ABSTRACT
This chapter evaluates film and TV scores by 20th-century Irish composers primarily involved in the sphere of concert music. It assesses the screen music contributions of mid-20th-century composers, including Éamonn Ó Gallchobhair, Joan Trimble and Havelock Nelson, before considering the influence of Seán Ó Riada’s unique Irish orchestral style over ensuing decades-a period that also witnessed alternative film scoring practices, from John Beckett’s modernist inflections to Brian Boydell’s more atmospheric compositions.
The chapter next documents contributions by A.J. Potter, whose music across many RTÉ productions embraced diverse music styles, and Gerard Victory’s considerable accomplishments as a composer of film music. Finally, the screen music outputs of Irish composers in the late 20th century are appraised. Stylistic approaches ranged from neo-Romantic and Irish traditional elements in Seóirse Bodley scores, to John Buckley’s adaptation of his emerging modern style, to Roger Doyle’s engagement with improvisatory, electro-acoustic music—placing him at the cusp of first-wave independent Irish cinema.
