New NI Opera Voice has Cookstown roots

The Dublin-based singer’s dad Frank comes from Cookstown and his grandad, Peter - a major influence - still resides on the town’s Drum Road.

David, a member of the Northern Ireland Opera Studio, was one of the five finalists in The Festival of Voice which took place in Belfast at the end of August.

The 28-year-old says he was introduced to opera as a young child watching the Looney Tunes cartoons.

“The piece that comes to mind which I still remember vividly was the overture of Wagner’s opera Tannhäuser and also the overture to Rossini’s Barber of Seville,” he said.

“I remember I was fascinated by the music. It caught my attention so much it inspired me to explore both of these operas more.”

He graduated with a BMus in performance from TUD Conservatory of Music and Drama in Dublin (formerly DIT), and was awarded the Conservatory’s Gold Medal for a recital in 2018.

David has been in the chorus for ‘Rigoletto’ and ‘Die Fledermaus’, Northern Ireland Opera’s last two main stage productions in Belfast, has performed for Blackwater Opera Festival and INO

This month he begins a Masters in Music Performance at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.

He started singing lessons when he was ten and auditioned for a leading children’s choir, and when he was accepted he took formal singing lessons for the first. His attention turned to opera at the age of 15 when he learned his first aria for a grade exam.

Speaking about his connections to Cookstown he said: “All family gatherings and parties revolved around music, influenced hugely by my granddad, on my mother’s side.

“He was a singer and a self-taught accordion and harmonica player.

“When the family got together everyone did their party piece. My siblings and every one of my cousins played an instrument or sang which is a huge testament to his influence. Parties were great fun with a huge mix of genres.

“I have a brother Cathal and sister Aedin and from a young age we were all encouraged musically: I played the French horn, my sister the violin and my brother the cello. My first music lesson was when I was three and did Kodály sessions with my mother.”

His father Frank, who has been living in Dublin for 30 years, said David was extremely dedicated to his chosen career.

“We live in Dublin but a lot of family live around Cookstown, and we are up visiting for time to time,” he said.

A special 40-minute film of David and the other singers taking part in the Festival of Voice in First Church Belfast can be viewed at https://www.youtube.com/northernirelandopera

It was hosted by Northern Ireland Opera’s patron, Sean Rafferty, and features behind-the-scenes footage of rehearsals, interviews with the singers and the pianists and highlights of the competition itself.