Chieftains’ Moloney Composing Symphony

Paddy Moloney of the Chieftains said Monday he is composing his first symphony, a piece to commemorate the Irish potato famine of the 1840s in which millions died or were forced from their country.

“I’ve been working on it for about three years,” Moloney said backstage after the Orange County Philharmonic Society presented the Chieftains in concert at the Performing Arts Center. “I don’t have a thing on paper yet, but it’s all up here”--he pointed to his head--”swirling around.

“You know, the Choctaw Indians in America were so touched by our people’s plight that they took up a collection and sent $789 to help. Then, of course, they had their own tragedy with the Trail of Tears. I hope to incorporate that sort of thing into the symphony,” said Moloney, who has composed scores for films including “Barry Lyndon,” “Far and Away” and “The Grey Fox.” He said he hopes to complete the symphony in 1994.