Crash Ensemble was founded in 1997 by composer Donnacha Dennehy; conductor and pianist Andrew Synott; and clarinetist Michael Seaver.  Since its first sold-out concert in Dublin in the autumn of 1997, the group has attracted enthusiastic audiences for its particular blend of music, video and electronics. The group is interdisciplinary in outlook, and considers its sound engineers, technicians and video makers as much a part of the enterprise as the musicians.

Crash has commissioned or premiered a large amount of works by many composers incuding Peter Adriaansz, Gerald Barry, Gavin Bryars, Raymond Deane, Donnacha Dennehy, Arnold Dreyblatt, Stephen Gardner, Michael Gordon, John Godfrey, Andrew Hamilton, David Lang, Terry Riley, Jurgen Simpson, Gerhard Stabler, Jennifer Walshe, Ian Wilson and Kevin Volans. It has worked directly with all the above, and with other composers such as Louis Andreissen, Gloria Coates, Roger Doyle, Michael Maierhof and Steve Reich.

Since 2002, Crash has hosted three contemporary music festivals, attracting international composers and performers to Dublin to collaborate with Irish colleagues. In 2006, Crash performed three concerts in the RTÉ Living Music Festival’s first all-day ‘marathon’ event in the presence of featured composer, Steve Reich. Presented in association with the Ensemble, the marathon was a sell-out and the festival, under the artistic direction of Donnacha Dennehy, proved a tremendous success with the Irish public. In 2007 Crash celebrated its 10th birthday with a massive marathon weekend Shindig to great critical acclaim followed by a National tour that culminated in a sell out show in the Ionad Culturtha, Baile Mhuirne.

As well as performing regularly throughout Ireland, Crash has appeared in the Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, Estonia, Germany, the UK, USA and Canada and has been broadcast on radio in all these countries. WNYC broadcast their New York City debut in March 2007. In May 2008 Crash featured in the Canberra International Chamber Festival, Sydney Con and the Bang on a Can Marathon NYC (with the support of Culture Ireland) and in September 2008 performed at the 14th Musica Viva festival in Lisbon (with the support of the Association of Irish Composers and Culture Ireland).

Crash has made an indelible mark on the Irish music scene and beyond. They believe in a joyous yet absolutely rigorous engagement with the most adventurous music of today and the (extremely) recent past. Crash feature in recordings by labels such as NMC (London – released June 07) and Cantaloupe (New York – release spring 08).     In May 2011, Crash Ensemble released Donnacha Dennehy's first album on Nonesuch Records, Grá agus Bás, to international acclaim.

Crash Ensemble is supported by the Arts Council.

“the Irish new-music band that plays with the energy and spirit of a rock group” New York Times, March 07