New album, Thar Farraige, out now with Chamber Music Scotland
Linda Buckley returns with ‘Thar Farraige’, a new album of her work which weaves contemporary chamber music with Irish and Scottish folk traditions. Its title track ‘Thar
Farraige’ features Brìghde Chaimbeul and Maxwell Quartet, merging traditional instrumentation with electronics inspired by keening and emigration
ballads. The album also includes ‘Samhain’, a piece for solo pipes and electronics, as well as ‘A Path of Yellow Moonlight’ for solo electronics.
‘Thar Farraige’ and ‘Samhain’ were commissioned by Chamber Music Scotland.
“the drones of Scottish smallpipes and the playing of a string quartet interweaving, coalescing, departing and reuniting.” – The Quietus
BBC 3 Unclassified: “A completely wonderful meeting of contemporary chamber music with both Irish and Scottish traditional music, and an exploration of the idea of home.”
New album, From Ocean’s Floor, out now on NMC. Featuring Iarla Ó’Lionáird, Crash Ensemble, Isabelle O’Connell, Joby Burgess, Contempo Quartet and Darragh Morgan. Guardian folk album of the month, and Folk Radio editor’s pick.
- ‘An excellent portrait of one of Ireland’s most interesting composers’ Journal of Music
- ‘The intensity of her work is irresistible – a generous portrait that is full of surprises and unsettling questions.’ Tim Rutherford-Johnson, The Rambler
- ‘It’s clear how much Buckley deeply connects her past to her present, opening up possibilities for our mutual musical futures.’ Guardian
- ‘Music of mythic magic … sublime as well as brilliant – richly and strangely powerful.’ BBC Radio 3 New Music Show
- ‘Linda Buckley is unquestionably one of the most exciting, prolific and ‘ecstatic’ composers to come from Ireland in recent times.’ RTÉ
- ‘Diverse and ultra imaginative work, intense and shimmering…’ BBC Radio Scotland
- ‘Intelligent, atmospheric and strangely beautiful.’ ★★★★ Songlines
- The works on this album are captivating; I couldn’t tear myself away.’ ★★★★ BBC Music Magazine
Upcoming
- November 2025
- Exploding Stars performed by Darragh Morgan in Malaysia
Exploding Stars for violin and electronics performed by Darragh Morgan, at the Monument Music Academy, Melaka
- March 2026
- Numarimur at Musica Sacra Nova Festival at Moscow Philharmonic Society
Numarimur for voices and electronics performed by CEAM Voices at Musica Sacra Nova festival at Moscow Philharmonic Society for Vox: Deus – Homo – Machina” concert as a part of Festival’s experimental “Laboratory” program at the Chamber Hall.
- April 2026
- Set Thy House in Order premiere at New Music Dublin with Mimi Doulton, soprano
New work for soprano and four channel electronics commissioned by Mimi Doulton, for performance at New Music Dublin, Spitalfields Festival London and Sound Festival, Aberdeen
- June 2026
- Set Thy House in Order for Soprano and Electronics at Spitalfields Festival London
New work for soprano and four channel electronics commissioned by Mimi Doulton, for performance at New Music Dublin, Spitalfields Festival London and Sound Festival, Aberdeen
- October 2026
- Set Thy House in Order for Soprano and Electronics at Sound Festival Aberdeen
New work for soprano and four channel electronics commissioned by Mimi Doulton, for performance at New Music Dublin, Spitalfields Festival London and Sound Festival, Aberdeen
About
Linda Buckley is an Irish composer/performer who creates electronic and acoustic music, often in the realm of glitch, drone and dark ambient. In September 2020 her NMC record, From Ocean’s Floor was released, praised by Iggy Pop on BBC Radio 6 as “beautiful music – here is somebody really, really special”. Read more »
Also
Listen to pieces and excerpts on the music page, view works and past performances, or get in touch, either here or alternatively on Twitter or SoundCloud.