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DR SYLVIA O'BRIEN
Professor of Voice
DMUS, ARCM
Awarded Doctor of Music from Trinity College Dublin, Dr O'Brien is Professor of Voice at the Irish Academy of Music, specialising in vocal technique, French mélodie, and contemporary repertoire. She travels internationally giving masterclasses adjudicating competitions.
Dr O'Brien has curated the Contemporary Vocal Techniques programme at the Royal Irish Academy of Music which explores the process of learning and performance practice of contemporary vocal music for undergraduate and postgraduate students. Dr. O’Brien contributes to the academic community as an external examiner and a member of the Society of Musicology in Ireland, sharing her insights on contemporary vocal music and performance practice.
MASTERCLASSES
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Masterclass, Royal Irish Academy of Music, Dublin, 9 November 2025
Masterclass, Vienna, 9-10 July 2025
Masterclass, Royal Irish Academy of Music Ireland, 8 June 2025
Masterclasses/Performances, Hangzhou, China, 3-10 December 2024
Masterclasses/Performances, Niederkreuchten, Germany, 4-7 October 2024
Masterclass 'Performance Practice in 21st Century' National Concert Hall, Dublin, 22 May 2023,
Writing for Voice, composers' workshop, Contemporary Music Centre, Dublin, 9 January 2023
Artist in Residence Masterclass, Contemporary Vocal Practice, Trinity College Dublin, 17 January 2018
SELECTED ARTIST RESIDENCIES/ADJUDICATOR
Adjudicator, Interschools Music Competition, March 2024
Adjudicator, Beijing University Singing Musical Competition, 11-13 November, 2022
Artist in Residence, Irish Composition Summer School, July 2019
Musician in Residence, Trinity College Dublin, 2017/2018
Artist in residence, Composer Workshop, Crash Ensemble, 5/6 October 2017
SELECTED CONFERENCES & PUBLICATIONS
Auto-ethnographic Research in Seóirse Bodley's Never to Have Lived is Best (1965), Performance Research Ireland 'Peter Lang' book series presentation showcase, Concert Hall, East Quad, Grangegorman, Dublin, 25 - 26 September 2025
The Expansive Canvas: Large-Scale Form in the Music of 19th-Century Women Composers, International Conference and Collaborative Symposium Dublin, 26-28 August 2025
‘Ceathruinti Ni Ogain (1973) by Seóirse Bodley: A Critical Edition’, Research Open Day, Royal Irish Academy of Music, Dublin, 06 March 2023
‘Externalisation and Objectivity in Vocal Practice of the 20th and 21st Centuries’, Performance Research Ireland, National Concert Hall, 25-27 March 2022
Implications of Collaboration: The Recreative Artist and Auto-ethnographic Research in Seóirse Bodley's Never to Have Lived is Best (1965), (DmusPerf, Royal Irish Academy of Music 2021) RIAM DMusPerf Sylvia O'Brien.pdf
‘Text and Melody in Seóirse Bodley's The Hiding Places of Love’, Maynooth University, The Society for Musicology Ireland, Plenary Conference, 30 June 2019
‘The Relevancy of Collaboration: Elevating the creative and recreative artist.’ Lecture Recital, Royal Irish Academy of Music, May 28th 2018
‘Melody, text and compositional styles in Brian Boydell’s vocal works with solo voice,’ Brian Boydell Centenary Conference, RIAM, 23 June 2017
Melodic Form in Seóirse Bodley's Vocal Works’, Colloquium Series, Maynooth University, Ireland, 23 February 2018
‘Seóirse Bodley and his approach to text from a singer’s perspective’, The Society for Musicology in Ireland Plenary Conference 2016 Dublin City University, 11 June 2016
SPEAKER
Guest panel, Liszt: Reimagining Songs, Book Launch, Maynooth University 26 March 2025
Guest speaker, Royal Irish Academy of Music, Examiner’s Conference, RIAM, 10 February 2025
Guest Presenter, Creative Brain Week, March 4-9, Trinity College Dublin, 2024.
Guest Speaker, Royal Irish Academy of Music, Examiner’s Conference, RIAM, 13 February 2019
Presenter, Writing for Voice, composer workshop Contemporary Music Centre, Dublin, 11 January 2023
Guest Panel, Opera Panel Discussion, Contemporary Opera in Ireland, Contemporary Music Centre, 23 March 2017
CURRENT RESEARCH
'Ceathruinti Ni Ogain (1973)' by Seóirse Bodley: A Critical Edition',
'Externalisation and Objectivity in Vocal Practice of the 21st Century',
‘Style governing placement, the presentation of style before placement’,