Proms go Baroque with Irish orchestra set to perform rare Dublin Handel piece

Irish Post

15-05-2025

IN A LANDMARK moment for Irish classical music, the Irish Baroque Orchestra (IBO) will make its debut at the BBC Proms this summer, performing the 1742 Dublin version of Handel's Alexander's Feast at the Royal Albert Hall on August 30, 2025.
It will be only the second time an orchestra from the Republic has performed at the Proms, following the New Irish Chamber Orchestra's appearance in 1979. The performance will be conducted by Peter Whelan, Artistic Director of the IBO, who described the invitation as a 'dream come true.'
The version of Alexander's Feast being performed is unique to Ireland, reconstructed by the IBO using manuscripts uncovered at Pearse Street Library in Dublin. 'We made some discoveries… It was a bit like Indiana Jones, dusting off these old manuscripts,' Whelan said. 'There's extra material, and it's distributed in a different way. Even Handel scholars are finding it very exciting.'
The IBO's Proms invitation followed a performance with Irish National Opera at the Royal Opera House last year, attended by Proms Director David Pickard.
Aliye Cornish Moore, CEO of the IBO, said: 'He was blown away and confirmed almost straight away that he wanted the Irish Baroque Orchestra to appear.'
The Proms appearance caps a period of growing international recognition for the IBO. In 2022, they won an Olivier Award for their work on Bajazet with Irish National Opera, and were nominated this year for L'Olimpiade . They have also released a string of recordings on Linn Records highlighting Irish classical music history, including The Hibernian Muse , Rachel Baptist: Ireland's Black Syren , and Welcome Home Mr Dubourg .
Minister for Culture Patrick O'Donovan TD called it 'an important milestone in the history of classical music in Ireland.' Baroque & roll and Irish trad
Baroque music is a style of Western classical music that originated around 1600 and lasted until roughly 1750. It's known for its ornamentation, contrast, and expressive intensity, and it laid much of the foundation for modern classical music.
Famous Baroque composers, alongside Handel, include Bach and Vivaldi.
Baroque music has a footnote in Irish traditional music. In the 18th century, for various reasons, Ireland was home to many European composers. It has been suggested that the rich ornamentation of Irish traditional music owes as much to Baroque music as it does to Celtic motifs.
Ornamentation is a defining feature of both Baroque and Irish traditional music. In Irish music, ornamentation includes techniques like rolls, cuts, triplets, and crans, which add expressive nuances to melodies — or in the vernacular, 'they humour a tune.'
Similarly, Baroque music is characterised by its elaborate ornamentation, such as trills and mordents, used to embellish musical lines. The shared emphasis on ornamentation suggests a stylistic overlap dating back to the 18th century.
Turlough O'Carolan (1670–1738), an Irish harper and composer, also displayed a debt to European Baroque music. Harp playing was not, strictly speaking, folk music — it was written for the Irish aristocracy. But O'Carolan's compositions often combined traditional Irish melodies with the Baroque style, reflecting the influence of composers like Vivaldi.
To some extent, he can be seen as a bridge between the native Irish harping tradition and the European Baroque style. Handel's Messiah
Alexander's Feast is not one of the best-known Baroque pieces, but it was the success of this composition that allowed Handel to compose more oratorios — including Messiah . This received its world premiere in Dublin on April 13, 1742, at Neal's Music Hall on Fishamble Street. The concert was organised to support local charities and drew a packed audience, with ladies asked to forgo hooped skirts and men to divest themselves of their swords to allow more people in — estimates put the crowd at 700.
Handel had been invited to Dublin by the Lord Lieutenant and found the city's musical life vibrant and welcoming. The oratorio, composed in just 24 days, features the 'Hallelujah' chorus. Dubliners were the first to hear a work that would go on to become a global classic.
Karen Ní Bhroin
Irish conductor Karen Ní Bhroin will also make her Proms debut this year. On July 26, she will conduct the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and BBC Singers in a performance inspired by the BBC's reality show The Traitors .
Presented by Claudia Winkleman, it will feature both afternoon and evening performances.
Ní Bhroin, a graduate of Trinity College Dublin and Kent State University, is the first Irish female conductor to appear at the Proms. She is a recent recipient of the Taki Alsop Conducting Fellowship and will also work this year with the Welsh National Opera, London Symphony Orchestra, BBC Symphony Orchestra, and Irish National Opera. This summer, she makes her debut at the Bregenzer Festspiele with a new opera by Irish composer Éna Brennan.