Welcome

Claire Duff is an internationally acclaimed violinist, specialising in Historically Informed Performance. As a soloist, chamber musician, leader and director, she is recognised as one of Ireland’s leading interpreters of Baroque music.

Claire is Artistic Director of the Irish Youth Baroque Orchestra and Associate Leader of the Irish Baroque Orchestra, with whom she has performed and recorded to critical acclaim for over twenty years. She has appeared in major concert halls and cathedrals around the world with leading period instrument ensembles and distinguished international artists.

“The concert master of the Irish Baroque Orchestra and the first violin of the Camerata Kilkenny, virtuoso violinist Claire Duff has a particularly high level of artistic preparation. Her way of playing music, technical bravura and way of conducting each of the interpretations are truly exemplary.”
JURICA MURAI PRIZE, CROATIA
“Duff has a winning way with improvisatory impetuosity and filigree decoration in this kind of repertoire….the playing of these two sonatas came across with persuasive flourish.”
THE IRISH TIMES
“The two violinists, Beznosiuk and Duff, form an effective partnership, as we hear especially in the brilliant Passamezzo Concertato by Biagio Marini, negotiating its interweaving lines and eccentric turns with some stunning playing.”
GOLDENPLEC
“Claire Duff’s stylish solo violin playing is an eloquent foil to the voice part..”
GRAMOPHONE
“The highlight of the concert came […] in Claire Duff’s performance of Corelli’s Violin Sonata in G minor, Op 5 No 5. Duff’s daring handling of [Dubourg’s] intricate additions had all the excitement of a high-wire act.”
THE IRISH TIMES

“The concert master of the Irish Baroque Orchestra and the first violin of the Camerata Kilkenny, virtuoso violinist Claire Duff has a particularly high level of artistic preparation. Her way of playing music, technical bravura and way of conducting each of the interpretations are truly exemplary.”
JURICA MURAI PRIZE, CROATIA
“Duff has a winning way with improvisatory impetuosity and filigree decoration in this kind of repertoire….the playing of these two sonatas came across with persuasive flourish.”
THE IRISH TIMES
“The two violinists, Beznosiuk and Duff, form an effective partnership, as we hear especially in the brilliant Passamezzo Concertato by Biagio Marini, negotiating its interweaving lines and eccentric turns with some stunning playing.”
GOLDENPLEC
“Claire Duff’s stylish solo violin playing is an eloquent foil to the voice part..”
GRAMOPHONE
“The highlight of the concert came […] in Claire Duff’s performance of Corelli’s Violin Sonata in G minor, Op 5 No 5. Duff’s daring handling of [Dubourg’s] intricate additions had all the excitement of a high-wire act.”
THE IRISH TIMES

Biography

Claire Duff is an internationally acclaimed violinist specialising in Historically Informed Performance. As a soloist, chamber musician, leader and director, she is recognised as one of Ireland's leading interpreters of Baroque music.

She is Artistic Director of the award-winning Irish Youth Baroque Orchestra and Associate Leader of the Irish Baroque Orchestra, with whom she has performed and recorded to critical acclaim for over twenty years. She has appeared in major concert halls and cathedrals throughout the world with leading period-instrument ensembles and distinguished international artists.

Claire has served as leader of the National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland. Her leadership extends across renowned Baroque ensembles including Florilegium, I Fagiolini and The King's Consort, and she has co-led the Academy of Ancient Music and The English Concert. As a director, she has worked with the Irish Baroque Orchestra, Irish National Opera and Vespera.

Claire has premiered works written for her by composers including Jane O’Leary, Sam Perkins, Karen Power, Eoghan Desmond and Seán Doherty, broadening the Baroque violin repertoire through collaborations with leading Irish composers.

In 2016 she was elected an Associate of the Royal Academy of Music (ARAM), London, and in 2021 received an Arts Council of Ireland Bursary Award. In 2022, Camerata Kilkenny, with Claire as first violin, was awarded the prestigious Jurica Murai Prize at the Varaždin Baroque Festival in Croatia.

A dedicated and passionate educator, Claire qualified as a Body Mapping Educator for Musicians in 2024. She teaches Baroque violin and Historically Informed Performance at the Royal Irish Academy of Music and directs the RIAM Baroque Orchestra.

Claire Duff

Created By Liam Thompson