France and Ireland

Music, art and creative writing embody vital elements of the rich association between Ireland and France and this collection provides a tantalising selection of their reciprocal influences across the arts. The book paints a vivid picture of composers, performers, poets and novelists on both sides of the Celtic Sea. Surprises abound, with music unexpectedly linking Ireland and France through George Alexander Osborne and Frederic Chopin, through Thomas Moore and Jean-Jacques Rousseau, through Irish-inspired French opera and a French-directed Irish orchestra. Words and music meet in a Kate O'Brien novel, a musical interpretation of Verlaine and the poetry of Paula Meehan, while the encounter of wine and music creates truly innovative experiences. Exploring the works and influence of a wide range of figures including James Joyce, Marcel Proust, Jacques Derrida, J.M. Synge, Helene Cixous, Eilean Ni Chuilleanain, Hector Berlioz, Maurice Ravel, Neil Jordan and John Field, the essays collected here uncover a wealth of artistic interconnections between France and Ireland.