John O'Brien (30 May 1931 – 6 January 2008) was a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

priest who worked in the

Archdiocese of Dublin The Archbishop of Dublin is an archepiscopal title which takes its name after Dublin, Ireland. Since the Reformation, there have been parallel apostolic successions to the title: one in the Catholic Church and the other in the Church of Irelan ...

from 1956 until his death in 2008. He is best remembered as one of Ireland's leading conductors, a prominent organist and founder of the retired St. James' Choir and th
Glasnevin Musical Society

Life and career

Early life

John O'Brien, eldest of the four children of publican Michael O'Brien and Mary O'Dea, was born in

Kilrush Kilrush () is a coastal town in County Clare, Ireland. It is also the name of a civil parish and an ecclesiastical parish in Roman Catholic Diocese of Killaloe. It is located near the mouth of the River Shannon in the south-west of the county. ...

, County Clare on 30 May 1931. He had a keen interest in music, which was nurtured at home. His mother played the violin, while the family housekeeper sang to the children every evening. At the age of seven, John was sent to Mrs. Atherton, a local piano teacher whose husband was organist of the parish church. A bright pupil, he was considered sufficiently accomplished to play a solo at the next

St. Patrick's Day Saint Patrick's Day, or the Feast of Saint Patrick ( ga, Lá Fhéile Pádraig, lit=the Day of the Festival of Patrick), is a cultural and religious celebration held on 17 March, the traditional death date of Saint Patrick (), the foremost patr ...

concert in Kilrush.

Priesthood

John O'Brien attended the Christian Brothers' school in Kilrush until entering the junior

seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy, ...

for the

Diocese of Killaloe The Diocese of Killaloe ( ) may refer either to a Roman Catholic or a Church of Ireland (Anglican) diocese, in Ireland. Roman Catholic diocese The Diocese of Killaloe is the second largest Roman Catholic diocese in Ireland. It comprises the ...

Ennis Ennis () is the county town of County Clare, in the mid-west of Ireland. The town lies on the River Fergus, north of where the river widens and enters the Shannon Estuary. Ennis is the largest town in County Clare, with a population of 25,27 ...

when he was sixteen. He successfully completed his

Leaving Certificate A secondary school leaving qualification is a document signifying that the holder has fulfilled any secondary education requirements of their locality, often including the passage of a final qualification examination. For each leaving certifica ...

and, not being the chosen for the seminary of Killaloe, O'Brien was directed instead to the

, where he began his studies in

Clonliffe Clonliffe () is an area on the Northside of Dublin, Ireland, between Ballybough and Drumcondra in the Dublin 3 postal district. Location Clonliffe Road, previously known as Fortick's Lane, is a wide thoroughfare that forms the central arter ...

College in September 1949. He was ordained a priest by Archbishop

John Charles McQuaid John Charles McQuaid, C.S.Sp. (28 July 1895 – 7 April 1973), was the Catholic Primate of Ireland and Archbishop of Dublin between December 1940 and January 1972. He was known for the unusual amount of influence he had over successive governme ...

on 25 May 1956. O'Brien's first appointment was as chaplain to St. Michael's Hospital, Dun Laoghaire and afterwards, in 1957, he was made curate of

Glasnevin Glasnevin (, also known as ''Glas Naedhe'', meaning "stream of O'Naeidhe" after a local stream and an ancient chieftain) is a neighbourhood of Dublin, Ireland, situated on the River Tolka. While primarily residential, Glasnevin is also home t ...

Parish. He combined this with the first official diocesan chaplaincy to the Bon Secours Hospital. 1962 brought a move to the rural setting of Ballitore in the parish of Narraghmore in

County Kildare County Kildare ( ga, Contae Chill Dara) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Leinster and is part of the Eastern and Midland Region. It is named after the town of Kildare. Kildare County Council is the local authority for the county, ...

. This would be O'Brien's base until 1966 when he was relocated in one of

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

's oldest parishes – St. James's, dominated by the Guinness Brewery. In 1975, he was transferred to St. Andrew's, Westland Row – one of the archbishop's own parishes. He remained there until 1983, when he was promoted to

parish priest A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

of St. Canice's, Finglas. He retired in 1996, enjoying the title of Pastor Emeritus while still residing in Fingla

Musical career

The Glasnevin Musical Society

In the summer of 1955, O'Brien was asked to conduct Sigmund Romberg's ''

The New Moon ''The New Moon'' is an operetta with music by Sigmund Romberg and book and lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, Frank Mandel, and Laurence Schwab. The show was the third in a string of Broadway hits for Romberg (after ''The Student Prince'' (1924) and ...

'' in

. The scheduled conductor was taken ill, and John took the baton with some trepidation as the cast included the renowned English tenor

Thomas Round Thomas Round (18 October 1915 – 2 October 2016) was an English opera singer and actor, best known for his performances in the leading tenor roles of the Savoy Operas and grand opera. Round began working as a joiner and then a police officer. ...

. In Clonliffe College, O'Brien had briefly come under the guidance of Fathers Sean Quigley and Brendan Lawless. He had sufficient self-confidence to form a choir from the nursing staff in St. Michael's Hospital, and, once in situ in Glasnevin to augment the Church choir there. With the blessing of his parish priest, Michael Geraghty, th
Glasnevin Musical Society
was founded in 1958

'' The Desert Song'', under the musical direction of O'Brien, opened at the newly built St. Francis Xavier Hall in

. The success of ''The Desert Song'' led to Romberg's ' '' The Student Prince'', with Brychan Powell and Estelle Valery of London's Sadler's Wells Opera Company in the leading roles, in 1959. The Glasnevin Musical Society broke new ground in February 1960 when O'Brien was approached by the directors of Dublin's Olympia Theatre Stanley Illsey and Leo McCabe. The result was a production of

Julius Benedict Sir Julius Benedict (27 November 1804 – 5 June 1885) was a German-born composer and conductor, resident in England for most of his career. Life and music Benedict was born in Stuttgart, the son of a Jewish banker, and in 1820 learnt compo ...

's opera, ''The Lily of Killarney''. The cast included Veronica Dunne,

Bernadette Greevy Bernadette Greevy (3 July 1940 – 26 September 2008) was an Irish mezzo-soprano. She was founder and artistic director of the Anna Livia Dublin International Opera Festival.''The Irish Times'', "Festival seeks to promote opera among young peopl ...

, John Carolan and Denis Noble. Romberg's ''

'', with

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...

soprano Julia Shelley and English baritone Joseph Ward in the principal roles, followed in October 1960 at the St. Francis Xavier Hall. It ran for ten performances.

St. James' Choir

While stationed at St. James's Parish, and with the blessing of the parish priest, Henry Cunningham, O'Brien expanded the choir and had the organ refurbished. Masses by Palestrina and

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his ra ...

were sung in their liturgical settings, and these were extended to public performances with the choristers now firmly established as the St. James's Choir. Their first major event was an

RTÉ (RTÉ) (; Irish language, Irish for "Radio & Television of Ireland") is the Public broadcaster, national broadcaster of Republic of Ireland, Ireland headquartered in Dublin. It both produces and broadcasts programmes on RTÉ Television, telev ...

TV showing of Gounod's '' St. Cecilia Mass'' on her name day, 22 November 1971. O'Brien conducted with soloists Bene McAteer, Brendan Cavanagh and Gerald Duffy. Haydn's

Heiligmesse The Missa Sancti Bernardi von Offida is a mass in B-flat major by Joseph Haydn, Hob. XXII:10, Novello 1, was written the same year as the Missa in tempore belli (1796), and it "may have been the first mass Haydn wrote after his return from England ...

and

Missa in Tempore Belli ''Missa in tempore belli'' ('' en, Mass in Time of War'') is a setting of the mass by Joseph Haydn. It is catalogued Mass No. 10The Haydn masses are sorted using chronological indices given by New Grove. The Hoboken catalogue had also placed the m ...

followed, but a December 1972 performance in St. James's Church of

Antonín Dvořák Antonín Leopold Dvořák ( ; ; 8 September 1841 – 1 May 1904) was a Czechs, Czech composer. Dvořák frequently employed rhythms and other aspects of the folk music of Moravian traditional music, Moravia and his native Bohemia, following t ...

Requiem Mass A Requiem or Requiem Mass, also known as Mass for the dead ( la, Missa pro defunctis) or Mass of the dead ( la, Missa defunctorum), is a Mass of the Catholic Church offered for the repose of the soul or souls of one or more deceased persons, ...

was a turning point in the choir's career. It led to

inviting the group to undertake Haydn's ''The Creation'' with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra under

Colman Pearce Colman Pearce (born 22 September 1938) is an Irish pianist and conductor. Born in Dublin, Pearce was educated at University College Dublin and studied conducting in Hilversum and Vienna. He became a conductor for the RTÉ Concert Orchestra in ...

. The soloists were Eithne Troy,

Frank Patterson Frank Patterson (5 October 1938 – 10 June 2000) was an internationally renowned Irish tenor following in the tradition of singers such as Count John McCormack and Josef Locke. He was known as "Ireland's Golden Tenor". Early life Patterson wa ...

and William Young. St. James's Choir made three visits (1973, 1975, 1978), with an Irish orchestra, to North America. These included concerts of mainly Irish and sacred music in New York, Detroit,

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee is ...

, Muskegon and

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

. Another transatlantic trip in 1989 found the choir in San Francisco, while Lourdes featured in their itineraries of 1968, 1970, 1972, 1993, 1995 and 1997 when the choir gave a special concert at the Shrine. In 1984, O'Brien embarked on an annual series of "Christmas Music" events in Dublin's National Concert Hall. Initially for one performance, due to popular demand this was extended to a second from 1988. The formation of the RTÉ Philharmonic Choir in 1984 meant a reduction in St. James's work for

, but allowed O'Brien to direct his own concerts in the National Concert Hall. These included Dvořák's

Stabat Mater The Stabat Mater is a 13th-century Christian hymn to Mary, which portrays her suffering as Jesus Christ's mother during his crucifixion. Its author may be either the Franciscan friar Jacopone da Todi or Pope Innocent III.Sabatier, Paul ''Life o ...

(1986),

Verdi Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi (; 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer best known for his operas. He was born near Busseto to a provincial family of moderate means, receiving a musical education with the h ...

Requiem A Requiem or Requiem Mass, also known as Mass for the dead ( la, Missa pro defunctis) or Mass of the dead ( la, Missa defunctorum), is a Mass of the Catholic Church offered for the repose of the soul or souls of one or more deceased persons, ...

(1987), Gounod's

Messe Solennelle Messe is a German word meaning trade fair; a German and a French word meaning mass (liturgy) and mass (music). Places Germany * Messe Erfurt, convention centre in Erfurt, Germany * Messe Frankfurt, convention centre operator in Frankfurt am Main ...

(1989),

Handel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel (; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque composer well known for his operas, oratorios, anthems, concerti grossi, and organ concertos. Handel received his training i ...

's ''Messiah'' (1990) and Berlioz's

Te Deum The "Te Deum" (, ; from its incipit, , ) is a Latin Christian hymn traditionally ascribed to AD 387 authorship, but with antecedents that place it much earlier. It is central to the Ambrosian hymnal, which spread throughout the Latin Chur ...

(1991), this with

Stuart Burrows Stuart Burrows (born 7 February, 1933) is a Welsh operatic tenor. Biography The Cilfynydd-born singer was born on William Street, the same birthplace as fellow opera star Sir Geraint Evans, Welsh rugby international Glyn Davies, and polit ...

as soloist.

Health problems and death

O'Brien suffered ill health throughout his life. He had two bouts of

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...

before he was five years old, and while training for the priesthood at

College, he spent three of his seven Christmases in hospital. He suffered regular heart attacks and two strokes since 1990, which forced him to abandon the preparation and performances of major musical works. His health problems also forced him to early retirement from active ministry in 1996. On 6 January 2008, after taking part at a mass i
St. Canice's Church
Finglas (where he was formerly

), John O'Brien returned home and died peacefully, aged 7

References

*Biography in ''Pioneer Magazine'' Volume LIII No. 8, September 2001
Obituary
in the ''Irish Independent'' newspaper, Monday, 4 February 2008 issue *Obituary in ''The Irish Catholic'' newspaper, Thursday, 7 February 2008 issue

External links

John O'Brien
at

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Website of The Glasnevin Musical SocietyNational Concert Hall, Dublin website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Obrien, John 1931 births 2008 deaths 20th-century Irish organists Irish male organists Irish music arrangers 20th-century Irish Roman Catholic priests People from Kilrush Alumni of Clonliffe College 20th-century Irish conductors (music) 20th-century Irish male musicians