Selected and Reviewed by Andrew Eales
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Darren Day is a pianist, teacher, and composer who is based in Belfast. I have previously recommended his easy piano Christmas arrangements, which were self-published. Since then, he has been picked up by 80 Days Publishing, who now bring us Belfast Heart, an excellent collection of 12 Traditional Northern Irish songs and original solos for piano.
Introducing this new collection, we are told,
“Escape to a world of jigs, sweeping mountains, winding roads and magical kingdoms as Belfast Heart transports you to some of the stunning scenery of Country Down and to the city where people are famous for being friendly and great ‘craic!”
Fasten your seatbelts and let’s check it out…
Piano in Green
Piano in Green is the plucky title of the first piece in this publication, which rather eloquently sums up the musical character of the whole collection: these are late intermediate to early advanced (around UK Grades 5-7) piano pieces infused with a distinctly Irish colour.
Of these pieces, the five listed in italics are based on famous Northern Irish folk themes, while the rest are original compositions:
- Piano in Green
- The Star of Country Down
- Dawn
- The Mountains of Mourne
- Belfast Heart
- The Leestone Jig
- She Moved through the Fair
- Belle of Belfast City
- A Wee Irish Spring
- At the End of the Day
- Kingdom of Mourne
- Danny Boy
This music is immediately appealing and accessible, combining the influences of Irish folk music and traditional songs with modern popular music sensibilities, harmonies, and rhythms. Save for the recognition of a few age-old melodies, there is little to stylistically separate Day’s own compositions from his masterful arrangements of traditional Irish music.
Day’s arrangement of The Star of County Down is a good case in point, and an absolute blast, combining catchy melody, idiomatic folk rhythms and one of those key shifts up a semitone that always remind me of 80’s pop songs. At the other end of the spectrum, his Danny Boy is a gentle ‘easy listening’ ballad blessed with a subtle splash of jazz harmony.
When it comes to the original pieces, it’s hard not to assume that Belfast Heart, the title track, is based on a melody we have collectively known and loved for centuries, such is Day’s skill at channelling the Irish spirit in his music. Dawn also particularly stands out, a spectacular musical portrayal of the shimmering light as day awakens over Belfast Lough.
Having enjoyed the 5/4 lilt of the traditional Belle of Belfast City, I was equally impressed by the return of this unusual time signature in the composer’s own At the End of the Day, a more quirky piece with a syncopated melody with chromatic turns.
This is followed by Kingdom of Mourne, the dramatic climax of the collection, driven by insistent rhythmic repetitions, and at eight pages the longest score in the book.
The Recordings
Darren Day’s recordings of the twelve pieces can be found on major streaming services, including here on YouTube:
Underpinning their rhythmic groove, most of these recordings include some light percussion, which not only shows that the composer is flexible in his view of how these works could be performed, but also highlights their wider usefulness for creative arrangement and ensemble playing.
In a school setting for example, the melodies could be doubled by other players; the chord patterns are often suitable for guitar accompaniment, while the value added by a drummer is clear.
That said, all twelve pieces are extremely effective as piano solos in their own right, as notated, and having enjoyed playing through the collection during the review period, I look forward to continuing to play and teach them.
The Publication
In common with other 80 Days Publishing scores, Belfast Heart is a fairly basic publication with few frills.
The attractive cover looks, consciously or otherwise, like a holiday brochure, which is oddly fitting given the picturesque qualities of the music. Aside from the usual copyright notices, there is no introductory text within, although each piece is preceded by a very brief, evocative caption.
The notation itself is superbly engraved, well-spaced and with a decently sized music font that aids clarity. Fingering and pedalling are left for the performer to decide on, but dynamic and other musical intentions are all clearly presented.
Strikingly, the publication is spiral bound. Some may like this, and the score certainly stays open without fuss, but I have to admit I generally avoid music books presented this way, and find storing them a nuisance (albeit one I will put up with in this case, given the excellent quality of the music itself).
The copy reviewed is the print-on-demand version available from the publisher’s website. This is A4 size, the 56 pages within printed on bright white paper. I am advised that the version available from Musicroom is superior in several respects: this is apparently a standard sized music score, wiro bound rather than coil, and printed on an off-white paper
For those in the market for a vivid collection of piano music that channels the landscape and culture of Northern Ireland, Darren Day’s Belfast Heart is certainly an easy recommendation.
Indeed, I am struggling to recall any other collection that delivers a musical portrait of the country and its people with such eloquence, pianistic verve, and musical appeal, which makes this publication a particular and unmissable achievement.
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