Oscar-winning Irish musician Glen Hansard has died in a motorbike crash in Dublin.
The 56-year-old, who shot to prominence when he was cast in 1991 musical comedy film The Commitments, was long-time frontman of acclaimed rock band The Frames.
Tributes have been paid across world of music from the likes of Ed Sheeran and Bruce Springsteen, who said he was “heartbroken”.
Hansard had a storied career in music across more than three decades, including winning the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 2008 with Marketa Irglova, which featured in the low-budget musical romance film Once.
He and Irglova released three albums as The Swell Season, while Hansard also encountered success as a solo artist with 2016 album Didn’t He Ramble being nominated for a Grammy in 2016.
The single-vehicle crash happened on Lower Road in Lucan, west of Dublin, and was reported to emergency services shortly before 04:30 local time.
In a statement, ATC Management who represented the musician, said his family was “deeply shocked and heartbroken”.
“The family is grateful for the support they have received and wishes to thank the emergency services who attended the scene.”
Hansard, the father of a three-year-old boy, has also been hailed by charities for his work in raising money for the homeless.
In 2010, he started an annual Christmas Eve busk in Dublin City Centre, which attracted high-profile musicians including Bono, Sinéad O’Connor and Shane McGowan.
The Simon Community, a charity in the UK and Ireland which helps homeless people, said it was “devastated” by his death.
“Glen’s talents will indeed be his legacy but so too will his commitment to social justice. We will be forever indebted to him for the difference he made in the lives of the people we serve.”
Hansard’s friend, artist Colin Davidson, said the annual Christmas Eve busk had become “an international Irish institution in its own right”.
He said it was “Glen’s way of getting him and his friends to, not just shine a light on the problem of homelessness, but to actually do something about it financially”.
Davidson told the BBC’s Evening Extra programme that he is “quite broken” by the news of his death and is finding it “pretty difficult to find the words” for how he feels.
“He was unique… he was such an incredibly kind, loyal, warm human being who I am proud to call a friend,” Davidson said.
Bruce Springsteen and Ed Sheeran among Glen Hansard tributes
Singer Bruce Springsteen paid tribute to Hansard in a post on Instagram, saying: “Here on E Street, we are heartbroken over the death of Glen Hansard.”
Springsteen said he met Hansard in Ireland “many years ago and he was always nothing but a great musician, a good friend and a generous and gracious man”.
“Always positive, smiling and ready to sing. God bless him and his loved ones.”
Springsteen brought Hansard out for a duet, singing Drive All Night, at a concert in Kilkenny in 2013.
Singer Ed Sheeran said he was heartbroken to hear the news.
“He was such an incredible human, an incredible force,” he said on Instagram.
“I am grateful for the times we shared together, sending so much love to his family.”
Andrew Strong, who starred in The Commitments with Hansard, posted on Facebook: “I’m devastated to hear the sad news Glen Hansard has passed away.
“It’s a truly senseless, tragic loss. My condolences to his family and friends and everyone who loved his music. Rest in peace, brother.”
Actor Chris O’Dowd posted on Instagram: “Can’t believe Glen has left the world so terribly early.
“Anyone who makes use of music knows the feeling of being taken away.
“He did that. And he leaves it with us.
“Thanks Glen. Huge love to Maire and little Christy and all those who loved him.”
Waterboys singer Mike Scott tweeted: “Travel on well, Buddy. You made your dreams come true.
“I’m so sorry that he leaves his wife and 3-year-old child.”
Taoiseach (Irish prime minister) Micheál Martin tweeted that he was “deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Glen Hansard.
He described him as a “talented musician and actor who made a significant contribution to Ireland’s cultural landscape over many years.
“My sincere sympathies to his family, friends, and fans.”
Irish President Catherine Connolly said Hansard and the Frames were the “source of so much inspiration to a generation of young people and musicians”.
“Glen was one of the vital driving influences of the Irish music world, bringing people together in the sharing of live music.”
A book of condolence for Glen Hansard has been opened online and can be accessed in person in the Mansion House, Dublin on Thursday and Friday between 10:00 and 16:00.
Glen Hansard: A life in music and film
For those who first came to Glen Hansard via his music – perhaps after his Oscar win or his collaborations with luminaries such as Eddie Vedder – it may be a surprise to go all the way back to 1991, to Alan Parker’s smash-hit Dublin-set comedy The Commitments.
There he is, barely out of his twenties and with a shock of curly, red hair, as the working-class soul band’s laidback guitarist Outspan Foster.
The film’s director Alan Parker searched for real musicians to make up the fictional band, and the then 20-year-old accompanied a mate to the auditions with no intention of going in himself – but producers were looking for a red-haired guitarist and there was Hansard.
It was little wonder he was considered right for the role – like Foster, he was a Dubliner from the northside, who had already spent his early years busking on the streets of his home city.
The Commitments gig seemed like serendipity and that level of fortune would come again occasionally in Hansard’s career, which in its early years were characterised by the typical graft of touring and recording with a rock band.
He formed The Frames one year before The Commitments, going on to record six studio albums including Dance The Devil, For The Birds and Irish chart topper Burn The Maps.
The band had a cult following outside the island but were huge on it, buoyed by radio-friendly singles like Revelate, Pavement Tune and Lay Me Down.
In 2005, he released an album with Marketa Irglova as The Swell Season. Over the course of 16 years, they would record and release three albums, but it was their exploits on film that sent them stratospheric.
Once, the low-budget musical they co-starred in, directed by former Frames bassist John Carney, became a sleeper hit in 2007 with Falling Slowly, its breakout song, winning an Academy Award win for the pair.
A Broadway adaptation of the film, featuring Hansard and Irglová’s songs, later won eight Tony Awards, including Best Musical.
After 19 years, Hansard’s career had reached a new level of fame, with he and Irglova even making a cameo appearance on The Simpsons.
But he maintained his steady stream of musical releases in the years since, most notably with five solo albums up to 2023’s All That Was East Is West Of Me.
Perhaps his biggest life change came three years ago when he became a father.
He told BBC Radio Ulster in 2023 that it had “in the greatest way possible, upturned everything I know”.
“It’s absolutely incredible, I can’t believe I stood on the other side of this chasm for so long.”
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Source: Niall Glynnand, Hayley Halpin – BBC
