My first children’s opera, The North Wind and the Sun, based on one of Aesop’s fables, will be performed by Ulster Youth Opera as part of Belfast Children’s Festival, on Saturday March 7th, 2026

This is a fantastic introduction to the world of opera and is suitable for all the family. There will be three Aesop’s Fable operas in total, with The Tortoise and the Hare by Áine Mallon and The Boy who Cried Wolf by Anselm McDonnell also being performed. The children’s choirs are from all over Northern Ireland – Belfast, Enniskillen and Derry/Londonderry – and there are also special guests from Welsh National Youth Opera. The performances also include actress Christina Nelson, soprano Rebecca Murphy and Hard Rain SoloistEnsemble – my fifth time working with this wonderful ensemble. The conductor will be the energetic Paul McCusker and the opera directors are the wonderful Shannen MacNeice and Paddy McEnearney.

It’s on at Clonard Monastery, Belfast, BT13 2RL on Saturday 7th March

Perfomances at 2.30pm and 4pm

Tickets only £6

More information and tickets available here: https://ulstertouringopera.com/shows/aesops-fables/

Hear me and Ulster Touring Opera Artistic Director Dafydd Hall Williams chatting with Kathy Clugston about the Aesop’s Fables project on BBC Radio Ulster https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m002rs6f

Images: The North Wind and the Sun, Milo Winter, Aesop Anthology, 1919

I am an award-winning composer based in County Down, Northern Ireland and I have been composing professionally since 2020. My pieces have been performed throughout Northern and Southern Ireland, in England and in China by artists such as Hard Rain SoloistEnsemble, Cappella Caeciliana, Melisma and many others. I have received commissions and awards from HRSE, ACNI and PRSf.

In 2021 I was named as the winner of the Peter Rosser Foundation/Hard Rain Composition Award for my piece for Pierrot Lunaire ensemble, Dark Measures. In the Charles Wood Festival of Music and Summer School Composition Competition, August 2023, I was awarded first prize for my version of Hail, Gladdening Light by judges John Rutter, Bob Chilcott and David Hill.

My compositions are often inspired by mythological characters, particularly from Ireland, and beautiful poems, landscapes and art. My music is full of complex colours, textures and intricate harmonies.

My most recent compositions include Pierrette for flute, clarinet, violin, cello, piano and percussion, performed by members of Hard Rain Ensemble in collaboration with Hashtag Ensemble from Poland. This piece was broadcast on BBC Radio 3. In April 2025 I was invited to the St Endellion Easter Festival in Cornwall to hear the premiere of my piece, The Forsaken Merman, for soprano, alto, tenor and bass solo voices and violin. This commission was written especially for the festival after I won their composition contest. I am currently working on solo pieces for piano and a piece for solo cello.

I live with my husband, our two children, two cats and umpteen tropical fish, near the sea in County Down. I also enjoy cooking, hiking and tropical travel.

You can email me at this address: anitamawhinneycomposer@gmail.com