The National Concert Hall has announced their new ‘Metronome’ series, providing a new opportunity for rising artists to share their talents and sounds in Dublin. The inaugural series will include four nights of special performances in NCH’s The Studio throughout March and April.

The series is presented in collaboration with Homebeat, Matthew Nolan Music and Gash Collective.

“The National Concert Hall (NCH) is excited to announce Metronome; a new collaborative series in The Studio at the NCH,” a press release for the series states. “A gallery for sound, it presents emergent music, new projects and new artists.”

Electronic music composer Neil O’Connor, who often performs under the name Somadrone, will kick off the Metronome series on Thursday, March 16th. The artist, who also releases music under the moniker Ordnance Survey, has been creating electronic music for the past 24 years, collaborating with a slew of artists to fuse electronica, new music, jazz and improvisation together with modular synthesisers. He will be performing pieces from his electro-acoustic 2022 LP Nomos: O’Riada Reimagined, which draws inspiration from legendary Irish traditional music composer Seán Ó Riada. Ordnance Survey will be accompanied by pedal steel player David Murphy and Dublin-based artist Sharon Phelan.

“This project uses technology as a mode of expression so compositional processes are informed by sonographic representations,” NCH’s website states of Ordnance Survey's LP. “It is hoped that this variation adds to the language of experimental electronic music in Ireland.”

ON SALE NOW @NCH_Music is delighted to present #Metronome! This series will feature emerging artists from @Homebeatevents, MatthewNolanMusic, & @GASHcollective. Join us this March & April for @_somadrone_, #Zeropunkt, @EverythingShook & @_chequerboard.
ℹ️ https://t.co/VbEMtGx4cm pic.twitter.com/I1zmK4T9Rw

— National Concert Hall (@NCH_Music) February 20, 2023

Improvisational group Zeropunkt will then take the stage on Thursday, March 23. The band, which began as the quartet ¡NO! in 2013 before becoming Zeropunkt in 2016, comprises Fergus Cullen on sax, piano and clarinet, Jamie Davis on drums and percussion and Damien Lennon on bass. They have released 15 albums with their most recent being 2022’s ZPEP.

A week later, Irish three-piece electronic band Everything Shook will perform in tandem with the release of their upcoming album Blacking Out on Thursday, March 30th. The band, consisting of Robyn Bromfield, Jessica Kennedy and Aine Stapleton, has played at festivals and venues across Europe and the U.S., showcasing their unique sound of vintage synthesisers and bass guitar. The trio will be joined by musical group Any Odds and their new LP will follow their acclimated 2016 album Drinking About You.

To end the inaugural Metronome series, Dublin-based guitarist John Lambert, who performs under the name Chequerboard, will deliver a set on Thursday, April 13. The musician will play tracks from his upcoming album Souvenir with the help of Crash Ensemble’s Barry Halpin on guitar and Mary Barnecutt and Lioba Petrie on cellos. Lambert's newest LP follows 2002’s Gothica, 2008’s Penny Black and 2013’s The Unfolding.

Tickets for the shows are €15 and can be purchased online here.