Thwaite - Biographies

Jurgen Simpson, Composer (Irish)

Jurgen Simpson has a multi-national background: he was born in Dublin in 1975 to a Scottish father and German mother. Having studied classical piano with Mable Swainson and Roy Holmes, he came into contact with the electronic music of Irish composer Roger Doyle, inspiring him to explore this field. He subsequently moved to Germany where he began working with electronic music and also studied jazz.

On returning to Ireland he took up composition studies with South-African composer Kevin Volans as well as setting up an electronic music facility where he composed for theatre and film. He subsequently studied electronic music at Trinity College Dublin with Donnacha Dennehy and Roger Doyle obtaining a Masters. He has written one opera, Neshika, with librettist Clare MacCumhaill, which was premiered at the Dublin Fringe Theatre Festival.

He collaborated with Volans on the electroacoustic work Surface Tension that was premiered at London's Queen Elizabeth Hall and has subsequently toured throughout Europe and South Africa. He has both performed with and has had work commissioned by The Crash Ensemble. He currently teaches composition and music technology at Trinity College. Recent works include creating the electronic part for Passage-Work by Irish composer Raymond Deane and Piano Piece I which won 1st prize in the Irish Music Rights Composition prize.

He is heavily involved in the Dublin underground music scene and specialises in the field of live electronics. He performs in both this capacity, (using the latest processing techniques as well as analogue modular synthesisers), but also as a pianist, accordionist and percussionist with a number of improvising groups, most notably the trio Repetitive Strain Industries, Luc and the Platelets and electronic noise outfit Zoger.

He is a founding member of The Whispering Gallery and also plays in critically acclaimed rock band The Jimmy Cake.