CARLILE, Solfa

Solfa Carlile is a composer, orchestrator, and arranger originally from Cork, Ireland. Since 2003, she has lived abroad, with her music often reflecting Irish folk traditions and literary inspirations. Carlile describes her compositional approach as "pluralist," incorporating influences from commercial, theatre, and art music.

She received support from the Bill Whelan Bursary and graduated from the Royal College of Music. Her accolades include the National Concert Hall Jerome Hynes Young Composers’ Award and the Sean O Riada Prize. Carlile earned a DPhil in music from the University of Oxford, where her doctoral work involved composing a chamber opera, 'The Exile,' based on James Joyce.

Her works have been commissioned by various organizations, including Cantata Dramatica for the 2019 Durham Vocal Festival premiere of 'The Life of St Cuthbert.' In 2019, she was also the featured composer for the Spotlight Chamber Music series at Triskel Arts Centre. Recent projects include 'Sonanotine' for The Sequenza Project and commissions such as 'Storybook Land' and 'Natus Est.'