ONE of the county’s top musicians said he was “fortunate to have people that believed in me” after he played a key role in producing music for the successful film ‘How to Train Your Dragon’.

The fantasy film, which is a live-action remake of the 2010 animated movie, has soared at the box office. It’s the tenth highest grossing film of 2025 and Kieran Leonard was to the fore in its production.

During his studies at the Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance in London, the Enniskillen man struck up a friendship with Professor Gary Kettel, who had worked on the franchise.

“Gary would bring in whichever film score he’d recorded that week to let us have a go at it and he arrived with ‘How to Train Your Dragon’ and he asked me to play it,” Kieran told the ‘Herald.

“Fast forward and the phone rings asking me to head to the studio to record with [film music composer] John Powell for the live action remake of ‘How to Train Your Dragon’.”

Family tradition

While Kieran is now working alongside Oscar-winning composers John Power and Thomas Newman, his initial love of music stemmed from his family, who are steeped in traditional music.

“I was always banging my cutlery in the high chair as a baby, drumming along to whatever was on the radio. That’s what set me down the drumming path, although I don’t remember it,” he said.

Recognising Kieran’s love of percussion, he underwent drumming lessons with Peter Watson, a stalwart of local showband music, where they played together in St Michael’s Scout Band.

In St Michael’s College, the Enniskillen man learned to play the bodhrán under the guidance of Pat McCabe, as well as branching into woodwind music, playing the tin whistle and the flute.

He then studied an undergraduate and postgraduate degree at the Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance in London, where he decided to embark on a glittering career in music.

“It was incredibly overwhelming, at first. Coming from Ireland, I wasn’t exposed to the standard of music among my peers that I encountered there,” recalled the talented Fermanagh percussionist.

“I was fortunate to have people that believed in me and I was given opportunities to work professionally with the English National Opera – that was a baptism of fire.

“You only get one chance in that world as it’s so competitive. It really was sink or swim, but I managed to swim and got to work with some of the best conductors in the world and I still do.”

While his parents John and Jackie have a love of American Country, Kieran pursued his love of classical music, working with the RTÉ Concert Orchestra and National Symphony Orchestra.

To read more on this story see this week’s Fermanagh Herald. Can’t get to the shop to collect your copy? No problem! You can download a copy straight to your device by following this link… Subscribe to current edition