As well as a harpist, I am also passionate about musicology. I lectured in music at St. Patrick’s College, DCU and was awarded a Foras Feasa fellowship to research a PhD on ‘The Music Association of Ireland: A Cultural and Social History’ (2012). My research has been published in a number of journals including, the Journal of the Society for Musicology in Ireland, the Journal of Music Research Online and the American Harp Journal. I co-authored with my sister, Mary Louise O’Donnell, Sisters of the Revolutionaries: The Story of Margaret and Mary Brigid Pearse (Merrion Press 2017).
I have delivered numerous papers at national and international conferences and seminars including, Society for the Study of Nineteenth Century History, Dublin Festival of History, Society for Music Education in Ireland, Society for Musicology in Ireland, Percy French Festival, Women in Music in Ireland Conference, World Harp Congress, Tara Lecture Series and Brian Boydell Centenary Conference.