Welcome
"Kinsella is a meticulous collaborator."
— BBC Music Magazine
— BBC Music Magazine
Conductor and pianist Niall Kinsella has established himself as one of the most exciting Irish musicians of his generation.
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Niall Kinsella is an Irish conductor, known for his vibrant interpretations of music from the Golden Age of Broadway and Hollywood. Acclaimed for his engaging presence and strong rapport with orchestral musicians, soloists, and audiences alike, he brings style, flair, and authenticity to every performance. He has appeared as guest conductor with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra and the Ulster Orchestra, with performances broadcast nationally on RTÉ and BBC Radio. In 2025, he founded The Niall Kinsella Orchestra, Ireland’s newest professional ensemble dedicated to the rich legacy of classic Broadway and Hollywood scores.
Niall was selected as RTÉ Orchestras, Quartet and Choirs Conductor in Training (2014-2015), and as part of the programme worked with the RTÉ ensembles and Irish Youth Choir, receiving coaching from leading international conductors. He has since conducted several major choral works including Mozart's 'Great' Mass in C minor, Carl Orff's Carmina Burana, Durufle’s Requiem, Britten’s Ceremony of Carols, Haydn’s Stabat Mater, and Handel’s Messiah. In 2024, he also conducted Sing Ireland's 'Come and Sing' Fauré Requiem, with over 140 singers from across Ireland. |
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As a pianist, Niall has been described as “a meticulous collaborator” (BBC Music Magazine) and “a first class calling card as a knowledgable and profound song accompanist” (Merker, Austria). Niall has performed extensively across Europe, in venues such as Wiener Musikverein, Konzerthaus, Volksoper Wien, St Martin-in-the-Fields, London, The Liszt Academy, Budapest, National Concert Hall, Dublin. He has recorded two critically acclaimed CDs: John F. Larchet: Complete Songs & Airs (Champs Hill Records, 2020) and Schubert’s Women (Gramola Vienna, 2021).
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Niall holds a Masters in Music Performance (Piano Accompaniment) from the Royal Irish Academy of Music, Dublin and is a graduate of the University for Music and Performing Arts, Vienna, where he studied lieder accompaniment and chamber music with Prof. Barbara Moser. Niall completed his studies in lieder accompaniment at the Franz-Schubert-Institut, Baden-bei-Wien, an International Master Course for Lied Interpretation, where he studied with pianists Roger Vignoles, Julius Drake, Graham Johnson, Helmut Deutsch, and singers Elly Ameling and Robert Holl. He subsequently studied at the International Summer Academy of the Mozarteum University, Salzburg, where he was in the lied classes of Wolfgang Holzmair & Dalton Baldwin. He began his early musical studies in piano, flute and musicianship at the DIT Conservatory of Music and Drama (now TU Dublin Conservatoire), and earned his Bachelor of Music (Hons) degree at University College Dublin.
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Niall is an accomplished music editor, specialising in score reconstruction for classic Broadway musicals. In 2020–2021, he undertook a complete reconstruction of Cy Coleman’s 1966 musical Sweet Charity from the surviving original materials, and this restoration is currently awaiting its concert premiere. He regularly reconstructs or restores numbers from musicals for his concerts, creating new editions of the original orchestrations. You can listen to his reconstruction of 'Over the Rainbow' from the MGM film The Wizard of Oz here.
Also a passionate advocate for the music of 20th century Irish composers, Niall's other current editorial projects include the Art Songs of Irish composer Rhoda Coghill (1903-2000) and the complete orchestral works of John F. Larchet (1884-1967) in co-operation with the Larchet family. The first of Niall's Larchet editions, By the Waters of Moyle (1957), was recently performed by the RTÉ Concert Orchestra. Two of his own original choral arrangements have been published worldwide by Boosey & Hawkes (London) / Hal Leonard Corporation (USA). |
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Niall is a passionate artistic leader and the Artistic Director of the Birr Festival of Music, an annual celebration in the Irish midlands that has grown under his direction to feature leading international artists. In 2025, he was responsible for bringing the RTÉ Concert Orchestra to the festival for the first time. He is the founder of Irish Songmakers, a Dublin-based art song series praised by The Irish Examiner for “shaking up the format of the song recital.” Niall has also enjoyed a rewarding partnership with the Blackwater Valley Opera Festival, where he worked to highlight the music of lesser-known Irish composers. Most recently, he has taken on the role of Artistic Consultant for the Dublin Bach Cantatas Series.
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With over 15 years of experience teaching in higher education, Niall has taught as a vocal coach/répétiteur (both classical and musical theatre repertoire) and piano teacher at institutions including Royal Irish Academy of Music, Dublin, National University of Ireland, Maynooth and American College Dublin. He has also examined at bachelor’s and master’s level for both the Royal Irish Academy of Music and the Guildhall School of Music & Drama, London. He has delivered studio workshops in Lieder/Art Song and Oratorio repertoire, and regularly gives choral and group singing workshops for all ages for the National Concert Hall, Dublin.
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This biography is not intended for publication in concert programmes. For a concert programme or marketing biography please contact Niall directly.
© Niall Kinsella, 2025. All rights reserved.