SINEAD HAYES
Irish Conductor
SINEAD HAYES
Royal Philharmonic Society Women's Conducting Programme (Excel) 24-25
Britten Pears Young Artist 23/24
Principal Conductor: Hard Rain SoloistEnsemble
Principal Guest Conductor: The Luminosa String Orchestra
Conductor: Royal Irish Academy of Music Symphony Orchestra
Irish orchestral conductor Sinead Hayes has forged a career conducting symphonic and opera repertoire, with strong experience in contemporary music and a particular interest in the work of established and emerging Irish composers.
Creativity, collaboration and empowerment are at the centre of her work.
The 2023/24 season is her 10th as conductor of the Hard Rain Soloist Ensemble (HRSE) in Belfast with whom she has premiered over 60 new works by Irish and international composers. She is in her third season as conductor of the Royal Irish Academy of Music Symphony Orchestra and is a member of the Royal Philharmonic Society’s Excel Women’s Conducting Programme 2024-26, working with the Royal Northern Sinfonia, Newcastle.
Sinead is a Britten Pears Young Artist 2023/24, and recently participated in the Royal Opera House/Britten Pears Conductor as Dramaturg International Conductor’s course in August 2023 with Sian Edwards & Kanako Abe. In February 2022 Sinead was appointed principal guest conductor of Galway's Luminosa Orchestra.
She has worked with all the major professional orchestras in Ireland including the Ulster Orchestra, RTE Concert Orchestra, Irish Chamber Orchestra & National Symphony Orchestra. In opera she has conducted productions for Northern Ireland Opera, Irish National Opera and Opera Collective Ireland. She has also been invited as guest conductor with the Orquestra do Algarve, as well as working in masterclass with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, Bochumer Symphoniker, Argovia Philharmonic, and others.
She completed her MMus in conducting at the Royal Northern College of Music and her BMus in violin and composition at City University, London. Sinead also participated in masterclasses with Johannes Schlaefli, Sylvain Cambreling & Sir Roger Norrington among others. In 2014 she was one of three finalists in the Interaktion Conducting Workshop, chosen by the players of the Critical Orchestra Berlin (leader: Lothar Strauss), whose players are drawn from the Berlin Staatskapelle and Berlin Philharmonic Orchestras. She has worked as assistant conductor to James Lowe (Halle Harmony Orchestra), Alex Ingram (British Youth Opera), André de Ridder (Irish National Opera) and others.
As well as being active as a violinist in chamber ensembles, Sinead is also a professional level Irish traditional fiddle player, and in 2017 performed alongside members of the Berliner Philharmoniker in two of the orchestra’s family concerts in the Philharmonie, Berlin. She is fascinated by the links between folk music and the orchestral canon, and brings a fresh, unique perspective to the symphonic repertoire.
Sinead was invited as a participant in the Darmstadt Summer Course Words on Music workshop with Kate Molleson and Peter Meanwell (August 2023) where she had the opportunity to delve into the work and music of composer and saxophonist Anthony Braxton. She is currently exploring orchestral and ensemble repertoire incorporating elements of improvisation and aleatoricism and plays with the QUBe Ensemble, Queen’s University, developing her own violin improvisation skills.
Sinead divides her time between Belfast and London, while maintaining strong links with her native Galway.
To read Sinead's full biography and discover her forthcoming projects, visit the links below.
2023/24 CONDUCTING PERFORMANCES
VIDEOS
Conducting, Project & Interview Videos
KEY INTERESTS AS A CONDUCTOR
THE CREATIVE CONDUCTOR...
As well as conducting, Sinead maintains her interest in many aspects of music and musical life. Here is a selection of Sinead's recent writings and projects around music.
For a more detail on Sinead's creative interests (including conducting, violin, improvisation and composition!) check out The Creative Conductor, her blog on Substack. Why not subscribe for regular updates....
COACHING...
Intrinsic to her work as a conductor is Sinead's work as a coach, workshop leader and mentor... She has developed a holistic approach to this work, drawing on her experience as a high level violinist, conductor and engineer.
When schedule allows, Sinead coaches professional musicians, singers, composers and talented music students who want to develop their conducting and performance skills with a creative approach to sound, structure and drama.
COMPOSERS: LEARN TO THINK LIKE A CONDUCTOR (ONLINE & IN PERSON - BELFAST)
CREATIVE MUSICIANSHIP COACHING FOR ADVANCED INSTRUMENTALISTS, SINGERS & MUSIC STUDENTS
As a composer...
It can be difficult to separate yourself from your work, to take a step back and think about it objectively.
In these sessions (75 mins per session) we look at preparing a piece by Schoenberg and Stravinsky as a conductor. You then take these skills, apply them to your own work, and we discuss possible changes as a result - musical, gestural, notational etc.
As a singer or instrumentalist....
It is easy to get lost in the technical issues of just getting the notes right! Your regular teacher is probably doing an excellent job with this aspect, but sometimes there isn't time to take a step back and think about the music you are performing from multiple angles! This is where I can help!! Together we will explore possibilities of phrasing, line, dramatic arc, rhythmic vitality to give you new perspectives on your performance.
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