Reverberating with the sound of the Irish heartbeat, Titanicdance is an album you should have this holiday!
I am taking some time after work to chill out to Music from the show: Titanicdance. For those who have seen the musical, you know what to expect:Superb singing, breathtaking dance steps and epic compositions. The music combines the terrific beauty of Celtic music and the contemporary slickness of Irish pop, giving you a record that is both sophisticated and can be appreciated by those who listen to Adele, Enya or Sam Smith.
There are twelve songs, with three of them featuring the beautiful vocals of Rebecca Winckworth(Most recently Rebecca was a lead singer with Celtic Nights The Emigrants Bridge on their highly acclaimed tour across the USA). Titanicdance is also a powerhouse of musical talents from musicians Conal Early (he performed with Ragus from 2004-2008), Kevin Corbet, Richard Neylon with the help of producers and sound engineers who made Titanicdance a great album!
For those of you shopping for holiday music, you have to buy this. You wont be disappointed.
I wrote an entry about this Irish song and dance phenomena Titanicdance a few days ago. Now, Producer, Creative Director and Lead Dancer Raymond Sweeney, took time to answer this interview. I am currently
listening to the soundtrack while transcribing our online conversation. You have to see this show. This is the best thing that happened to the stage since Riverdance and Celtic Tiger. Please don’t forget to visit their Indiegogo campaign and hopefull take part as one of the show’s backers. This is music and dance arrange in a way that will captivate both young and old fans of Celtic music.
1. Hi Raymond, you are from Donegal which is known as a place that gave birth to global artists.What’s the story behind Titanicdance?
It was in 2012 on the 100th year anniversary of the tragic events of the Titanic that I came up with the idea to do the show. Creating my own production was something I always dreamed of doing so I got a team together and started choreographing the show with Louise Hayden & James Keegan in a little prefab in my dad’s work yard. It took many long hours of hard work, determination and a lot of patience but it was all worth it as the end result exceeded our expectations.
2. You joined Michael Flatley’s Lord of the Dance at 16. What were the challenges of being in a big and famous troupe at a young age?
Being from a small village in Donegal and heading into the unknown was exciting but scary at such a young age. It was a huge challenge trying to meet the standard required for such a large production and as well as the dancing there was a lot to learn about performing on stage. The other thing I found challenging was being away from home at such a young age and getting used to my new independence. It was a great experience.
3. I think Titanicdance will strike a universal chord as the story (Titanic) itself is still a phenomenal success brought about by books and of course Hollywood.
This is so true and is the reason why we think we have something special.
4. What’s the training ritual of your dancers before a big event?
Well it takes many weeks/months preparing for a big show as first and foremost fitness is very important as well as learning routines etc.. The choreography of Titanicdance is of a very high standard and therefore plenty of training is required to get it perfect for show time.
5. How do you handle the responsibilities of leading 30 top Irish dancers?
I’m fortunate enough to have the experience of being a cast member and touring in a big dance production for over 15 years and therefore I know how to find the right balance to treat cast members in a firm but fair way in order to get the best results. I have a lot of friends that I have work along side and toured with previously and that are now in my cast, now being Creative Director and having to direct them and call the shots isn’t always easy but I do it in a manor that they still so me respect.
6. How is it like working with producer David McLaughlin? You must be great pals right now.
David and the whole team have been great. Everyone really believes in this production and works endlessly to make sure it will become a huge success. I have a great relationship with David and it is growing stronger and stronger..!!
7. What do you hope to achieve this Titanicdance?
I hope to achieve everything possible with Titanicdance. It’s always been my dream to have a touring show and I am so honored to be in the position I’m in at the moment and I will continue to strive to meet my goals because I believe this show can be a huge success.
8. Your message to the readers?
Titanicdance has it all. Live Irish Music, Song and Dance and a story line that will have you on the edge of your seat and possibly in tears. Audiences across the globe deserve to see this production and I will do my best to make that happen. You will not be disappointed.
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Kind Regards,
Raymond Sweeney
Watch out for my review of the Titanicdance music soon! Big thanks to my friend Anita Daly of Daly Communications for arranging this interview.
If An Irish Christmas Blessing is a solar system, then Make Me a Channel of Your Peace has to be sun, drawing all planets to its gravity. It is a track that’s timely as the world needs something to hold on to especially in these troubled times. An Irish Christmas Blessing recalls the auspicious debut of Father Ray Kelly almost a year ago. This happened when he sang at the wedding of Chris and Leah O’Kane on April 5th 2014 which blew the internet after it was captured and posted on You Tube.
I am listening to the title track while writing this. It brings back a lot of good feelings. Like when I was in high school and I was a teenager again haunting for good holiday albums in record stores. The classic style represents the ‘feel’ of the whole album. There is nostalgia and a sense of adventure.
His style of singing is unique. Not Gregorian or operatic. He sounds close to Elvis Costello but with a rich upper register and nuance where it is needed. In O Holy Night, he gives his all hitting those rich notes at the end of the song. The album’s orchestration is superb. I love orchestras and An Irish Christmas Blessing is a treat for those who love grand arrangements but with a modern twist.
Father Kelly will be donating a percentage of the profits of the sales of this album and his live concerts to the Kiltegan Fathers St Patrick’s Missionary Society. It’s where he started his journey as a Catholic priest.Below is a brief interview made possible by my good friend Anita Daly of Daly Communications:
Hi Father Kelly, you must be ecstatic that your Christmas album is finally out! Why did you choose An Irish Christmas Blessing as the album’s title?
Yes I am very excited about the Christmas album and indeed the final production of it. When I heard the song An Irish Christmas Blessing, I fell in love with the melody and the words immediately. And in deciding a title for the album I thought there it is, the title, the first song on the Album. I guess being an Irish Man and firmly planted in my roots it was the ideal title.
What are your favorite songs in this album?
I love all Christmas music so I really love all the songs. However, when I heard my completed version of Make Me A Channel Of Your Peace, I just thought it was so prayerful and haunting, so I guess it is one of my top 3. But I love O Holy Night as I feel hearing that song at Christmas is so special and necessary. As for the song The Little Drummer Boy, I do think the arrangement of that is super. All my grand nieces and nephews are constantly listening to that one and tell me it is their favourite.
You employed an orchestra to record the thirteen songs (by the way it’s my lucky number). How did you decide to record with an orchestra plus choir instead of just the usual piano, drums, bass and synths?
I was very fortunate that Nigel Wright in the UK agreed to produce my Christmas Album, as he is up there among the top record producers in the world, so I was totally guided by him as to what was needed to create a great album.
Some of the songs are vocally challenging! But you glide through them gracefully. Do you record in one take or did you experience having to decide between two versions of then same song?
Nigel made me work very hard, he knew I could create the sound he wanted. So it took a lot more than one take in most of the songs. But that is not unusual, and having heard the final production I can understand why it took some time.
You will be donating a percentage of the profits of the sales of this album and his live concerts to the Kiltegan Fathers St Patrick’s Missionary Society right?
Yes, Kiltegan Fathers, or St Patrick’s Missionary Society will benefit from the sale of my CD and concerts. When I decided to become a priest, I joined The Kiltegan Fr’s in Co Wicklow. So they educated me for 7 years and had a huge say in my formation as a Catholic Priest. I spent a couple of years on the Mission Field in S.Africa, however I decided I wanted to work at home eventually. I always said if I could every give something back to them for all they did for me even in a small way I would, little did I realise that an opportunity like this would come my way.
What’s your biggest wish this Christmas?
My biggest wish this Christmas is that my younger sister who is quite ill will make a complete recovery. Now that would be Christmas for me.
There you go 🙂 Bax
Slan, best wishes, Merry Christmas
Fr Ray
And I wish your younger sister a complete recovery as well Father Kelly.
This epic tale is enacted by a cast of 24 of the world’s top Irish dancers and 6 of Ireland’s leading musicians, making Titanicdance an unmissable spectacular of live music, song, and dance, along with amazing costumes and set design. Visually, Titanicdance is something you’ll never have experienced before.
The trailer videos of Titanicdance are enough to convince me that what they have is the real deal. I need to spread the word. And please help me do it-help them get their feet to the global stage! This is an exciting musical. It’s been a while since we’ve been captivated by Riverdance and Titanicdance arrived in the right occasion.
According to their press release:
Titanicdance tells a heart-gripping love story as the great ship makes its maiden voyage across the Atlantic. This epic tale is enacted by a cast of 24 of the world’s top Irish dancers and 6 of Ireland’s leading musicians, making Titanicdance an unmissable spectacular of live music, song, and dance, along with amazing costumes and set design. Visually, Titanicdance is something you’ll never have experienced before.The original choreography is sure to set your feet tapping and emotions running high as the story unfolds – you’re guaranteed to want more and more.
Those who know the story of the Titanic need no further introduction. But the winner of this show is the music and dance. These are original presentations and I know this will captivate global audience. The show premiered at the Odyssey Arena in Belfast last May. But Producer, Creative Director and Lead Dancer Raymond Sweeney wants to take this dream globally, starting in the United States and beyond. This is possible through your help. That’s how the Indiegogo project came to be. The official website has this announcement about the project:
Help Titanicdance set sail to America!
We have just launched an ambitious Indiegogo fundraising campaign that will enable Titanicdance to embark on a stateside visit next year. The Indiegogo campaign currently invites businesses and individuals to make donations via a secure online portal in an attempt to raise the $150,000 USD that is needed to
take the musical dance extravaganza on a ‘titanic’ journey to the US.The Indiegogo campaign is hugely important to us as it will allow us to take this production to the USA and will cover additional travel & accommodation expenses, rehearsal fees, cast & crew fees, marketing &
pre-production, theatre rental costs and will help to improve on our costumes, lighting design & visuals and set & staging.Your contribution to this campaign will bring the dream of taking Titanicdance across the globe a reality; something that has involved a huge amount of hard work and much hope!We want to raise $150,000.00 for our inimitable musical dance extravaganza based on the globally known story of the world’s most famous ship.
The whole Titanicdance team has worked tirelessly to bring this unique production to this level. With your help we can bring this cast of 30 world class Irish dancers, singers and musicians to the USA to allow
people to experience this wonderful production first hand.
All donations from as little as $10 upwards, will be greatly received! We really hope you will come on board and help us in our journey across the Atlantic. Every donation is appreciated by us which is why we have outlined nine different funding levels in our ‘Perks’ section.
Songs and Stillness is a lovely music box for the season.
My first interview with American artist Jenne Lennon happened in 2009. How time flies. And yet we continue to keep in touch. There are ties that are intense but fragile. But there are friendships that are meant to last longer. I am not just talking about our relationships with people. I am also referring to our ongoing fascination with certain types of music. Yes it is still a relationship. When an artist creates a certain style that you like, then excitement follows every release.
Her voice is a regular many Celtic music compilations. She belongs to the gene pool of talented people. Her sibling Dani is an actress and creative producer in L.A.
Songs and Stillness is the new recording and you can get it via iTunes. The artwork features the singer-songwriter lying on a comfy grass bed, with a joyful expression. There are thirteen songs in the album (plus one bonus track). All recordings are purely acoustic-no electronics or autotune added. Her voice is strong and clear, almost dramatic soprano though she claims it’s lyric mezzo-soprano.
Open My Eyes introduces us to the general mood of the album. The cinematic feel is the result of strings, piano and various acoustic instruments plus percussion. I think it is a song that is meant for the times. We are humbled by tragedies great and small, and we start to see what matter’s the most. Flanders Field is pure atmosphere with a marching beat. Suil A Ruin is a traditional Gaelic tune which she has breath a new life into. This song has an interesting arrangement as it is sung entirely in a cappella harmony (she overdubbed three to four voices) with only the soft beat of the bodhrán in the background.
Gartan Mother’s Lullaby is a sweet surprise as this is a rare track. Here’s an interesting background: is an old Irish song and poem written by Herbert Hughes and Seosamh Mac Cathmhaoil, first published in Songs of Uladh [Ulster]in 1904. Hughes collected the traditional melody in Donegal the previous year and Campbell wrote the lyrics. The song is a lullaby by a mother, from the parish of Gartan in County Donegal. The song refers to a number of figures in Irish mythology, places in Ireland and words in the Irish language.-Wikipedia. The sweet humming and instrument should lull you to sleep, but not in this case. This is too beautiful to miss!
Bonny Portmore follows with folk arrangement (guitar, wooden flute and strings). Solennite is a hymn. She sings gently almost to a whispher. This is perhaps one of the intensely atmospheric tracks in the album. Then there’s Blackbirds and Thrushes and then the stunning version of Simon and Garfunkel classic Scarborough Fair.
I love the piano in Snow Falling Down. The Water is Wide makes me want to bring out my votive candles. Joni’s Theme is taken from the movie Blood Below the Skin. Lennon is heavily involved in this project as the film’s musical director. This track is purely instrumental, rendered in piano and cello. It starts gradually then builds up into a beautiful drama of notes.The poignant melody reflects the story of the three characters in the film. Joni’s Theme showcases her talent as a film composer and hopefully we get to hear more of this kind of project from her.
Sweet Prospect features a hurdy-gurdy and bagpipes below the French-Celtic inspired vocals. Her hills-to-heaven version of She Moved Through The Fair closes Songs and Stillness.
Anam (Spirit) is a bonus track which is a class of its own. It is a rock ballad that explodes midway with guitar and drums. It showcases her vocal range and expressive power.
Overall, Songs and Stillness is an album for the holidays. It is a music box of emotions and souvenirs from far off places. A must-have in these troubled times.
Celtic Music Fan 