TARA4017 : May We Never Have To Say Goodbye

‘May We Never Have To Say Goodbye’, released by Tara Music in association with RTÉ, is a collaboration between Shaun Davey, the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra and the featured artists. The album takes its name from the anthem specially composed for the Opening Ceremony of the Special Olympics World Summer Games in Croke Park, June 2003. Performed by Rita Connolly , Ronan Tynan and no less than six Dublin choirs, this song originally topped the Irish singles charts for 5 weeks. It is presented here with the rest of the music from Shaun Davey's unique and exhilarating suite for that occasion, featuring traditional soloists, singers, choir, pipeband, percussion and orchestra, and includes Noel Eccles's spectacular percussion score, 'The Arrival of the Flag'.

The Album includes previously unrecorded pieces from Shaun Davey's dramatic concert work, 'The Pilgrim', featuring the rare and full-blooded combination of bagpipes and orchestra with percussion and choir, and the unusual sound of the Galician Gaita. Sean Davey's work over the past 10 years in film will be represented by the popular and evocative song 'Fill to me the Parting Glass', composed for the film 'Waking Ned', and first performed in its new orchestral and choral version at the opening of the Helix Concert Hall, Dublin, in 2002. A magical piece, ‘Music of the Spheres’, from the Royal Shakespeare Company production of 'Pericles' represents Shaun Davey's contribution to theatre both at home and abroad over the past 20 years.

This album represents Shaun Davey's active return to the recording of his own music, something he has missed during the past 10 years of working for Film, TV and Theatre. During this time of international success, Shaun Davey has received an Ivor Novello award for his score for the BBC drama based on the great famine, 'The Hanging Gale'. For this he also received a BAFTA nomination, another for 'Ballykissangel' [which also received a UK TRIC Award for Best UK TV Signature Theme] while his score for 'Twelfth Night' was also nominated for a second Ivor Novello award. In theatre Shaun Davey has composed many scores for RSC productions of Shakespeare, notably the 1992 'Winter's Tale' which visited Dublin on its acclaimed world tour, and 'the RSC's The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe', a popular Christmas production in the UK. In 1999-2000 Shaun Davey's music for 'James Joyce's The Dead' was nominated for a Toni Award while on Broadway, and shared in the New York Drama Critics Circle Award for Best Musical.

This album features an array of Ireland’s leading artists including; Liam O’Flynn, Rita Connolly, Noel Eccles, Seamus Begley, Nollaig Casey, Triona Marshall, Breanndan Begley, Des Moore, Albert Niland, Joe Csibi jnr., Rod McVey, Ronan Tynan (guest vocal in ‘May we never have to say Goodbye’) The Voice Squad. Dave Rickard, Noel Harford, Edward Harford, members of the St. Lawrence O’Toole pipeband led by Pipe Major Terry Tully; Alen Tully, Noel Kelly, Darren McCarthy, with the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra conducted by David Brophy, joined by The Guinness Choir, Tallaght Choral Society with members of The Culwick Choral Society, The Dun Laoghaire Choral Society, Coolmine Musical Society and Glasnevin Musical Society.

"Shaun Davey is well known as a composer in the world of film, TV and the theatre, with the music for the BBC TV programme Ballykissangel being one of his best known in this country. In some ways this CD is a ‘greatest hits’ or sampler album with pieces representing his earlier works, including Music of the Spheres for the RSC production of Pericles and tracks from The Pilgrim, as well as the full suite of music composed for the opening ceremony of the 2003 Special Olympics World Summer Games that were held in Dublin.

Shaun is doing for Irish and Celtic traditional music what Dvorák did for Bohemian folk music and people like Vaughan Williams did for English traditional music, inspired by it to compose great classical works and taking it to a wider audience . As the CD is sub-titled, this is music of celebration for Celtic soloists with choir, pipeband, percussion and orchestra. In addition to the orchestra, pipeband and six choirs, the album features a host of familiar names with Liam O’Flynn on uillean pipes and whistle, Nollaig Casey on fiddle and The Voice Squad providing some of the chorus vocals. Two of the outstanding tracks are Shaun’s version of Fill To Me The Parting Glass sung by Seamus Begley and the title track, taken from the Special Olympics suite and sung by Rita Connolly."
Michael Everett - Mardles