Ronan Guilfoyle

Ronan Guilfoyle is a bass player, composer and Director of the Centre for Jazz Performance at DCU.

Intense Innovation: Jazz Clubs and the Evolution of Jazz
On 26–28 May in the Bello Bar in Dublin, Dave Liebman and the Guilfoyle/Nielsen trio will try to emulate the atmosphere of the New York jazz clubs of the 1960s, with their long playing time and intimate atmosphere in which jazz originally developed. Here, Ronan Guilfoyle discusses what made the jazz club so essential to the music.
Louis the First
Trailblazer and standard setter – with Louis Stewart's passing in August, Irish jazz has lost its most iconic figure, writes Ronan Guilfoyle.
Are We Jazz Musicians Anymore?
Trying not to be pigeonholed, many jazz musicians have stopped describing themselves as such. But, argues Ronan Guilfoyle, it is important for musicians to identify themselves as part of the jazz tradition if it is to avoid vanishing beneath a welter of styles and techniques.
Ronan Guifoyle, Artistic Director of the 2007 RTÉ Living Music Festival, writes:
E-debate: Music and Society – Raymond Deane and Ronan Guilfoyle
If pulse-based music is the norm in our society, are most contemporary composers hopelessly out of touch? Does choosing to create pulse-based music mean one is succumbing to American cultural imperialism? Following on from Ronan Guilfoyle’s article in the Nov-Dec JMI on the relationship of jazz and contemporary music to society today, composer Raymond Deane and jazz bassist Guilfoyle tease out the issue more in this email debate.
Contemporary Music?
Jazz may be challenging and complex, but, rooted in the rhythm, pulse and groove of Western society, it attracts a large and loyal audience.
Dear Editor,With regard to Declan O’Driscoll’s piece in the last JMI, it really is getting tiresome to read Declan’s little hobby horse being taken out for an airing yet again. Anyone with no knowledge of jazz or its traditions would think,...
Piano Concerto
Ronan Guilfoyle previews his Piano Concerto at the National Concert Hall on Friday 16th August, 2002, with Conor Linehan (piano) and the RTÉ Concert Orchestra (Laurent Wagner, conductor).
Dear Editor,Sean O’Broin's article in the last issue of JMI, concerning the possibility of a third-level degree in jazz through the Open University, is very welcome. Anything which allows a greater choice for music students in terms of third level...
Third-Level Music: A Reply to Barra Boydell
A reply to Barra Boydell's article in the last issue of JMI on music education at third level.
Third-level Jazz: The Situation in Ireland
Ronan Guilfoyle makes the case for third-level jazz education in Ireland.