An accomplished music producer from Donegal has picked up an award for his exceptional work on the score for the Sky TV drama, The Midwich Cuckoos.
Micheal Keeney from Lifford was part of a talented team behind the original score of the sci-fi series which aired on Sky Max last summer.
The electronica score was composed and produced by Hannah Peel, mixed by Michael Keeney and mastered by James Trevascus. The trio picked up the prize for Original Score Recording Of The Year at the Music Producers Guild awards this week. The soundtrack is also in the running for an Ivor Novello award later this month.
Michael Keenyey, James Trevacus & Hannah Peel winners of Original Score Recording Of The Year Sponsored by Blinding Talent The Music Producers Guild Awards, Thursday 27th April 2023. Photo: Sarah Louise Bennet -www.instagram.com/slb_photo
The Midwich Cuckoos is based on the classic 1957 sci-fi horror novel of the same name by author John Wyndham. It was previously adapted twice as the Village of the Damned films.
Michael, delighted with the honour from the Music Producers Guild, said the music for the Sky version of the story took influence from the first movie soundtrack, with a hybrid of electronic music and orchestra.
Music is a career that brings great variety. Michael, now based in Bangor, has worked as a composer with the RTE Concert Orchestra, has produced material for Foy Vance, Duke Special and SOAK, to name but a few, and has his own solo record coming out later in 2023.
He previously worked with composer Hannah Peel on The Deceived, a Channel 5 series partly set in Donegal, and on Dancing at Lughnasa, which opens at the National Theatre in London this week.
“What I like about the film world is that your project changes every few months. A film project can take a year, but you dip in and out for a few months. It gives you an opportunity to work in different styles of music,” Michael said.
A passion for the creative industries runs in Michael’s family. His father Packie, originally from Ardara, was one of the founders of Highland Radio and a very familiar voice on the airwaves up to his retirement in 2015. Michael’s mother Kathleen, who sadly passed in 2021, was a gifted singer and a native of Convoy. His brother Declan went on to be a professor of film studies at Queen’s University Belfast while his other brother Marty sang in bands around Donegal and currently works in youth support services.
Michael has another exciting project up his sleeve, as he joins up with Foy Vance again for a dynamic show with the Ulster Orchestra celebrating 10 years of the LP, Joy of Nothing, at Belfast’s Waterfront Hall.