Against All Odds

AGAINST ALL ODDS

Orla who is a Deaf and Blind pianist and teacher, says that music has given her great enjoyment and pleasure and helped her overcome her disability.

Orla has being profoundly deaf and partially sighted since shortly after birth. She was a premature baby who contracted an infection in hospital.

She was given oxygen and streptomycin which damaged both her eyes and ears. She was taught nursery rhymes and songs by her mother ,which stimulated her musical ear from an early age. She helped her play the piano by holding her fingers on the keys so that she could feel the vibration and hear the sounds.

She started formal piano lessons at the age of six and through her school years she got the highest scores in her music Inter and Leaving Cert exam ear tests. She also learned several instruments including violin, guitar, piano accordion, electronic keyboard, and organ .She studied in UCC, Diploma in Youth Work Practice , Music Performance Management and Sound ,and a teacher’s Cert VCM . She studied organ in St Fin Barr’s Cathedral. She also has a Diploma in Recital A.T.C.L in the Cork City College of Music where she has been a student for many years.

Performances

She accompanied on piano the local primary school Christmas concerts, Holy Communion, Cor Fheile in Cork City Hall, played organ for local church choirs, and performed in the Triskel Arts Centre, Cork Opera House and accompanied the ICA group in many venues and won many prizes. She also accompanied the Deaf International Dance Festival in Cyprus, Santander, Vienna and Dublin.

Orla has performed piano solos of classical music at a special concert for the Irish Hard of Hearing (IHHA) in Dublin in November 2008.She also played for HOH in the Clarion Hotel Cork in June 2009 and in the Ambassadors Hotel for the PWDI, and in the Clarion in Feb 2010 She has been on R.T.E Hands On twice .She has been teaching for the past 19 years - both hearing and deaf of all ages.

Her next performances will be held in the Cork School of Music in March 26th,to raise awareness about deafness and blindness for the Lifelong Learning Festival.

She will also perform in April 16th (National Music Day) and details will follow re time and venue. She will launch her CD on that day.

Sound Senses

Orla will be releasing her first album “Sound Senses” shortly. The CD contains solo piano pieces from extracts of Bach, Schubert ,Chopin ,John Field, Phil Coulter and many more..

All her pieces are played from memory .She spend many many hours to perfect her playing. Due to her low vison , she uses magnification to enlarge the scores and memorises each bar one at a time.

She feels that music is a great healing therapy for the body mind and soul. It also activates a person’s brain and make them brainier in other aspects in general.

“Without music, life would be an error” quotes Friedrich Nietzsche.

Feel the Sound.

Orla who is not totally deaf but profoundly deaf, says that even if someone is totally deaf he/she can still feel and hear the sound.

She feels and hears the sound through vibrations which is then interpreted by the brain.It is the sense of hearing and touch that can do this. Also with sight, the brain creates the sound through movement.

She hopes that the CD will stimulate the listener to enjoy the experience of being entertained.

“Being deaf and partially sighted does not stop me from doing what I want.”

Orla is very determined to continue to achieve her ambitions in music.

To quote Socrates “Thus education by the means of music is most excellent, as rhythm and harmony may reach the centre of the soul most deeply and lent grace and dignity.”

Contact details: www.orlaosullivan.ie Mobile – 0879159494.(text only)