Summer Recitals 2025

PRESENTING OUR 31st YEAR OF RECITALS

It gives us great pleasure to welcome you to the 2025 series of summer recitals at Rosemary Street.

The series has been synonymous with quality, vision, and ambition since its establishment 31 years ago and this year is no different.

Over the course of 6 weeks, we’ll present emerging talent, favourite returning artists and award winners: all in conjunction with special partners – Northern Ireland Opera, The Royal Irish Academy of Music and, for the first time, The Northern Ireland Young Musician of the Year Competition.

Musically, you can expect a range of styles performed at the highest level, with a crescendo to our final concert on Wednesday 27 August: the inaugural Young Musicians’ Prom. It will incorporate the current Northern Ireland Young Musician of the Year, pianist Senan Sheridan, who also achieved the top piano prize at this year’s Feis Ceoil in Dublin.

This is my first year as Chair of the series and I’m grateful to the committee for their emboldening sprit and commitment: Dame Fionnuala Jay-O’Boyle, Des McKeown, William Curran and Nicola McDowell. I also want to acknowledge the work of our former Chair Billy Reid and Secretary Cliona Donnelly BEM, both of whom retired at the end of 2024, after 10 years of dedicated service.

I trust that you’ll enjoy the feast on offer. Do bring your friends, family, and neighbours. One visit just won’t be enough!

With best wishes

Richard Yarr MBE DL

Director of Music, First Church, Rosemary Street

The committee would like to acknowledge the following for their generous assistance:

Lloyd Crawford, Pauline Dunlop, David Kerr, Suzanne Martin, Robert McNair, Raymond O’Regan, Maureen Purdy, and Anna Steven.