BA BMus DipMus LRAM

Pádhraic Ó Cuinneagáin commenced his music studies at the Royal Irish Academy of Music, Dublin, and on a 5-year scholarship at the Schola Cantorum, St Finian’s College, Mullingar.  He attended University College Dublin, completing DipMus, BA and BMus degrees, and NUI Maynooth, graduating with a first-class honours MA degree in performance and interpretation. He also holds a LRAM in piano performance.

Pádhraic lectures in piano and academic studies for the undergraduate and postgraduate courses at DIT Conservatory of Music and Drama where he has held positions as Programme Chair for the BMusEd and BMusprogrammes, and also as Acting Head of the Department of Academic Studies. He is currently Programme Chair for the MMus programme.  His research interests include contemporary Irish piano music and the piano works of E.J. Moeran. 

Pádhraic studied piano with Mabel Swainson (Dublin), and the late Louis Kentner (London). He studied organ with Fr Frank McNamara and Prof. Gerard Gillen.  He also played clarinet as a member of the Irish Youth Orchestra. His competition successes include prizes at Feis Ceoil and other major national music festivals, finalist in the RTE ‘Young Musician of the Year’ competition, and winner of the prestigious Players-Wills Bursary for piano.  He has performed at home and abroad in concert and on radio/television as soloist, accompanist and in chamber music, and has partnered some of Ireland’s most prominent instrumentalists and singers.  He has given first performances of works by many composers including Antonio Andriani, Tom Cullivan, Donncha Dennehy, Hormoz Farhat, Joseph Groocock, Fergus Johnston, Andrew Johnstone, Eric Sweeney, Andrew Synnott, James Wilson and Andrew Wise, and has performed with the contemporary music ensemble Concorde.  CDs recorded  have included the sonatas for violin and piano by the Irish composer Tom Cullivan with the Italian violinist Carmelo Andriani, Tchaikovsky songs with the Irish bass-baritone Conor Biggs, and ‘Joyce Songs’ for Lyric FM with various Irish singers.

Pádhraic has wide experience as an external examiner for the Department of Education and Science, NCEA and HETAC, and has adjudicated at most music festivals throughout Ireland.  He has given lectures and masterclasses on piano repertoire, and has contributed to CMC and TCD publications of Irish contemporary piano music. He was a member of the NCCA committee which reviewed the Leaving Certificate music programme, is a member of EPTA(Ireland), and is Vice-Chairman and a member of the Executive Committee of Feis Ceoil.