Music

Lúnasa: Hitting the right notes with Cas.

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It feels like being away for long time and the fondness if overwhelming. I am talking about Ireland’s hottest export, Lúnasa. They have a new album out called Cas. And this is not just like any of their past albums. Here, the have guest vocalists and I will talk about it later(and why I am giddy). Let’s talk about their music first. They released their self-titled debut in 1997. I did not discover them until I got my hands on Otherworld which really changed they way I feel and look at traditional music. They are purists in terms of staying true to their musical heritage but they also love innovation.

Cas is na album driven by rhythm and texture. Each track is like sparkling wine-smooth and seasoned with age and experience. I suppose that after two decades of devoting their lives of the perfection of their craft, they can teach newbies how surf the winds of our ever-changing musical fads. But some fads come and go. Only the ones distilled with intelligence maintain their effervescence and thus remain precious.

It’s been seven years since their last studio album. And perhaps this is why Cas sounds so different. That time apart may have created the gestation process that resulted to a birth of .a new sound. I admire artists who have the patience of staying away from the musical spotlight in order to come up with something fresh. It takes a draconian kind of patience and control to achieve that. Sometimes it is our fear of being forgotten by the community that drives us to work tirelessly to maintain that following. But very few can take the challenges of art over ego.

So in this album we are blessed with guest voices: five vocal tracks from Natalie Merchant, Tim O’Brien, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Daoiri Farrell and Eric Bibb. I am familiar with the works of each of these artists, most notably that of Natalie Merchant. The album got its world premier via LiveIreland.

Cas is a joy to have. Lúnasa can still deliver tradition the way you love it, but they have added a new  layer of musical approach, one that will take us to a new journey-and our lovely relationship with their music for years to come.

Kevin Crawford – Flutes and Whistles, Trevor Hutchinson – Stand-up Bass, Cillian Vallely – Uilleann Pipes and Whistles, Colin Farrell – Fiddle, Ed Boyd – Guitar

Thirsty for Irish traditional music? Listen to Music In The Glen!

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Take a fish out of the water and it will struggle to find its way back. This is what Traditional Irish music is like to true lovers of the genre-we thirst when we have been deprived for so long!

Music in the Glen is a new album by the trio of Brendan Mulholland (flute) and founding Réalta members Conor Lamb (uilleann pipes, whistles) and Deirdre Galway (guitar). Check out the album liner notes for more info about the background of each track and also the contributing artists.

I admire the clarity of each instrument and the passion that all contributing artists have put forth in this project. You have fast and slow tracks creating a balance of mood all throughout this recording. I’ve already featured these musicians previously, Brendan Mulholland (with Jen’s Hill and Tuned Up), Conor Lamb  and Deirdre Galway (for Réalta). So you see, I expect nothing less and my excitement has been rewarded with a grand listening experience which makes me smile track by track.

Music in the Glen has eleven tracks.  Reels, waltzes, jigs and airs all featured with creative twists and turns that make traditional music such an exciting experience to listen to. My personal faves are The Sweetheart (because I am writing this on a Valentine’s day), Lament for Limerick (because it is not often to hear a piano in a trad recording), My Sister’s Cat(listen to the instrumental duel between Mulholland and Lamb starting at 2:13, and how I held my breath until Deirdre Galway resolved in with her guitar, I think I died there!) and many more.

If you are a purist or just new to Traditional Irish music- or just trying to learn how to play the instruments; then get this album! I assure you that you will enjoy it.

 

Watch this stunning video and check out that fantastic duel I was talking about.

 

The Cultural Book of Celtic Music: Wide Waters by Hibernia

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If you are an avid fan of Celtic music then songs in Wide Waters by Hibernia will sound familiar to you. Susan Toman (Celtic Harp) and Ellen MacIsaac (Voice) have captured the ‘great Celtic songbook’ in this album. Comprising of 14 tracks from Ireland and Scotland,  they are sung in Gaelic and in English.

Beautiful in its clarity and simplicity, Wide Waters captures the essence of how these songs were supposedly performed hundreds of years ago. Aroundhibernia every art, I think it’s the sentiment that’s the very foundation of every creation. The aesthetics may change with time, but the raw emotions around these songs remain untamed across centuries.

Songs like Bothan Àirigh Am Bràigh Raithneach, The Water is Wide, An Coisir and the captivating ‘s Toigh Leam Fhìn Buntàta ‘s Ìm / Tha Fionnlagh Ag Innearadh / Hùg Oiridh Hiridh will always remain as my favorites in this album.

Here’s a brief bio of the artists from their CD Baby profile:

Susan Toman – Based in Ottawa, Ontario, Susan Toman enjoys a diverse freelance career as a harpsichordist, Celtic harpist, and music instructor. She holds a Doctorate in Music from McGill University and is an Associate Faculty member at Carleton University. Susan came to the Celtic harp (as many do) with a background in keyboard instruments and a love of Irish & Scottish music. Having first studied with Annabelle Renzo, she then continued her studies with Grainne Hambly in Ireland. In addition to giving solo and collaborative concerts, she frequently performs at weddings and other events. Upcoming performances include the NAC’s Fourth Stage, and the Irish Ambassador’s residence.
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Ellen MacIsaac – Ellen specializes in the Irish traditional singing style and repertoire in Irish Gaelic and English. Since 2000, she has been involved in traditional singing in Ottawa, giving guest lectures on sean-nós (old style) Irish singing, and performing at local céilís and sessions and further afield. In 2012, she won first place in the sean-nós competition at Canada’s first Irish-language festival and competition, Oireachtas Gaeilge Cheanada, and represented Canada at the 2012 Oireachtas na Samhna, Ireland’s Gaelic-speaking festival. Ellen lectures at the University of Ottawa in the Modern Languages Department as part of the Minor in Celtic Studies and is an associate vocal instructor in the Celtic Music Performance option at Carleton University’s Music Department. She created the Ottawa Celtic Choir in 2007, and acts as its musical director and musical arranger.

Gentle As Morning Dew: Listen to Orla Fallon’s New Album.

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Orla Fallon’s newest album Sweet By and By dropped around March last year and it is making its way into international ears. I highly recommend it for those who are following the Nashville music scene because this album is very much close to that flavour of music. What strikes me as interesting is that, although Celtic Woman is a show that showcases the powerful vocals of Irish singers, Orla Fallon took the different route in her solo effort. I was intrigued if she’s going the Sarah Brightman path of grand operatic style or the Moya Brennan path. I am glad she took the latter and added her own twist to the soft rendition of classics and new songs.

My personal favourite is her version of Love Me Tender by Elvis Prestley. I think she really delivered the songs how it is meant to be sang- gentle as morning dew.

Sweet By and By has twelve tracks and these tunes will take you on a journey from Ireland to Old America. Feet Of A Dancer is a potential single. That is one track that like playing again and again because it is so beautiful. Everything about the album sparkles with superb production. Her harp skills are always present and this album is a joy to listen to.

Get your copy of Sweet By and By here: http://orlafallon.com/?product=sweet-by-and-by

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Celtic Woman: The Best of Christmas

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I love obscure tunes and the history behind them. For example I learned that Coventry Carol has a long history that dates all the way to the 16th century. And learning about one song will also encourage you to look at the wide vast of knowledge that covers holiday tunes.

Once in Royal David’s City is not something you get to hear in mainstream recordings(of pop and non pop singers). But Celtic Woman took the chance to pin this wonderful gem. So and I learned something about this Christmas carol. Here’s an interesting info from Wikipedia:

Originally written as a poem by Cecil Frances Alexander. The carol was first published in 1848 in Miss Cecil Humphreys’ hymnbookHymns for little Children. A year later, the English organist Henry John Gauntlett discovered the poem and set it to music.[1] Cecil Humphreys, meanwhile, married the AnglicanclergymanWilliam Alexander in 1848 and upon her husband’s consecration became a bishop’s wife in 1867.[1] She is also remembered for her hymn All Things Bright and Beautiful.

Since 1919, the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols at the King’s College ChapelCambridge has begun its Christmas Eve service, with Dr Arthur Henry Mann‘s arrangement of “Once in Royal David’s City” as the Processional hymn.[1] Mann was organist at King’s between 1876 and 1929.[2]In his arrangement, the first verse is sung by a boy chorister of the Choir of King’s Chapel as a solo. The second verse is sung by the choir, and the congregation joins in the third verse. Excluding the first verse, the hymn is accompanied by the organ. This carol was the first recording that the King’s College Choir under Boris Ord made for EMI in 1948.[3] Among others who have recorded it are Mary Chapin Carpenter, The Chieftains, Daniel O’Donnell, The Seekers, The Mormon Tabernacle Choir, Petula Clark, Jethro Tull, Sinéad O’Connor and Sufjan Stevens, St. Paul’s Choir School and most recently by the Irish group Celtic Woman in their album Voices of Angels.

Now this blog is not just about that one song but about an album that contains twenty Christmas tunes from Celtic Woman. I think this is also a ‘practical’ approach because when we are hosting a party, we don’t want an album to end too soon and then we are forced to put a new album in (I am an albums kind of guy as opposed to playlist) and this is it!

The Best of Christmas has a more Classical Pop appeal than Celtic. For Jazz lovers there are swinging songs like Let it Snow. I love this song so much as I always associate Christmas with something Jazzy.

Yes twenty songs will not disappoint you. Better grab this album while it is hot!