GALWAY SOPRANO Aimee Banks, has become the youngest Eimear Noonan Music Bursary Awards recipient for 2020-21, at eighteen years of age.
The bursary scheme aims to help talented young people from the west of Ireland to further their musical studies. It was established by Mary and Flan Noonan, and family, to remember their daughter Eimear who died tragically in November 2017.
Aimee Banks is currently a first year student of B.Mus, studying under Kathleen Tynan, head of opera and vocal studies at The Royal Irish Academy of Music, Dublin. Aimee won The Most Promising Performer award at the Irené Sandford Competition 2020 at the Royal Irish Academy of Music; Overall Junior Vocalist at Sligo Feis Ceoil 2019; and a recipient of the Silver Award in the 1st Vienna International Music Competition 2019.
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Galway scored high on the number of recipients of the Eimear Noonan Bursary. Among the other recipients were Galway violinist Sarah Hannify, who is a member of Welsh and Scottish National Youth Orchestras; classical vocalist David Kennedy [pictured above], who is currently studying with Prof Owen Gilhooly and repetiteur Grainne Dunne on the BMus (Vocal Studies ) course at the Royal Irish Academy of Music.
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Mary Duggan [pictured above] from Claregalway, who plays both classical and traditional, and has a longstanding connection with various orchestras, was another County Galway recipient. Also among the winners was Siobhan Brady, a young harpist from Limerick; Mayo pianist Jamie Doherty; and Clare's Caoileann Smith.
