

‘Restless Islands’ awarded funding by Beyond Borders scheme
IMC is delighted that ‘Restless Islands’, a new jazz sextet presented by Ronan Guilfoyle and Improvised Music Company has been awarded funding under the Beyond Borders scheme. The work will be performed in 5 shows across Ireland, England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, expressing a continued need for cultural partnerships between Ireland and Britain.
‘Restless Islands’ follows on from Guilfoyle’s work ‘A Shy Going Boy’, written in 2016 to commemorate the 1916 Rising, which reflected on the life of Joe Guilfoyle, Ronan Guilfoyle’s grandfather, and a figure in both the rising and later through the War of Independence and Civil War. ‘Restless Islands’, created as an extended suite for jazz sextet, will use composition, improvisation and audio recordings to explore the life and times of the people of these islands and reflect on some of the major events of the first three decades of the 20th century. Performed by a stellar group comprised of six of the finest jazz musicians from the Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland, England, Scotland and Wales, the extended suite will give each audience a singular experience as the improvisatory skills of the players are brought to bear on the written material making each performance unique.
Beyond Borders supports high quality co-commissions and tours, stimulating collaboration between composers, performance groups and music organisations across Ireland, England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. It is run by the PRS Foundation in partnership with Creative Scotland, supported by the National Lottery through Creative Scotland’s Open Project Fund, Arts Council of Wales, Arts Council of Northern Ireland and the Arts Council of Ireland/An Chomhairle Ealaíon.
Also under the scheme, Paul Dunlea and New Irish Jazz Orchestra present 'Four Corners' - a tour premiering a newly composed suite by Paul Dunlea, performed by a band of world class jazz musicians from Britain and Ireland.