Interview with Eimear Noone, the Authentically Irish Host of 'This is Ireland' Celebration in LA

Ever since the Irish troops serving in the English military first merrily paraded through New York City on March 17, 1762, Irish (and other non-Irish) Americans have only grown fonder of the annual celebration of Ireland's favorite saint. A lot of cross-cultural artifacts have accumulated as well as the Americanization of certain Irish stereotypes that would surprise many real Irish to hear about. In an effort to reintroduce the true essence of Ireland into the now over-saturated sea of commercialized Irishy stuff a group of Irish whose fondness for America is second only to their love for their original culture got together and created a truly Irish music-theater gala spectacle to be hosted by the Irish composer/conductor Eimear Noone and headlined by prominent Irish stars (such as Roma Downey, Pierce Brosnan, and others) for this year's St. Patrick's Day celebration. "This Is Ireland" opens on March 17th at University of California - Los Angeles (UCLA)'s Royce Hall. With the help of Jan Kean at Kean & Kolar Communications I got to ask Eimear Noone (pronounced 'Eeeeemer'), the show's host and conductor, a few questions:

Smorg: Do you remember how you got into playing the piano at age 3? Was that your choice or was it something that your parents wanted you to do?

Eimear Noone: Actually, my first time on stage, I believe I was singing. I don't remember whose choice it was but my parents have always supported my every endeavor.

In Ireland , if a child has a talent for a particular activity they are encouraged enormously. I studied at a tiny school in the West of Ireland and was constantly encouraged, playing in groups and singing solos in the choir. It was a combination of something I loved with the support of the adults - family and teachers - around me.

Smorg:You also play the flute, actually holding a degree in concert flute along with composition and performance from Trinity College Dublin. What drew you to the instrument? Do you still play it regularly? Any favorite composition for the flute?

EN:A friend of the family had a wooden traditional Irish flute and I went from there to concert flute. Yes, I still play from time to time. My favorite piece of repertoire to play was always "Density 21.5" by Edgar Varése.

Smorg: Having grown up in very musical Ireland and now also teaching film score conducting for UCLA Extension's Music Program, what is your impression of music education here in the USA ? What can American schools do better to promote musical interest in our kids?

EN:The USA is such a vast country and I've seen enormous variation in educational standards and backgrounds as one would expect. By and large, the majority of students I work with have already completed at least an undergraduate degree and dedicated themselves to their craft so I can't really comment on general music education. In terms of school children: I believe that every child should have access to a musical education. There's so much more to studying an aesthetic discipline than most people realize. Studying music has proven a cognitive developmental benefit for children.

Smorg: If you ask the average American to name an Irish music tune you'd most likely hear something like 'Greensleeves' or 'Danny Boy' or 'Riverdance' back. Are these representative of Irish music? Is there any particular essence that is characteristic to Irish music? (For example: Bulgarian folk songs tend to be story-telling or related to local folk lore, and sounding pretty dissonant and set to irregular meter; Chinese music is based on the pentatonic scale and tend to sound like the sound of the bamboo forest; Italian songs have characteristic melodic archs; while French songs tend to be very chromatic, etc).

EN: Danny Boy is based on the tune "The Derry Air" (the lyric of "Danny Boy" was actually written by an English lawyer - Frederic Weatherly) and Greensleeves is an English tune, sometimes folk lore attributes its composition to King Henry VIII! Like most cultures, traditional Irish music has its worksongs, its laments, its love-songs etc. I love the way a traditional Irish air sung unaccompanied in a pub in Ireland will silence every being in the room. To run the risk of being terribly crude and breaking down traditional Irish tunes into a few simplistic techniques, a couple of common traits would be the use of the Mixolydian mode and repetition of the tonic at the end of a melody. I love the way Bill Whelan - the composer of Riverdance - uses traditional Irish modes/techniques/flavors, alive with fantastic rhythms and brings the freshness of someone whose musical voice resonates with the spirit of other great world musics.

Smorg: Your career has spanned so many variety of music genre; classical, ballet, film, rock/pop, and even video game music (you seem like a modern days version of Erich Korngold!)! Which of these do you find the most challenging?

EN: It always depends on the situation I'm in, the performers, composers etc. Of course, generally speaking, conducting Stravinsky is going to be more challenging that recording a pop album! One of the reasons I love LA is that I love the musical diversity. I remember one particular week when I worked with the same musicians on Stravinsky's "L'Histoire du Soldat", a pop album and a video game. I'm a huge cross-genre music fan and cultural snobbery is something that I think of as terribly narrow-minded and stultifying for an artist. In fact, I find that my relationship with Classic music is enriched by my love affair with film scores, rock, jazz and world musics.

Smorg: Tell us how you got into orchestrating and conducting the music of the mega hit video game 'World of Warcraft' and the 'Starcraft' series? Do you play the video games in your spare time, too?

EN: At first I was an assistant to one of the original orchestrators on WOW and ended up doing a lot of that score in the end. Composer and Audio Director, Russell Brower from Blizzard games invited me to fly to Skywalker Ranch with the team to conduct the score to Starcraft II there with an orchestra made up of member of the San Francisco Symphony, Ballet and Opera orchestras. Blizzard has a fantastic stable of composers and orchestrators and their creative director Chris Metzen is a real visionary.

It was an enormously rewarding experience and I got to argue at length about orchestral seating with eminent recording engineer, John Kurlander, which was like getting a masterclass in orchestral mike-placement and recording - very nerdy indeed!

The games are creatively ground-breaking and I play them when I can, although I must admit, I'm much more into the incredible artwork and animation than anything else!

Smorg: Have you thought of conducting or composing an opera in the future?

EN: I've conducted lots of "opera scenes" and arias but I've not yet had the opportunity to conduct a fully staged opera. Of course, I would love to conduct an opera!

As for composing one - why not? If a commission happen to float my way...

Smorg: Do you prefer the thrill and uncertainty of live conducting performances or do you prefer studio conducting where you can really perfect the sound of the performance?

EN: They are two different animals. Sometimes the pressure can actually be greater in the studio situation especially if there's a particularly "detail oriented" (that's being kind!) client, director, producer etc. I love both situations, especially when I'm working with a group of musicians I love and trust.

Smorg: What do you find most challenging about orchestral conducting?

EN: Let me first think about what's least challenging about orchestral conducting... I may need some time to think about that one!

Smorg: Does being a woman present you with difficulties that your male colleagues wouldn't have in your field of work?

EN: Yes, I would definitely say so. There is something called the "maestro myth" that I do not, and in fact, cannot subscribe to: many people have an ingrained perception of the big-haired maestro wearing bow-tie and tails; it's a perception I can't compete with. I always feel supported by the orchestral musicians and audiences but it's sometimes difficult to get the opportunity to conduct at all because it's difficult for those who haven't previously seen me perform - because of pre-conceived notions - to visualize me in that role.

My irreverent motto is: "Big hair doesn't make the music sound better!"

Smorg: Tell us about the Hollywood Sound Asylum? How is the project coming along?

EN: That is a pet project of mine that I'm hoping to concentrate on later in the year. Of course it's all subject to funding but I used to perform a lot of smaller works of contemporary art music in Dublin and I'm hoping to do some more experimental art music here in LA with Hollywood Sound Asylum.

Smorg: This St. Patrick's Day you will be hosting 'This Is Ireland' live music-theater celebration of your homeland at UCLA's Royce Hall in Los Angeles . What inspired you to this project and what do you hope to achieve with its performance?

EN: Firstly I couldn't find much to do in LA on St. Patrick's Day that was authentically Irish and I saw a type of cartoon version of my culture that had become what people perceived to be "Irish". Ireland is a country that is so steeped in true - non-plastic - culture. When I started programming the show - which follows an historical time-line - I was almost overwhelmed by the abundance of material before me. When we were introduced to the production team at Royce Hall by Julie Whittaker of the LA Ballet, they liked the idea so much they suggested we make it an annual event. We want our audience to get a true sense of those element that combine to make the Irish culture, indeed the Irish psyche, what it is. We want to share with our adopted city, the historical and political background that has influenced us as artists. This show is a real emotional roller-coaster with scenes of poignant tragic beauty and comedic largesse - a deeply philosophical piece of poetry followed by a scene of self-mocking bawdy comedy with incredible pieces of Irish and Irish-influenced music as the pillars for the narrative.

Basically I wanted to share the real essence of our culture with my LA neighbors and friends - in the form of an authentic cultural party - and do away with the proverbial inflatable leprechauns once and for all!

You can visit Eimear Noone at her website: www.eimearworld.com and if you are or plan to be in Los Angeles area on March 17th, stop by at UCLA's Royce Hall for true Irish immersion at the first This Is Ireland celebration!

Sources:
- Kean & Kolar Communications
- Eimear Noone
- UCLA Live! Performing Arts Page
- History.com St. Patrick's Day Page