Declan and Mary Doody were pictured at the Symmetry of Sound Showcase in Visual, Carlow Photos: michaelorourkephotography.ie
Maria O’Rourke, Dave O’Flaherty and Aisling Dunphy were pictured at the Symmetry of Sound Showcase in Visual, Carlow
At the Symmetry of Sound Showcase in Visual, Carlow were Daniel Fitzpatrick and Bríd Tiernan
Nicole Nolan and Cáolan and Aibhrán Prendergast
Ann Doyle, Tony Hunt and Margaret Holohan
Ilze Perkone, Diamante Stankeviciute and Martina Brophy were pictured at the Symmetry of Sound Showcase in Visual, Carlow
Snapped at the Symmetry of Sound Showcase in Visual, Carlow were Murt, Anne and Madelaine O’Connor
Phil Murphy, Evelyn Dudley and Mandy Morahan
Jean Swan, Anastasia Okudzhava and Mary Hunt were pictured at the Symmetry of Sound Showcase in Visual, Carlow
Ciaran Doyle introduces the artists during the Symmetry of Sound Showcase in Visual, Carlow
Justin Kelly (composer) accompanied by Padraig Whelan performs his contribution titled ‘An Cuan is Ciúine’ during the Symmetry of Sound Showcase
Pamela Earl performs a rhythmic dance sequence to accompany Justin Kelly’s ‘An Cuan is Ciúine’ during the Symmetry of Sound Showcase in Visual, Carlow
Pamela Earl performs a rhythmic dance sequence
Jack O’Flaherty (composer) performs his contribution titled ‘Your Man Only Loves Himself’ during the Symmetry of Sound Showcase in Visual, Carlow
By Suzanne Pender
A UNIQUE collaborative artistic project came to a spectacular conclusion in the George Bernard Shaw Theatre recently as seven local visual artists, seven musicians and seven dancers all took to the stage to present their collective masterpieces.
The Symmetry of Sound project, in association with The Backline, challenged seven musicians to compose original musical works based on the theme ‘Home – a safe haven’.
These compositions were then passed on to seven visual artists, who were tasked with creating original art pieces inspired by the music compositions. Finally, the music compositions and art pieces were made available to the dancers, who had the unenviable task of providing movement for the pieces.
What resulted was the most wonderful visual, aural and kinaesthetic experience for the 150-strong audience who attended the showcase.
“The showcase was the most incredible and beautiful collision of music, visual art and dance, with each and every participant bearing their souls and their talents, many for the first time in public on a stage; and what a stage,” said Justin Kelly of The Backline.
“To have local artists present and perform in Visual is the highest compliment that can be paid to their creativity, talent and spirit”.
First lady of The Backline Carmel Day hosted the event in style, with Ciaran Doyle doing an incredible job as MC, poetically knitting the performances together in a manner that most professional MCs would struggle to achieve.
Justin complimented the staff at Visual, saying “they are a seriously professional, agreeable and most accommodating team of amazing people, who share the same goal: to bring art to the people in the most wonderful way”.
Since 2020, The Backline has grown from strength to strength and is now showing its potential to transition from an online forum to an on-stage facilitator.
More than 40 artists have recorded original music compositions in professional recording studios through one of The Backline’s initiatives called The Future Pro.
At the Symmetry of Sound, the musicians involved were Karen O’Neill, David Woods, Aaron Smith, Darragh O’Connor, Sara Ryan (SAL), Jack O’Flaherty and Justin Kelly, with piano accompaniment by Padraig Whelan.
Visual artists were Sonya Cullen, Ben Jelliman, Abbie Walsh, Mary Hunt, Ger Holohan, Alex Fortune and Deimante Stankeviciuto.
Dancers Ruairi Curran, Lauren O’Reilly, Pamela Earl and Marie Cashin provided the most powerful and soulful interpretations through movement.
Greg Mynhardt of Hedgehog Productions videoed the showcase and also shot the live feed for artist Ben Jelliman, who created his artwork live on the night.
Ukrainian-born Anastasia Okudzhava created the incredible images for the stage backdrop, which projected the artist’s work on the 40ft screen at Visual. Walter Hennessy and Cian Kelly looked after the artists and their works and ensured that the stage was prepared for each performance.
Funding of the project came from Creative Ireland, Carlow Arts Council, Carlow County Development Partnership and cllrs Andrea Dalton, Adrienne Wallace, Fergal Browne, Tom O’Neill and Fintan Phelan.
Musician David Woods, one of the organisers and a founder member of The Backline, said the group has proven to work as a driver and supporter of local artistic talent, while there is a community of artists from many different disciplines building as a result of projects such as this. The objective now is to further develop The Symmetry of Sound concept and invite more artists from different artistic disciplines to the creative table. And Justin sees no reason why the project couldn’t be rolled out on a national level.
“It’s a win, win, win project, where all stakeholders benefit on many levels. When we talk about positive mental health, projects like this are vital. They pull people together, hold them close and help to build confidence. And the bonus is that there’s a physical product at the end for the audience to enjoy,” said Justin.
