The Iain MacLeòid Young Composer Award 2023 – The Winner!

The Clarsach Society and the Edinburgh International Harp Festival are proud to announce that the 2023 winner of the Iain Macleòid Young Composer Award is Donnchadh Mac Aodha.

Harp player Donnchadh Mac Aodha is a composer and multi-instrumentalist from Dundalk Co.Louth, Ireland. 

Currently studying composition under the direction of John Godfrey as part of his BMus degree at University College Cork, Donnchadh is both a traditional Irish and classical musician and finds himself most at home with these genre allowing his bi-musical upbringing to influence his works. In particular, he is drawn to the Irish language and deals with ideas of belonging and identity in his music. 

Already a prize winning composer, having taken away honours from the New Ross Piano Festival and the West Wicklow Chamber Music Festival Composition Competition, The Clarsach Society are thrilled to award him The Iain Macleòid Young Composer Award. 

We look forward to hearing the premiere of his award-winning composition Ambaist at the Edinburgh International Harp Festival in April.