Coel Leannsgeulach - BSN

Daniel McConnachie is a composer, musician and educator who was born in Toronto Ontario in 1953. He attended Queen’s University in Kingston Ontario where he studied composition with Istvan Anhalt and Clifford Crawley, and theory and counterpoint with F.R.C. Clark, receiving a B.Mus. degree in 1976. Entering the Master’s programme at the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Music, Daniel studied composition with John Weinzweig and Gustav Ciamaga, while Derek Holman provided theoretical explorations and historical context of 20th Century materials. These studies resulted in the awarding of an M.Mus. in Composition and Theory in 1978.

In 1980, he started a 28-year career teaching music in the York Region District School Board, eventually becoming Head of Music at Stouffville District Secondary School. Upon retirement in 2008, Dan returned to school working towards a D.Mus. in Composition and Theory at Boston University where he studied with John Wallace and Benjamin Bierman.

McConnachie’s compositions range from the freely atonal to the fully tonal and include works for solo winds, piano, choir, chamber and jazz ensembles, band and symphony orchestra. His focus of late has been music influenced by the Celtic traditions he grew up with and has come to embrace more fully. This has led to an exploration of the intersection of traditional music with more formal classical forms and ensembles. A number of commissions from Orchestra Kingston have allowed him to explore these influences in an orchestral setting, while recent chamber and solo works have seen him further explore this intersection in new ways.

Daniel is a member of the Canadian League of Composers, an Associate member of The Canadian Music Centre, SOCAN, and an active performer on the bassoon.