Lunchtime concert: Playground Songs

Playground Songs (2025), a new song cycle composed by Daniel Quigley (b.1999), is a reimagination and retelling of the songs sung in the streets and school playgrounds of Belfast, and a commentary on how this culture has changed over the last 50-or-so years. The work is derived specifically from songs children would teach each other, and in the last half-century some have been coined, some have died out, and some have had their words and associated games completely changed. This song cycle is a study on the sound of Belfast’s children.

Daniel is an Irish composer and pianist from Belfast, Northern Ireland. He specialises in contemporary classical music, but also enjoys incorporating ideas from his experiences with jazz, traditional Irish folk, and choral music. Following undergraduate studies at Magdalene College, Cambridge, he studied Experimental Composition and Creation at Högskolan för Scen och Musik, University of Gothenburg. His works have previously been performed by Norrköping Symphony Orchestra, Svenska Kammarkören, Bohuslän Big Band, and Hard Rain SoloistEnsemble.

Northern Irish Soprano, Rebecca Murphy, hailed by Opera Journal for her ‘stunning delivery’, is making waves across the UK and Europe on both the concert and operatic platforms. She was a member of the Internationales Opernstudio at Oper Köln from 2020-22, and previously was a member of the Northern Ireland Opera Studio (2018-19). She is also a regular guest with the Ulster Orchestra and the Belfast Ensemble. As well as singing, Rebecca is a vocal health enthusiast, and is the director of Murphy Voice Studio. She is currently adding to her skillset by training to become a Vocal Habilitation Professional.

Award winning Armagh pianist Cahal Masterson has developed an impressive performing profile in Ireland and internationally, with recent performances in Monteverdi Tuscany, the Centre Culturel Irlandais Paris and the National Concert Hall Dublin. In addition to solo, vocal repetiteur and chamber work that has taken him throughout Europe, North America, and Suzhou, China, Cahal is dedicated to championing exciting new works by Irish composers. Recent exciting premiere performances have included The Brahmdel Variations for solo piano by Stephen Gardner, and upcoming solo projects will focus on Bach’s monumental Goldberg Variations. www.cahalmasterson.com

Rebecca Murphy and Cahal Masterson are frequent collaborators on the Song and Concert platform, having met in 2020 to record Anselm McDonnell's second album Kraina. The duo then developed a love for bringing new music to audiences across Ireland and beyond, with recent projects including a recording of Rebecca's debut album, Traverser, along with recitals at Music for Galway, Queens University Belfast, Barrahane Festival, and Centre Culturel Irlandais, Paris.

Fisherwick Presbyterian Church's congregation is over 200 years old. The church is a very popular venue for musical performances of all genres, and strives to support the Arts whenever possible.

Supported by the National Lottery through the Arts Council of Northern Ireland.