Conductor – Cillian O’Breachain
Cillian O’Breachain holds a Masters in Music Performance from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland where he studied Violin under the tutelage of Chris George. He has also studied Baroque Violin with Huw Daniel, Traditional Fiddle with Alisdair McCullough and Conducting with Alasdair Mitchell. He is a graduate of Trinity College Dublin and the Royal Irish Academy of Music. He graduated in 2014 with a Bachelor of Music Education, majoring in violin performance under the tuition of Maeve Broderick.
As an orchestral violinist, Cillian has performed and recorded with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, the Ulster Orchestra, the RTE National Symphony Orchestra, the RTE Concert Orchestra and with Camerata Ireland with whom he has toured Spain, France, Finland, South America, China and India. Cillian has also performed with the Irish Chamber Orchestra, Irish National Opera, Scottish Opera and with Wexford Festival Opera where in 2018 he was awarded the Liam Healy Bursary.
Cillian is a faculty member at the Royal Irish Academy of Music, coordinating the Beginner Group Violin classes, teaching violin and conducting. As a conductor, Cillian has performed in concerts with Trinity Orchestra, Kirkos Ensemble, Offbeat Ensemble, Co-Orch., Wexford Gateway Orchestra, St. Agnes’ Late Starters Orchestra, DYO Concert Orchestra, the RIAM Chamber Orchestra and Dublin Orchestral Players. Cillian has also conducted the Orchestra of the Irish National Youth Ballet between 2014 and 2018. He is currently conductor of the DYO Intermediate Orchestra, St. Agnes’ Chamber Orchestra, the RIAM Junior and Divertimenti String Orchestras and rehearsal conductor for the DYO Symphony Orchestra. He is delighted to be conducting the Greystones Orchestra for the 2023/24 season.
Leader of the Orchestra – Hazel Fortune
Hazel Fortune has been the leader of Greystones Orchestra since its foundation as Greystones Orchestral Players in 1989. The daughter of a professional singer father, she began violin studies aged eight in London, and when eleven she won a seven-year scholarship to the Royal Academy of Music in London, where she took piano as a second instrument. Hazel taught the violin for 27 years at music schools in Bray, Wicklow and Delgany, at the DIT Conservatory of Music and at home in Kilcoole. However, since Covid-19 struck she has been accidentally retired. She has been a member of the Dublin Orchestral Players since 1979 and is the 2nd violinist of Pentetetra String Quartet. As well as taking part in the twice-yearly Dublin Chamber Music Group’s Termonfeckin course, the quartet travels abroad to a different chamber music course each year.
Guest Conductor – André Cavanagh
We were delighted to welcome André Cavanagh as our guest conductor for our summer concert ‘Greystones Orchestra goes to Hollywood’ on May 25th 2024. André was born into a musical family in Dublin and began studying French Horn under the tutelage of elder brother Raymond aged 9. Following this, he spent a number of years at the Royal Irish Academy of Music under Victor Malirsh before studying at the Royal Northern College of Music with Derek Taylor, Peter Francomb and Bob Ashworth.
André is a regular performer with the RTE Concert Orchestra, the Ulster Orchestra and has worked with the Irish Chamber Orchestra, Orchestra of St. Cecelia and the Orquestra Classica do Sul, Portugal. As a soloist, he has performed with the National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland, the Hibernian Orchestra and most notably alongside Soprano Christiane Karg with the Orchestra of St. Cecelia.
As a conductor, he has held positions with the Fingal Youth Orchestra, Blackrock College Orchestra, Blackrock Jazz Band, Knocklyon Concert Band and is currently director of the Newpark Community Orchestra.