I know someone who plays the Uilleann pipes and that person is a Chemistry major. It seems that everyone who has Celtic blood running in their veins, has no difficulty in leading two careers-Music and Science.
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I featured the band Cara a few weeks ago. That’s when I got to know Ryan Murphy and his other band Ealu. Ryan gives his FYI about the Uilleann pipes in between tours here.This is for those who want to learn and the basics and the important things to remember.
Basic info:
Currently with: Cara and Ealu
Hometown: Cork
Also Plays: Flutes, whistles and Saxophones.
The things he could never leave behind when on a tour:
“Aside from the instruments I’d have to say the iPod. The car journeys just get too long with out it.”
1.Buying the instrument : Make sure you know that the maker has a good reputation and make sure the sound they produce is to your taste.
2.Interpreting traditional pieces: Well everyone interprets tunes differently. I always try to mix up how I interpret every tune. Sometimes they could be filled with loads of ornaments and tricks but then sometimes it’s great to scale it all back.
3.Playing, tuning and knowing the parts of the instrument: Is vital when it comes to the Uilleann pipes as maintenance is critical in order for them to sound right.
4.Practicing: Is a big part of my daily routine. I sometimes skip lectures in college just to practice that hour or two extra.
5.Maintenance: I always keep my pipes as well maintained as possible. On tour the pipes could hang you out to dry in the middle of a concert if they’re not kept in top order. I make sure the joints are always well sealed, in dry climates I humidity the reed as often as I need to depending on the level of humidity.
Thanks to the wide success of the Punch Brothers, Bluegrass is making waves again! I was able have a little chat with Luke Fraser of The Bombadilsbefore he headed to the concert and that’s when he recommended two bands: The Creaking Tree String Quartet and The Foggy Hogtown Boys.
Creaking Tree String Quartet:
Genre: Acoustic Instrumenttal Roots MUsic.
Members:
Andrew Collins – mandolin
Brad Keller – guitar
Brian Kobayakawa – bass
John Showman – violin
They earned a Juno Award nomination for their 2003 debut CD. Their follow-up “Side Two” won the Pushing The Boundaries trophy at the 2005 Canadian Folk Music Awards, was named Instrumental Album of the Year at the Indie Acoustic Project Awards, and “Old Crow” won Instrumental Song of the Year at the International Acoustic Music Awards. Their third album “The Soundtrack” was nominated for the Juno Award for Instrumental Album of the Year, and won two Canadian Folk Music Awards.
Now, after 8+ years as a band, The Creaking Tree String Quartet present their fourth and finest album “Sundogs” a collection that highlights the group’s lauded versatility with depth and maturity. It’s the group’s most far-reaching and ambitious recording project to date; a diverse and inspired collection of 12 new works that not only push the quartet into new territory but bring an elite group of renowned guests along for the journey. Adam Warner and Sly Juhas on drums, Michael Davidson on piano and Burke Carroll on pedal steel, all perform on the record.
Although, the group draws a great deal of inspiration and material from the “golden age” of bluegrass and country music, solid original songs written by members in the band blend well among the old chestnuts. In 2005 they released “Northern White Clouds” – a 100Canadian content bluegrass album that features some excellent writing from all the members of the band. In 2007 – “Pigtown Fling” – a collection of original bluegrass and old-time instrumentals.Their latest album The Golden West (2008) is a mix of original and traditional bluegrass music with elements of old-time music and honky-tonk thrown in.
My friend in Lyon France has his own idea of the new and the cool so he always has his own comer in this site. Enjoy!
Scotland’s Aaron Jones and his partner Claire Mann make up half of a brillant new Celtic-German group called Litha. They just released their new album “Dancing of the Light” with contemporary folk and traditional jigs and reels, songs and instrumentals from Scotland, Ireland, and Germany. Really worth a listen, very pleasant 🙂-Jimmy
THE STEEL WHEELS – “Rain In The Valley” . . . from their soon-to-be-realeased CD, “Lay Down, Lay Low”. Always great to be back in WNCW’s Studio B. Thank you Martin Anderson and Dennis Jones. Be sure to see The Steel Wheels at Merlefest 2012. http://www.thesteelwheels.com
Album: The Ravishing Genius Of Bones
Wow, I haven’t seen a parking lot performance like this before. Epic!-Me
Genticorum concert at the beautiful Ellen Theatre in Bozeman,Montana, February 1, 2011.Reel Circular, from the album Swim Rowers (2011)
Reel-Circular (Daniel Boucher, Bristol, CT)
The Trans-Lanaudière-Express (Pascal Gemme)
The music video for ‘Paper Airplane’ from Alison Krauss & Union Station’s new album “Paper Airplane”. Available April 12th on Rounder Records.
Get it here: http://tinyurl.com/4d2sn7f
The song is “Tha Mo Ghaol Air Àird A’ Chuain” by Julie Fowlis. I know this song off her album Mar a Tha Mo Chridhe-Me
It is a great year for the Isle of Man. The Celtic telescope points that way. A huge effort has been place in getting the music and art of the people into the scene. I am always glad to receive updates from anything Manx. Let me tell you that there are two sites now which I consider as best references for anything you need. And if you are a band, it is the best time to collaborate with musicians from this region because the best sound always comes from these collaborations. For instance, Jaime Smith of Jamie Smith’s Mabon has been working with local musicians and they are able to come out with something interesting. The new project is Barrule. I will let the video do the talking for you and later on you can talk among yourselves ok?
Members: Jamie Smith – Piano Accordion, Tom Callister – Fiddle, Adam Rhodes – Bouzouki.
Hometown: Isle of Man
Description:
During the Manx festival ‘Shennaghys Jiu’ in 2011, musicians Jamie Adam and Tom came together to play a one-off concert in Ramsey. It soon became apparent that they enjoyed playing together and the audience really enjoyed listening to them, so they decided to do it again!
Playing a mixture of traditional and new Manx music, Barrule hope to bring music and songs from the Isle of Man to new audiences across the globe.
The trio are currently in the process of writing and recording a new album, scheduled for release later this year. The CD will feature guest musicians from the Isle of Man and further afield.
Fiddle player and multi-instrumentalist Tom Callister has established himself as one of the leading Manx musicians, despite being only nineteen years old. Tom has spent the last year studying traditional music on Benbecula in the Outer Hebrides and has just finished recording his debut solo album, produced by the renowned Scottish musician Matheu Watson.
Donie Ryan has completed a series of paintings called “Piece of Timber”. I am struck by his minimalist style. I was whooping with joy when one of his art found its way to my doorstep. He likes giving his art o his friends because according to him “i get more of a kick giving my art to friends than selling it, but sure i hardly ever sell anything anyway” he and his friend Mick make a perfect tandem. They like to goof around and are associated with Dublin’s young artistic crowd. His expertise moves beyond the brush. All the frames you see, he sculpted them himself. This guy works with wood and other than occasional back pains , he loves doing it for the spirit of fun. Just the way I do this blog too-all in the name of fun.
We talked about the Baltimore Fiddle fair in the West of Cork where he worked as a bartender during summer. That’s where he met Moya Brennan of Clannad. “oh i just served and prepared some of the food a magical place for me”. ive been going on holiday there since i was 12. my second home.
Donie has plans of travelling and developing his art. His subjects are anti-war and I share his passion for peace and having great fun with music and friends. One day he will have an art show and I don’t want to miss that big event. Here are the paintings.
The artwork I got.
This one is called “Skitzo Jaws”:Painting/Sculpture
Here are the tunes from the Fiddle fair and I hope you enjoy the paintings with
These days I feel I am a bit behind my usual posts. You know why? It is because I am getting updates from left to right. There are amazing artists and the scene is flowering like never before. The support for young acts is tremendous if you think of all the forums and facebook groups sprouting in hordes. I met amazing people in The Celtic Link forum lately and it is really a fun experience when you get info from the musicians themselves rather than just getting your news material from writings and other reviews.
Yesterday I featured Welsh band Fernhill. Now I am going to present Calan, which I mentioned came from the same source. This band is not only slick in their interpretation of traditional music but also they have a knack for representing themselves in a way that leaves an impression to first time listeners. It is remarkable how bands these days not only take advantage of technology but also the way they represent themselves image wise.
Calan released their debut album “Bing ” in 2008 and since then they attracted warm responses from critics. Tours, rave reviews and enthusiastic audience are around always looking for more music that these guys can take out like pancakes. The new album is called Jonah. Listen to sound samples here: http://www.calan-band.com/english/music.html
Band members:
Patrick Rimes – fiddle, bagpipes, pibgorn, whistle, trombone
Angharad Siân Jenkins – fiddle
Bethan Rhiannon – main vocal, accordion and step dancing
Celtic Music Fan 