BIOGRAPHY

Liam Byrne divides his time between making very old and very new music on the viola da gamba. He spent the early stages of his career performing and recording with many leading European early-music ensembles, including the Huelgas Ensemble, Dunedin Consort, Academy of Ancient Music, Gabrieli Consort, The Sixteen, and the viol consorts Fretwork, Phantasm, L’Acheron, Hathor Consort, and Concordia. In recent years, Mr. Byrne’s collaborations have included a growing number of bands, composers, folk musicians, contemporary music ensembles, and electronic musicians, alongside his historical concerns.

David Lang, Donnacha Dennehy, Nico Muhly, Greg Saunier, Valgeir Sigurðsson, and Edmund Finnis are all among the composers who have written new works for him. He has also performed with Damon Albarn, Efterklang, Mugison, Shara Nova, Martin Hayes, Cleek Schrey, Iarla Ó Lionáird, Bryce Dessner, and many others. In 2015 Mr. Byrne was the first musician to be named artist-in-residence at London’s Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A); he has since created a number of sound and performance installations for museums including the V&A, Dulwich Picture Gallery, and, in collaboration with kinetic sculptor Harrison Pearce, for Baert Gallery in Los Angeles.

Liam Byrne holds a bachelor of music degree from Indiana University, where he studied with Wendy Gillespie, and a master of philosophy from Oxford University, where he studied with Laurence Dreyfus and Margaret Bent. He is professor of viola da gamba at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London. Liam Byrne is a member of the Icelandic artist collective and record label Bedroom Community, with which he released his debut solo album, Concrete, in May 2019.

Liam Byrne