ieStyle Live: Composer Eimear Noone on breaking barriers in music and law
Conductor and composer Eimear Noone rehearsing with a quintet from Cork Youth Orchestra at City Hall for the Irish Examiner ieStyle Live 2024 at City Hall in Cork. Picture: Larry Cummins
Handbags and glad rags were out in force in Cork City on Thursday evening as the country’s most glamorous guests arrived at City Hall for a night of fashion, food, and inspiration.
returned to the heart of the city for its annual showcase of the season’s top fashion and beauty looks, along with a powerful keynote speech from conductor and composer Eimear Noone.
Noone, the first woman to conduct at an Oscars ceremony in Hollywood, spoke about the challenges she has faced as a woman in the music industry, including being fired while pregnant with her first son. This led to a precedent-setting case that changed the law in the state of California.
“At 32 weeks, I was fired on the tour for being pregnant,” she said.
“There was an area of the law in California that did not protect women on the stage. There was a civil rights issue, and we took it to court.
“As of 2016, the case Eimear Noone versus JMP Productions protects pregnant women on any production that originates in the state of California.”
She wore a black and red Claire Garvey piece at , a nod to her look that was also created by Garvey for the Oscars. Her black and red outfit was made in tribute to Co. Meath suffragette Alicia Adelaide Needham, the first Irish woman to conduct at the Royal Albert Hall in London over 100 years ago. Noone said her path to the Oscars was paved by Irish women.
“It was a monumental moment that did not belong to me, but to all of us. So, my friends, how do you get to Carnegie Hall? Practice, practice, practice. How do you get to the Oscars? Mná na hÉireann.”
Noone described the moment she learned she would conduct at the Oscars: “I am in equal parts terrified and excited.” She said she wasn’t nervous but thrilled to “perform John Williams for John Williams.”
Following her speech, which received a standing ovation, Noone introduced a quintet of string musicians from the Cork Youth Orchestra to the stage, where she conducted them through two pieces of music, including ‘Back in Black,’ which she felt had soundtracked her legal battle in California.
The event was emceed by designer duo Sonya Lennon and Brendan Courtney of Lennon Courtney, who arrived at the venue in style thanks to motor partners Audi Cork.
Celebrity makeup artist Christine Lucignano created beautiful looks on the models using products from Clarins. Top stylist Corina Gaffey brought the best of this season’s style to the runway, featuring looks from M&S, Lennon Courtney at Kilkenny Design, Kildare Village, Dunnes Stores, Samui, River Island at Opera Lane, Brown Thomas, and Irish designers like Laura Chambers, Sketch, Caroline Kennedy, Cobblers Lane, And Tate, Miss She’s Got Knits, and Ejay Griffin, as well as a selection of preloved styles curated from shops run by charity partner Barnardos. Lucignano and Gaffey spoke on stage about their inspiration for the runway looks.
Stephanie White, Director of Children's Services at Barnardos, also shared with guests the impact of support from an event like on their work. She noted that last year they assisted 1,900 people, while this year the number has already reached 2,700.
“Thank you for giving us the opportunity to be here and to be the beneficiary of a lot of what’s happening today,” she said.
“Together, what we're striving towards in Barnardos is to improve the situation for the children of Ireland, because we all know that childhood lasts a lifetime.”
Earlier in the evening, over 300 guests enjoyed a drinks reception upon arrival with partner Malfy Gin in Millenium Hall, where DJ Stevie G created an upbeat atmosphere, and a 360-degree camera wowed attendees for social media posts. In the main hall, prizes worth thousands of euros were given out throughout the evening, including shopping vouchers, jewelry, hotel stays, a coffee machine, and beauty hampers.
On the night, tributes were paid through the Women of Impact prize in association with Lidl to two audience members, while Style Editor Annmarie O’Connor also named a guest who was awarded the Dressed with Personality honor.
Guests went home with gift bags filled with goodies from Active Iron, O’Donnell Crisps, Mahers Coffee, Max Benjamin, Riley, Kildare Village, John McCambridge, Barry & Fitzwilliam, Ballymaloe, Tony’s Chocolonely, Lindt, The Head Plan, and Garden of Ireland.
The live event coincided with the publication of the autumn/winter edition of magazine, available in this Saturday’s
