Séamus Maynard brings an eclectic blend of musical influences into his solo act. His original music draws on folk, rock, jazz, classical, celtic and americana, but it’s all “rock’n folk” to him.
"Séamus plys a quiet, subtle British-style ringing guitar picking a la Bert Jansch, John Renbourn, which quickly breaks into American jazz- it is pure class."
--No Division
He has performed in the US, Europe and Australia in a variety of contexts and venues, including- The Cutting Room (nyc), La Mama (nyc), The Belgian National Theatre (Brussels), The Barbican Center (London) and the Round House (London). He studied classical guitar and composition with world class guitarist Ed FLower. Séamus founded, composed for and performed with Quiet In The Head- a guitar, violin and cello trio; as well as Meg & Séamus (formerly Living Roots)- a folk duo, with classical influences.
Music has been like a life partner for Séamus- always by his side, even when the going gets tough and always encouraging him to dig a little deeper. As a young person, Séamus thought of nothing but improving his craft. For many years he struggled with setbacks, feelings of inadequacy and disenchantment. It often seemed like there was no way to simply be the artist that he felt himself to be. This led Séamus to eventually let go of his dream of finding fulfillment in outer quantifiable achievements. To Seamus, this release from his original goal was like a free fall. He wondered who he would become without the dreams by which he had defined himself until that point. Then, something extraordinary happened. Séamus began to realize that during his long years of existential perplexity, his artistic vision had gradually been uncovering itself. At last, it was coming into focus! This discovery brought Séamus intense joy and a feeling of freedom. It was like he had found hidden treasure! Since that time, he has changed his goal from proving himself outwardly, to being a professional “fool for love”. His music is an expression of that goal. His shows bring together the profound and the ridiculous with soulful music and lighthearted humor. He hopes his audience will follow suit and become a royal pack of fools along with him! The world as we know it may topple to its ruin, the wisest may be tricked, but you’ll never steal the joy from a dreamer’s heart. “Hey, hey, my, my, rock’n folk will never die!”
In addition to his work as an actor and musician Séamus is also author of the book titled Parzival- A Journey of Initiation, has written an number of plays including A Solo Interrupted and Ascalon. He is also co-author for an online distance learning course through EducareDo called Speech and Drama as Living arts. He is a member of Developing The Self Developing The World, a collegial group of educators, health practitioners and artists who offer inner development, health and education workshops to support communities around the world. Séamus also shares one person dramatic presentations from the Parzival Legend in schools, theaters, for communities and in support of The Inner Work Path, which offers ways of engaging with esoteric studies as outlined by Rudolf Steiner.