Following the resounding success of the first three stagings of the festival in 2023, 2024, and 2025 the SubSounds Youth Music Festival, presented in association with Music Generation is set to return in July 2026. The festival will feature approximately 150 young musicians, aged 12-18, from various counties across Leinster, including South Dublin, Kildare, Fingal, Meath, Wicklow, and Dublin City. Over the course of the day, on four stages, audiences will be treated to an eclectic mix of contemporary popular music, traditional, classical, and jazz ensembles.
The festival highlights the work of numerous youth music and arts initiatives such as SubSounds Music Collective, Behind The Scenes Productions and NOISE Music. CONTACT Studio (an SDCC Arts Office initiative) and Music Generation will play a crucial role, connecting a wide array of musical expressions and making the festival a true representation of the creativity of the new generation.
Staying true to the SubSounds and Music Generation ethos, the focus will be on original compositions. Young musicians will be encouraged to showcase sets predominantly featuring their own music, fostering a culture of originality and artistic expression.
‘Ireland is brimming with incredible young musical talent, yet there has been a notable gap in providing these emerging artists with the experience and opportunities needed to perform in professional settings.
Recognising this need, we have partnered with Music Generation to create a festival that not only highlights these young talents but also supports their development into professional musicians. SubSounds and Music Generation are committed to bridging the gap between budding musicians and the professional music industry. Through this collaboration, we aim to offer young artists the invaluable experience of performing on a professional stage, helping them to hone their skills and gain the confidence needed to succeed in their musical careers.
The Youth Music Festival is more than just an event; it is a stepping stone for young musicians to reach new heights.’ Says Martin Moran, SubSounds Programme Manager.
Participation and Engagement at Its Core
The SubSounds Youth Music Festival places a strong emphasis on participation, civic engagement, and pride among both participants and audiences. Young musicians are involved in every aspect of the festival, from pre-production to event delivery. Their roles include site dressing, road crew duties, stewarding, stage management, sound checks, MC-ing, and performing. Additionally, they will be consulted on marketing and programming, playing a vital role in building public awareness and engagement.
Each festival team—Production, PR, Event Management, and Programming—will work alongside young assistants, providing them with ownership, stewardship, and invaluable training for future events.
Spotlight on SubSounds
SubSounds, a youth music collective based in South Dublin County, supports young musicians aged 14-18 in composing, arranging, recording, and releasing music. Each year, the collective produces two/three albums, two EPs, and several singles, showcased at various gigs around Dublin. This year’s main album, Class of 2026, was launched at The Sugar Club in April, and members will perform tracks from the album at the festival.
Diverse Musical Acts from Across Leinster
Participants from Music Generation Meath, Fingal and Wicklow will also bring their unique talents to the festival. Highlights include:
Main Headliner: TBC
The Hit Machine: are an Irish percussion ensemble that has been performing since 2013. The group has expanded over time, refining its skills and increasing its speed and volume. Their performances include choreographed routines, rhythm-based interactions with the audience, and occasional opportunities for audience participation.
The performers wear black kilts, chains, and leather vests, drawing inspiration from modern Celtic warrior aesthetics. Their performances feature high-energy drumming designed to engage and entertain audiences.
EVENT DETAILS
SubSounds and Music Generation presents
SubSounds Youth Music Festival
Saturday 11th of July, 1pm
County Hall Car Park, Parthalán Place, Rua Red Arts Centre and County Library Tallaght
Additional notes:
SubSounds Youth Music festival is supported by:
The Arts Council, Music Generation, Noise Music, Alternative Entertainments, CONTACT Studio, Music Network and South Dublin County Council
A Brief history of The SubSounds Youth Music Collective
The programme is managed by Alternative Entertainments Arts Group, in partnership with Music Generation South Dublin and CONTACT Studio (a South Dublin County Council Arts Office initiative). It consists of young musicians aged 14-18 years, mentored by music industry professionals, working together to create new music and produce recordings and performances. Since 2004 the collective has composed, recorded and released its own music in a number of albums, EPs and singles.
Started by Martin Moran in 2004 and originally called The South Dublin Rock School, the project sought to build on Alternative Entertainments’ projects such as Tallaght Rock School and The Tallaght Guitar Ensemble that ran in the 80s and 90s. In 2005 Elton Mullally joined the team and Martin and Elton designed the collective’s structures and objectives, honed the methods needed to create the environment for young musicians to be creative and expressive.
In 2009 they joined forces with the Arts Office in South Dublin County Council and moved their operations to the newly opened Rua Red Arts Centre and became The SubSounds Youth Music Collective.
SubSounds is a youth-led collective in which participants work together to compose, record, and perform original music. They release a number of albums, EPs and singles each year, and perform at concerts all over Dublin.
From the start one of the objectives was to prepare young people for a life of music-making, and possible careers in the industry. Since 2012 the mentor team has included past-participants training as music educators. The current team of 14 mentors consists of 10 past-participants, with musicians who were part of The South Dublin Rock School back in 2004.
While the Collective is proud of its many releases and performances over the years, its most important achievement is the reinvigoration of the youth music scene in the county and beyond, and its success in creating passionate, creative, confident musicians who will contribute to the artistic life of the country.