Madrigal '75

Madrigal ’75 was formed in 1975 by students of University College, Cork with the aim of performing madrigals and entering competitions, including the madrigal competition of the then Cork Choral Festival that same year, so the title Madrigal ’75 seemed a natural choice of name for the choir!

In 2018, the choir collaborated with Sestina, for a performance of Bach’s St. John Passion at the East Cork Early Music Festival, and was invited back to the festival in 2022 to perform Handel’s Messiah. In 2024, the choir performed a programme featuring early 17th century psalm settings and madrigals by women composers from Northern Italy as part of the Finding a Voice Festival.

The choir has performed in festivals and competitions in Italy, Switzerland, France, Spain, and the UK, performing at Southwark and St. Paul’s Cathedrals, London, Glasgow Cathedral, and St. Mary’s Episcopal Cathedral, Edinburgh.

Madrigal ‘75 are Artists-in-Residence at MTU Cork School of Music, and perform concerts there on a regular basis, most notably their sell-out Christmas concerts, which have become an established tradition in the Cork concert calendar. The choir released a second CD in February 2020, featuring commissioned works by Cork composer, Séamas de Barra.

Over the years, the choir has featured prominently in the Cork International Choral Festival, initially participating in the international competitions as well as performing commissioned works at the contemporary music seminars. Latterly, the choir presented the opening night Gala Concert in 2015, and the Evocations Concert in 2014 and again in 2019. In 2025, the choir participated in a performance of Elgar’s Dream of Gerontius for the opening night Gala Concert as part of their anniversary celebrations marking fifty years. In recent years, the choir has featured as a guest choir at Gala Concerts of the Fleischmann International Trophy Competition.

The choir is conducted by James Taylor, who has worked as an organist, harpsichordist and choral conductor in New Zealand, Canada and Ireland. Based in Cork, he is a lecturer at MTU Cork School of Music.