44 Volume 7 | Research News, Dublin Institute of Technology
Research Foundation launched at music symposium The Research Foundation for Music in Ireland (RFMI) was officially launched by Professor Brian Norton, President of DIT at a one-day symposium on “The Symphony in Ireland”. A highlight of the symposium was the performance by the DIT Camerata of the recently re-discovered Alday Symphony. According to Dr Kerry Houston, DIT lecturer and Director of RFMI, “The Foundation aims to promote the dynamic musical life of Ireland, manifested in performance, musicology, pedagogy, and composition. The term “music in Ireland” includes the broadest spectrum of musical experience in this country; that is, both music in Ireland and music of Ireland. Given the centrality of music to Ireland’s culture, the research foundation aims to advance the study and performance of music in Ireland to national and international audiences, as well as to the scholarly community and the music industry.” The “Symphony and Ireland” Symposium examined the context and trajectory of the symphony in, and of, Ireland,
bringing together leading international academics and contemporary Irish symphonic composers to discuss the composition and consumption of the genre in Ireland. The catalyst for the symposium was the recent discovery of the missing parts of Alday’s Symphony, composed some 200 years ago. It was composed in Dublin by the French composer Paul Alday around 1819 and was one of two which he wrote during this period. These were uncovered in the un-catalogued music collection in the National Library of Ireland by DIT researcher, Dr Catherine Ferris, who spoke about the excitement of the discovery during the symposium. The missing parts were digitally transcribed by students in the DIT Conservatory of Music & Drama, and the DIT Camerata, conducted by Keith Pascoe, performed the symphony as part of the Symposium programme—its first performance since the early 19th century. e: kerry.houston@dit.ie w: www.musicresearch.ie
New project investigates cancer diagnostics Professor Fiona Lyng, DIT Radiation and Environmental Science Centre, has been awarded close on €200,000 by Science Foundation Ireland’s (SFI) Investigator Programme, to investigate novel ways of diagnosing high risk oral lesions that will progress to cancer.
SFI’s Investigator Programme is designed to support the development of world class research and human capital in the areas of science, engineering and mathematics that demonstrably support and underpin enterprise competitiveness and societal development in Ireland.
The project is entitled ‘Identification of clinically important, high risk oral lesions using Raman spectroscopy’ and Dr Lyng’s collaborator on the project is Professor Stephen Flint, Dublin Dental School and Hospital, Trinity College Dublin.
Speaking on the SFI Investigator announcement, Minister for Research and Innovation Sean Sherlock said, “Over the past decade, Ireland has invested heavily in R&D and the rewards are clearly visible. What is particularly heartening about today’s announcement is that much of this excellent research, which was selected competitively following international peer review, is being done in collaboration with companies who are seeking to find new products and services, including IBM Ireland, Intel Ireland, HP, EMC and Bord Gáis.”
Professor Lyng’s application was summarised by the evaluation panel as follows: “an outstanding application from an outstanding applicant. The therapeutic and economic potential for this proposal is high”.
Commenting on the announcement, Minister Bruton said: “By supporting these world-class researchers in their ground-breaking work we will ensure that we continue to maintain, attract and develop dynamic companies and create the quality jobs we need.” Professor Mark Ferguson, Director General of SFI, said, “These 85 funded research projects were selected from 419 applications following rigorous competitive peer review and ranking by eminent international scientists. This 20% success rate is comparable to international funding success rates for example that of the National Institutes of Health, USA at 18%.” e: fiona.lyng@dit.ie