Track Titles: I. Ice (03:12) II. A Changing Landscape – The Pulse of the Earth (04:53) II. The Arrival of Man (03:02) IV. Pagan Prayers (06:08) V. Mechanisation (01:57) VI. A Return to the Earth (04:34) The Story: We begin in the ice age – the earth is frozen, bleak and lifeless. Gradually the rising temperatures melt the ice, changing the landscape forever. Water flows and the pulse of the earth can be felt as the land is covered with colourful vegetation and animal life. Man arrives – farming the rich soil and fishing the lakes and rivers he settles the fertile plains. Over time the slowly developing bog lands become a focus for ritual and sacrifice. Modern life brings the mechanisation of peat harvesting, forever stripping the black earth of it’s long history and life-giving energy. However, in spite of this, the cycle of growth will in time begin again – a return to the earth. Musicians: Ioana Petcu-Colan, violin Adele O'Dwyer, cello/composer Dermot Dunne, accordion Bernard Reilly, tuned and un-tuned percussion Musician Biographies: Ioana Petcu-Colan The daughter of two professional violinists, Ioana Petcu-Colan was given a violin as a toddler and performed on stage for the first time at the age of six. Following a musical education continued in Ireland, France and UK, a successful and varied career was launched. Collaborations have included projects with artists as diverse as Barry Douglas (piano), members of the Alban Berg, Vanbrugh and Belcea Quartets, John Abercrombie (jazz guitar), Martin Hayes (traditional fiddle) and Canadian rock group Arcade Fire. Stylistically, Ioana is at home in everything from music from the Baroque era on period instruments to the traditional music of South America and she is a permanent member of Ensemble Avalon and Lunfardia with whom she performs, tours and continues to release recordings. Ensemble Avalon also present an annual festival in Wexford each winter. Contemporary music plays a big part in Ioana’s professional life, she has been commissioning works and giving premieres since she was still at school. Highlights to date include recording Luigi Nono’s ‘la Lontananza de la Utopica Futura’ for broadcast on BBC Radio 3, working closely with Arvo Part, duetting with Philip Glass and performing the music of Sir John Tavener with the Ulster Orchestra. Closer to home she premiered Donnacha Dennehy’s ‘Elastic Harmonic’ for solo violin and orchestra on national television accompanied by the National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland and collaborated with Ian Wilson on the critically acclaimed ‘Una Santa Oscura’, described as ‘an opera without words’ for staged solo violin. Ioana was invited to edit a volume of contemporary works for solo violin for major international publishing house Universal Edition. Ioana plays a Gofreddo Cappa violin dating from 1695 and continues to enjoy an international profile as a diverse musician performing as soloist with orchestra, as a solo violinist and in several chamber ensembles. Adele O’Dwyer Adele O’Dwyer received her instrumental training in the US at Northwestern University and Cincinnati College- Conservatory of Music studying with Dudley Powers, Antony Cooke and international artists Zara Nelsova and Raya Garbousova. Adele was invited to participate in masterclasses with celebrated cellists Janos Starker and Lynn Harrell as well as the Juilliard String Quartet and participated in the Aspen Summer Festival and the Britten-Pears School for Advanced Musical Studies in England where she studied with the late William Pleeth. In 2003 Adele received her Masters in Classical String Performance from the University of Limerick, Ireland with 1st class honours having worked with cellist Mr. Ferenc Szucs and internationally acclaimed musicians Bruno Guiranna and Dr. Hugh Maguire. In addition to her cellistic studies, Ms. O’Dwyer holds certifications from the Kodaly Institute (Hungary) and the Dalcroze Institute (USA). Ms. O’Dwyer began her composition studies with Jim Wilson in the Ennis-IMRO Composition Summer School and went on to pursue further training in film scoring and composition through Screen Training Ireland/University of California-Los Angeles where she studied with Emmy-nominated composer Don Ray Brandon. She has produced two CDs of original compositions for both film and the concert platform and also composed the score for the 2006 short film Mother’s Little Helper, produced by Expresso Productions in conjunction with the Irish Film Board. Dermot Dunne Since winning the RTE Musician of the Future competition in 1996, Dermot Dunne has become a regular performer throughout Ireland as a soloist and chamber musician, appearing at all major venues and festivals including the NCH, the Helix, Ulster Hall, Belfast Opera House, Kilkenny Arts Festival, Galway Arts Festival, Proms in the Park, Vogler Spring Festival and West Cork Chamber Music Festival. He has performed as soloist with the Ulster Orchestra, RTE Concert Orchestra, National Youth Orchestra and Irish Chamber Orchestra – with whom he has toured as both soloist and conductor. Dermot will again tour with the ICO in early 2010. Equally well known internationally, Dermot has performed in England, France, Spain, Portugal, Germany, Serbia, Slovenia, Macedonia and Ukraine. The styles he performs range from baroque to modern and from Bulgarian folk to Argentinean – which Dermot regularly performs with Latin group Lunfardia, who released their first CD to great acclaim in 2008. Born in Dublin, he commenced accordion studies with Paddy Kavanagh, later studied with Patricia Kavanagh and then at the Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Kiev with V.V. Besfamilnoff. Bernard Reilly Bernard Reilly is a highly regarded percussionist and studio musician who has recorded with many international names, including the London Philharmonic, National Symphony Orchestra, Andrew Lloyd Webber and The Corrs. As a composer his music features in number of acclaimed film and documentaries, including A Soldier’s Song, The Gamble and The State We’re In for RTE Television. Bernard has composed and orchestrated for the RTE Concert Orchestra including Grainne performed in major venues across the USA. As director of the CineTheatre Ensemble, he has composed and conducted soundtracks including the unique score for the Irish Classic Willy Reilly and His Colleen Bawn. Commissioned by Sculpture in the Parklands (www.sculptureintheparklands.com) Recording made possible through generous funding by EU Culture Programme – Trans form actions – in collaboration with the School of Archaeology and School of Cultural Policy and Arts Management at University College Dublin. Thank you to Gabriel Cooney, Pat Cooke, Ian Russell, Brendan O’Loughlin, Sinead O’Reilly, Lough Boora Parklands Group and Kevin O’Dwyer. Credits: Recorded and mixed by Ciarán Byrne in Cauldron Recording Studios (www.cauldronstudios.com) Graphic design by Connie Scanlon at Bogfire (www.bogfire.com) Photography Credits: James Fraher (cover) Kevin O’Dwyer (interior) For more information please contact Adele O'Dwyer at: Silver River Music Acontha, Durrow Tullamore, Co. Offaly, Ireland SilverRiverMusic@gmail.com © P 2010 Adele O’Dwyer