Award-winning Irish composer, writer and performer, Michael Gallen grew up with traditional Irish music and folk song.  His work blends contemporary composition with musical language drawn from an Irish idiom. He is the Artistic Director of new opera company Straymaker.

Michael’s work has been performed by leading ensembles including the RTÉ Concert Orchestra, Contempo Quartet, Opera Theatre Company, Crash Ensemble, Miroirs Étendus and Chamber Choir Ireland. He has been involved in several high-profile collaborations in dance and theatre, and recently toured Session, a piece made in collaboration with choreographers Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui and Colin Dunne, to major festivals and venues across Europe. His first large-scale opera, Elsewhere, is set to premiere in Ireland and internationally in 2021/22.

Michael is the lead singer with Irish band Ana Gog, and performs as a solo pianist and electronic music artist under the moniker Sudden Wells.

For Culture Night 2020, Michael will participate in a special performance at The Patrick Kavanagh Centre in Inniskeen, Co. Monaghan.