Steve Kelly Bittersweet Symphony

Welcome to Bittersweet Symphony, a podcast about the bitter, sweet and bittersweet memories and experiences of classical musicians during the pandemic. Hosted and produced by me, Cliodhna Ryan, a violinist, it’s an intimate and heart-warming exploration of the human spirit.

My guest in episode eleven is Steve Kelly, percussionist with the RTE Concert Orchestra since 2010. He shares his bitter memory of the Guinness Jazz Festival being cancelled, the sweet experience of being able to support his wife as she devoted herself to her art practice and the bittersweet of returning to work.

Stephen Kelly is the sub-principal percussionist with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra and he has lectured in percussion at the MTU Cork School of Music since 2004. He has performed with the Philharmonia Orchestra, Irish Chamber Orchestra, Ulster Orchestra, National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland, City of London Sinfonia, Crash Ensemble and many more. Equally as at home driving a big band from behind the drum kit, tinging a triangle in an orchestra or educating future professional percussionists, Stephen manages to make a living playing music, which in his words “certainly beats working.”

This interview was recorded in August 2021.

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CREDITS

Thumbnail Art || Colm MacAthlaoith

Writers || Mick Jagger, Richard Ashcroft, Keith Richards

Violin || Cliodhna Ryan

Production || Cliodhna Ryan

Mastering || Patrick Stefan Groenland