Described by the Journal of Music as 'one of Ireland's most renowned improvisers', Colm O'Hara draws from many styles and genres in his approach to New and Improvised music. O'Hara performs regularly with some of Ireland's leading Jazz groups such as The Dirty Jazz Club and Redivider, World music group Yurodny, New music group Crash Ensemble and has performed with the National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland, RTE Concert Orchestra, Cork Opera House Concert Orchestra, and Irish National Opera. As an ensemble leader in his own right, The Colm O'Hara 10tet, a group containing 10 of Ireland's leading improvising musicians, closed The New Music Dublin festival 2022 in the National Concert Hall to critical acclaim.
As a composer O'Hara's works have premiered in the UK, Germany and Dublin, and his 'Piece for Improvising Youth Orchestra' came 7th in the Keuris International Composers competition 2014.
Also heavily involved in music education in Ireland, O'Hara is Musical Director of Manor Kilbride Music School, Lecturer in Aural Development and Composition Techniques Royal Irish Academy of Music, Lecturer in Brass at DCU, and Artistic creator for Commonground, a community arts project working in Dublin 8. Recorded on over 30 albums, including Lisa O'Neills 'All of This is Chance', The Villagers 'The Art of Learning to Swim', O'Hara released his own debut "Unruly Behaviour" in 2018.
Selected Discography:
2024
John Francis Flynn - Look Over the Wall, See the Sky
2023
Lisa O’Neill - All of This is Chance
2022
Dirty Jazz Club - A Shorter Perspective
Neil O’Lochlanns Cuar - Umhaill
2020
Redivider - Mere Nation
2018
The Troupe - Unruly Behaviour
The Villagers - The Art of Pretending to Swim
2016
Yurodny - Haivka
2015
Laura Jurd Septet - Human Spirit
2014
Delorentos - Night Becomes Light
Martin Tourish - Under a Red Sky Night
2013
Redivider - Meets I dig Monk, Tuned
Ensemble Eriu - Ensemble Eriu
2012
Thought Fox - My Guess
Redivider - Never Odd or Even
2010
Marc Lohr’s Gerat7 - Stick no bill
2008
Yurodny - Oddset
2006
Kai Bigband - Projections