In this edition:Máirtín de Cógáin, Karl Nesbitt, Richard Trethewey, Great Big Sea and Blue Rodeo
So what makes fascination and inspiration happen? I think these two go together. First you get fascinated with someone’s talent. Then you get inspired to do what you do. Musicians are artists who help fuel inspiration. Give me a moment in a day listening to music and I will start typing away. Do you also get inspired by musicians?
I have to admit, the past few months were tough but it was music that pulled me out of the labyrinth. I want to share that enthusiasm and passion to you all. We are all connected in a way that we can’t imagine. I am glad for musicians! You are what makes the world a better place to live. And yes, we the listeners get to do a LOT of things because of you musicians. We paint, design software, build buildings and write novels because of the music. It is a symbiosis of goodness!
The Bardic Hypnosis of Máirtín de Cógáin
Máirtín de Cógáin has a way of getting you engaged when he is onstage. Whither he is playing music or talking, there is something about him that is charismatic. His anecdotes never fail to bring out giggles. He draws the magnetism from the long line of Irish bards since the time of the High Kings. I think Máirtín can talk about anything all day and I will definitely listen sipping my hot tea! Enjoy the videos below folks.
“ I’m thrilled to be writing/performing some music for this new film entitled Blind Pass, directed by Steve Tatone. Thanks Fintan Lucy and Edel Sullivan “:)
-Karl Nesbitt
Hmm..looks like our favorite instrumentalist/composer/producer and arranger is out to make waves in the Irish movie scene. I would love to see this movie. I am sure if the music is from Karl then it will be amazing.
And what’s a Karl Nesbitt article without his music?
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New Releases from Cornish Music label Kesson feat: Richard Trethewey
I love the music of Cornwall. It has its own identity and beauty. Cornwall has its own folk and traditional scene and its new representative is Richard Trethewey. He sings, and plays fiddles, mandola, triangle,and other brass instruments. A man of good vocal range and perfect pitch. You can listen to samples of “ Dig Where You Stand” off Cornish music site Kesson: http://www.kesson.com/album.php?account=1&album=134
A painter’s paradise: Eva McCauley talks about how in Ireland, “the air is infused with moisture, and because of that, there is a luminosity to the light that is very unique, and an incredible thing for a painter to experience.”
Technology has a way of bringing visual artists and musicians together. Art has become multimedia. Eva McCauley explores the mystical side of painting and print making with her installation works. Inspired by technology’s ability to create something new and her love for evocative spirit of the Irish landscape, she created haunting and beautiful artworks. These are hanging illustrations rendered in a way that light and occasional wind play tricks on them. If musicians like Loreena McKennitt, Moya Brennan, Enya and Connie Dover have talents that can transport you with their voices and melodies, then Eva McCauley is the visual counterpart of such power.
Hi Eva, welcome to The Celtic Music Fan artist of the week edition! Your prints are fascinating. Can you give us a brief background on the things that inspire your work…these are beautiful ‘ghostly’ creations of paintings printed on scrims of fabric (silk oraganza) and hung from the ceiling in multiple layers to create an installation.
My recent print media installation “In/Visible” was exhibited in Cork, Ireland this past August/September at the beautiful Wandesford Quay Gallery . As you say, the images are larger-than-life faces printed on transparent silk-like fabric (42” X 96”), making them appear almost ephemeral, wafting in the breeze as people walk by.
The images are originally created as hand-pulled prints (monotypes & lithographs) and then are digitally captured, enlarged and printed on fabric (PolyVoile) using a wide format Agfa Aquajet printer. The faces came to me as a result of my experience living in a pre-famine stone cottage on a cliff overlooking the Atlantic Ocean on the rugged southwestern coast of Ireland, where I was taking part in an artist residency in a very old village called Cill Rialaig, which has become an internationally renowned artist retreat, created by Noelle Campbell-Sharpe Although I wouldn’t consider myself to be superstitious, after living and painting in this stone cottage every day for a month, I became aware of the invisible but tangible presence of human beings, who may have lived in these stone dwellings in the past.
My show, called “In/Visible”, gave these “ghosts”, or apparitions, a larger-than-life presence in the exhibition. The large faces were interspersed with large photographic images of the skies and water, so that they melded with each other, creating a multi-layered layered effect, so that the viewer could see through each ghostly image to what was behind.
Your travels to Ireland inspired most of your artworks. What was the most memorable thing about your travels there.
As a a painter I was struck by the quality of the light. Since Ireland is an island, and it rains almost every day, the air is infused with moisture, and because of that, there is a luminosity to the light that is very unique, and an incredible thing for a painter to experience. It really is a painter’s paradise. And the people in Ireland are the salt of the earth…incredibly kind, generous, always have time to talk and tell stories, in spite of the incredibly stress they are experiencing as a result of their tanking economy.
The other aspect of Ireland that influences my art is the music—I play traditional Irish music on the fiddle, mandolin and concertina, and when I’m in Ireland I become totally immersed in the local music session scene, and the local people who play the music have become great friends. I listen to the music continually when I paint, and it’s become an integral part of my work.
You have a strong affinity for things Irish/Scottish …. this is a strong influence in your art. Even your son Jacob is a world renowned Bodhran player. What was the earliest memory you have being exposed to the Celtic culture.
My father, Robert McCauley, is the Irish side of my family. He plays the harmonica and Irish tin whistle by ear (and incredibly well!), and I grew up listening to him play. He took me to Ireland for the first time in 2002, and I was instantly smitten! Since then, I have been back to Ireland 4 times (and my son Jacob often flies over with me, and then takes off on his own travels in Ireland and Scotland) in 2007, 2009, 2010 and 2012 (for 6 week visits), and am looking forward to returning next summer for another artist residency in Cill Rialaig, Kerry. I then hope to return to the little village of Glendree (near Feakle) in East Clare for the music and to visit friends.
You are presently the Founder & Director of Riverside Celtic College, Guelph, Ontario. What can students learn going to this place?
We offer classes in traditional Irish and Scottish music (Irish Fiddle, bodhran, Irish Flute, Scottish Smallpipes, Mandolin and Tenor Banjo, Guitar accompaniment, Tinwhistle, Introductory Violin and Celtic Song) as well as Irish Language and Irish Ceili & Set Dancing. We also host trad sessions for students, as well as traditional music concerts with musicians, (both internationally renowned and emerging), from all over the world. Often we’ll offer trad music workshops in conjunction with the concerts.
In 2012 we’ve had concerts with musicians like renowned fiddlers Tony Demarco & Patrick Ourceau, brilliant Galway fiddler Maeve Donnelly with guitarist Andy Hillhouse, the amazing Irish flute player and singer Nuala Kennedy with fiddler Dana Lyn and guitarist Andy Hillhouse, and look forward to upcoming concerts with the new trad trio Nua (fiddler James Law, guitarist Graeme McGillivray and bodhran player Jacob McCauley) as well as a joint concert in December featuring Bua and North Atlantic Drift.
We have 52 mutual friends in facebook. And you are also very active in networking. But tell me, how effective is social network sites in terms of getting people to attend shows…especially in terms of those you invited within Ontario.
I think that it’s a great way to get the word out, as more and more people are on Facebook. And it’s an excellent way to keep people informed of what going on in one’s life and career, especially if you’re travelling, and touring around Ireland and having shows!
The Riverside Celtic Society is turning lots of heads these days. Can you tell us more about it?
I founded Riverside Celtic College in the village of Elora Ontario, in 2003, when I was first getting into learning how to play the fiddle. I was instantly addicted to the instrument, and traditional Irish music, but was having trouble finding instructors to teach Irish fiddling.
I started the school, partly because I wanted to learn how to play, but also wanted to turn other people on to the music. I also found that after my trips to Ireland, I would come back to Ontario and crave the intimacy and richness of the Irish culture that I’d left behind me, and had a desire to create that same feeling of community in Ontario.
So, in addition to starting the school, my close friends and I started a traditional Irish pub session at the Shepherd’s Pub, in Elora, Ontario, Canada, that has been going for almost 13 years! Since then, the school has evolved into a really special and unique non-profit organization that seems to attract the most wonderful folks to its classes and events.
Riverside Celtic Society has recently received a major catalyst to its growth and evolution as an organization: we received a generous two year grant from the Ontario Trillium Foundation, which has proven to be a very positive development, allowing us to offer a new educational outreach series of music/dance performances called the “Kitchen Party”, as well as hosting an exciting new concert series (including music workshops), called the RCC Traditional Music Concert Series “Live Trad at the Albion”.
We have also recently received generous donations from a group of former students, to create a a new traditional music scholarship, in memory of a dear former student who, sadly, passed away in June 2011, the Tom Kelly Music Scholarship. Ar RCC, we’ve essentially put our energy towards creating a community of like-minded people, who love the music and culture of Ireland and Scotland, and want to share that passion.
What albums are you listening to these days and what music would you recommend to us?
The most recent recording I’ve been excited about is the soon-to-be-launched EP of the new trad trio, NUA (full length CD to released in 2013), with fiddler James Law, guitarist Graeme McGillivray, and bodhran player, Jacob McCauley, which features some really exciting original music that, while grounded in traditional Scottish music, is really innovative and experimental in its approach.
A addictive traditional brew is being served courtesy of award-winning fiddle player James M Law, versatile & tasteful guitarist Graeme McGillivray and award-winning bodhrán player Jacob McCauley. Stylish, delicate at times and mostly energetic, Nua is a trio that’s sure to captivate and please listeners. I am a big fan of Jacob McCauley’s drumming style as he brings layers of expression to the bodhran. Graeme McGillivray’s wispy strums create an envelope of steady rhythm to the laser preciseness of James M Law’s fiddling.
NUA live in Guelph, April 2012. Original composition by NUA
NUA is an innovative new trad trio, bringing a fresh and unique sound to traditional music, creating their own distinctive flavour with both original and traditional compositions from Ireland and Scotland. Based in Toronto, Canada, NUA consists of three members: award-winning fiddle player James M Law, versatile & tasteful guitarist Graeme McGillivray and award-winning bodhrán player Jacob McCauley. The interaction between the three is what really makes the music shine, whether it be their soaring melodies or tasteful grooves. The trio is also well known for their exciting incorporation of odd time signatures and poly rhythms, which give the music an electrifying lift and spontaneity.
Each member adds their own distinctive sound and influence to the music. Although they are a trio with a sole melody player, the brilliant multi-tasking of each member is demonstrated countless times with perhaps a guitar-driven flat-picked melody, rhythmic fiddle playing, or melodic bodhrán playing to add to the mix. The ability for each member to take on multiple roles is one of the staples of NUA. This adds to a thrilling live experience, and a “you just don’t know what’s coming next” approach!
NUA is currently preparing for the release of their first E.P and their debut album to be released early 2013.
In this edition: The Indulgers, Blyde Lasses, Cillian Doheny and pictures of the day…
We had a hard week. My heart goes to those who suffered the terrible force of hurricane Sandy. As much as I love Nature, these are one of those times when nature can be scary. It is a horrible situation but as long as we remain steadfast in our devotion to one another, then we will get through this. Ive had moments in my life when I thought all hope is gone. But when I think about the love of friends and family members, everything becomes bearable again.
There is an ongoing drive to help the people of New York. Please check out Beal Bocht:
The Beal Bocht offers music, poetry, comedy, theatre and art exhibits ,making it the premiere place for to showcase both Irish and local artistic talents while enjoying great drinks and food.
Genre Irish/Celtic/Americana/Rock
Members Damien McCarron – Vocals, Guitar
Mike Nile – Vocals, Guitars, Mandolin, Harmonica and Electronic Bagpipe
Renee Fine – Fiddle/Violin
Aaron Haywood – Bass
Frannie (Cheech) Mannone – Drums
Guesting on occasion:
Neale Heywood – Guitar
Ryan Bunnell – Guitar
Hometown Boulder/Golden
Record label Celtic Club Records
General manager www.shamrocker.com
Influences Waterboys, Horslips, Thin Lizzy, Christy Moore, Irish Trad., Paul Brady, Spirit, Fleetwood Mac, Beatles and many more.
Current Location Boulder/Golden, Colorado
The The Indulgers
Good melodies, rockin’ beats, sing-along lyrics: these are the things that make up a good album that you can listen to again and again. My introduction to The Indulgers was rather nontraditional. I only know them after catching a radio show called Mile High Celtic Hour hosted by front man Damien McCarron. He moved to Colorado from Dublin.
I became a regular listener of the radio show and there is something about his speaking voice that’s great to hear. It is not just his Irish accent but his voice quality. I was not wrong when I heard their various tracks. I should also mention that apart from the front man’s vocal appeal, all the guys in the band are well-heeled musicians who are master of their own instruments. You can feel the passion as it electrifies every instrument in their songs.
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Blyde Lasses
Check out this duo from Aberdeen UK. Great fiddling tunes there that’s fresh and crisp. The Lasses Set is truly inspiring. I love the balance between energetic performance and emphasis on grace. The recording is also amazing because it lets you listen to the surface of sound. You can almost hear the way the bow grinds against the stings. Their vocals are also lush and expressive. I hope to hear more from them. It’s been a while that this site featured fiddlers. This could be the start eh?
Cillian Doheny is answering my interview questions in between touring with Moxie. I treat this as a pre feature write-up about his music. He does play the banjo way beyond his years. This man is hard-working being with so many projects in such a short period. So this is an introduction to his music and many more to come.
Also in this edition:Damien Mullane, The Tristan Legg Band, Paul Mounsey and Alalé.
Instagram pic of Frost at Midnight’s Happy Birthday
Album Review: Happy Birthday by Frost at Midnight.
Country: Wales
Band members:
Robert Atkins: guitar, bass, keyboards
Catherine Atkins: vocals
Catherine Handley: flute
Johnny Quick: vocals
John Tribe: harmonica
Record label: taff vale
Beautiful and uplifting, Frost at Midnight crafted an album that is determined to encourage repeated listens. Even the album artwork encourages a smile with its illustration of golden birthday cake framed in blue. The album title is Happy Birthday. Opening the cardboard case introduces me to a back cover picture of band members slicing that cake. There are references to Keats, Jacques Humbert, Jack Sinclair, Julian of Norwich and TS Eliot.
I can tell that songwriter Rob Atkins is somewhat into academic themes. This album is also traditionally influenced with classical frills. As for the vocals, Catherine Atkins and Johnny Quick both deliver superb singing styles. Catherine has pure soprano voice which is comparable to Judy Collins and fellow Welsh singer Mary Hopkins. Johnny has a faint folk roughness underneath the Broadway smooth voice.
A kind of high plucky sound is heard all over the album courtesy of Rob Atkin’s mandolin. The airy sounds of keyboards, bass and guitars almost slide into the border of indie folk and is only hold on a balance by the flute of Catherine Handley. The harmonica of John Tribe reinforces the band’s folk influence.
Happy Birthday opens with the lively A Birthday. It has a kind of 70’s vibes. The signing here reminds me a bit of Sally Oldfield and Maggie Reilly. Deep Open Chord follows with its heartfelt lyrics and pastoral melodies. Surprise by Joy opens with “Surprise by joy impatient as the wind I turn to share, I turn to share the rapture..” I am touched with the poetic elegance of this track. I love the mandolin playing in The Egg Timer. It’s one of those instrumental tracks that should be given more exposure for its delicate and atmospheric beauty.
Writ in Water has a renaissance kind of sound while All Shall Be Well reminds me of those Irish ballads performed by the Dubliners and Planxty. Love’s a Mystery is filled with magical bells which grow on you after repeated listens. Why Should I Care strikes me as something the late Sandy Denny would sing. At the same time the Jazz melodic flavor makes it a perfect lounge track. Percy Paves the Way burrows its melody from the Scottish song Ae Fond Kiss. The voice of Catherine Atkins soars like an angel.
Tambourine is a track that introduced me to the band after hearing it online. This is definitive Welsh trad style.The tambourine sounds trimmed down to give more emphasis on the flute of Catherine Handley. Sleep starts with an ambient keyboard style. This is the only track featuring a synthesized sound that works well! As the title suggests, it is a lullaby. Another Birthday(reprise) closes the album as an instrumental track.
My verdict: There should be more Welsh bands like Frost at Midnight that celebrates the beauty of combining the delicate styles of various genres. It is a must have album whither you are into indie folk, Celtic or easy listening.
Damien Mullane has just released 13. The carrier single is “The Orphan”. He’s just finished a tour with Fiddle player Colin Farrell and Lunasa’s Kevin Crawford. Big thanks to Cillian Doheny of Irish trad band Moxie for recommending this music.
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The Tristan Legg band
I discovered The Tristan Legg band last July of 2011. Since then I have been following their updates. Tristan Legg is based in Nova Scotia, the Celtic music capital of Canada. Below are videos that will give you an idea about his music. Enjoy!
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Paul Mounsey
My friend Paula who is based in Yorkshire England posted this man’s music on my facebook wall. I was captivated. There is definitely a strong Scottish identity in his music.This track is also very hypnotic. He was featured in the UK docu called Visit Scotland…
Video notes:
One picture video of Paul Mounsey track The Fields of Robert John
My friend Sacha Talens is a punk rocker who travels around the world. He lived for a certain time in Ireland. This is a band he witnessed performing live when he was in Galway.
Video notes:
Born out of the lively music scene in Galway in the West of Ireland, Alalé was formed in 2006. The band was formed by Fergal Walsh, David Cardona, Gabriel G. Diges and Ciaran O’Donghaile. They soon released the self-produced album Wo Japen, which has since gone on to sell over 4000 copies. At the moment the band members include, Flute, Whistle and Galician Gaita player, Gabriel G. Diges; Singer and Fiddle player, Stephanie Swanton, guitarist, Esteban Moreno; and Bodhrán player, David Cardona. Alalé have played and toured extensively in festivals and venues in Ireland and throughout Europe, returning regularly to Germany, Spain and the Netherlands and recently got their first television exposure playing on BBC Northern Ireland.
With the excitement of an upcoming album, Fraser Fifield talks to The Celtic Music Fan about music and what makes collaborative musical work interesting.
This week’s special attention is given to Scottish musician, composer and producer Fraser Fifield. I was captivated the first time I listened to one of his tracks. There’s sensitivity, intricacy and a sense of underlying elegance in his musical voice. I think I read and heard his music a couple of years ago, way before I even started writing about Celtic musicians. It is only now that I got an opportunity to communicate with him directly for this edition.
He plays the traditional instruments in a way a Jazz musician would, and then reverse the process with the Traditional instruments. It is like what happens when you put different people in different attires and situations and see how they react or how they look in that environment. This is what he did with music and instruments. I think his striking importance is being able to walk between different worlds and still maintaining the authenticity of his artistry in playing. This edition is about relationships: between different types of music, musicians and instruments.
I think you will enjoy how this interview turned out. I had fun making this one.
What’s keeping you busy these days Fraser?
What’s going with me? Well, the main thing just now is having eventually started recording an album with Graeme Stephen, guitarist and long term colleague – just duo, focusing on live performances basically – meaning played live together, not actual concert recordings..lots of electronics too but hardware boxes used in live performance on the whole as opposed to studio laboratory type of process – which is cool, but not what we’re doing here.
So we started that last week…and will be ongoing as time permits over the next wee while. Just had a flurry of CDs through the door as other projects I’ve recorded on came to fruition – Maeve Mackinnon, Sophie Ramsay and Wingin It…maybe you’ll hear some of these soon
Looking forward to playing London jazz festival with the Take 5 Europe ensemble plus a couple of gigs in Poland one with Maciej Obara 4tet and Take 5 again. Playing duo with Graeme in St Andrews Scotland in a couple of weeks…
Doing a recording session for Angus Lyon this week and hooking up for a small gig with an old friend – wonderful clarinet /sax player Dick Lee..
With John Surman and Tom Arthurs last week on Take 5 Europe. By Emile Holba
What can listeners expect from this new album in terms of style and sound?
I’m hoping folk will hear two musicians enjoying playing together who’ve built up strong dialogue between them (we’ve been playing together some 16 yrs I think). A general rule seems to be emerging – remember we’ve just started – to avoid layering performances/multitracking ourselves i.e. you’re essentially going hear two musicians playing live together, there’s no click track etc… that’s not too say sonically the record will be simple – early results suggest anything but…this is often just low whistle and guitar but like you’ve never heard.
A bold statement perhaps..but I’m being fairy serious… The live recordings on the soundcloud page hint at the sound of course, but I am enjoying working a little more on our recordings after the initial performance, resampling ourselves in a way, extracting small bits of audio and changing it’s function…I’ll say that much. Will it sound folk or jazz – I’m bound to be asked that… and the answer is I have absolutely no idea..a bit of both, or plenty of both actually. The compositions are mine but compared to my previous records I’d say improvised passages will turn out be more featured.
I think making music is also a relationship between you, your fellow musicians and your fans. What have you learned so far in maintaining this relationship since you started? What are the things you avoid now and what are the things you consider essential?
….Essential in regard to making music with other musicians, for me, is a sense of openness, trust and maybe some kind of mutual understanding of what it is we’re doing, not necessarily verbalized but that the feeling of all being well is present…all makes for a good starting point, at least musically; you could be having the worst week imaginable, but sometimes these things can twist around into good musical moments. Sometimes, hopefully not often, one can’t get into the right vibe to make music creatively for whatever reason, cat gone missing, who knows, but assuming all is fine there should be something you can switch on to be excited about what you’re doing, if you’re not already. Basically it helps to be in good mood is what I’m saying I suppose.
Musical situations I try to avoid are those where none of the elements to my previous answer are present. Also I’ve not been drawn into a ‘band’ situation for a wee while now, which is maybe down to my personality, I don’t know..I kind of miss it in a way, the band thing, but at the same time value the diversity of music I’m currently able to fit on my modestly sized internal drive.
Be nice to audience members if they’re being nice to you…i.e. paying to hear you play….would be a good general rule…
Try and have a relationship with the people that enjoy your music, if you want to that is…unless you have some Garbarek like qualities, and I try to mean that in a nice way, it’s a probably good idea business wise to interact a bit.. which I guess is what I’m doing right now..but I’m sort of enjoying the therapy of answering your questions. How’s this piece shaping up now by the way ?
Oh this is shaping my work nicely!
If you evaluate all the tracks you composed throughout your career, which one has an impact to you in terms of the manner it was composed and the inspiration behind it?
I’ve chosen the track called Psalm from my first solo album Honest Water as it’s perhaps the tune or idea which has had the longest and most interesting journey with me to date. The first idea was to try and imitate the sound of psalm singing from the Scottish Gaelic tradition – a most beautiful and peculiar art form in itself. My approach is a very simple one and one that has worked for me in many situations over the years, the more instruments playing together the better the effect, so great if working with groups of students of varying levels of ability for example.
Most recently I used this idea in the opening section of my piece ‘Playground Tales’ written for the group Mr McFalls Chamber with guests Corrina Hewat, James Ross, Aidan O’Rourke and myself – hopefully a recording next year. So the track Psalm from Honest Water began life as one of five parts of a suite for saxophone quintet titled Traditions – one of the first years of the ‘New Voices’ series of commissions made annually by Celtic Connections, and it’s still running – quite a body of work in there now. My turn was 2001, a long time back now!
I’ve never played the tune much on my own gigs for some reason, actually probably no reason, but have used it often in a variety of other settings, I recall…a group of 7 different European bagpipes at Rudolstadt Festival Germany, recently with Dutch trio the Nordanians, with the Take 5 Europe group this year, it’s served me pretty well, and I think it’s a nice melody.
With Corrina Hewat
If you have the time, the energy and the means to be an album producer, whom would you work with and what types of musicians would you help in producing records?
Well I’m doing that very thing right now in a kind of self-medicating manner along with Graeme Stephen in the making of a duo album together which is actually a bit overdue I feel, but at last is progressing nicely. I’ve always enjoyed being very hands on with every aspect of my own record making, from the engineering through arrangements, performance to mixing. I like having the freedom to work at my own pace with things and review/adjust at will…does end up taking forever sometimes though…and that’s not so cool always.
With other artists I’ve occasionally become involved in the role of producer or perhaps co-producer in some instances – for example where a group has developed a sound collaboratively and go on to then record. I’ve never been great at adopting a workmanlike attitude when it comes to making records. I think its quite a big deal. An example I can think of is with my friend Mick West, a traditional singer from Glasgow whom I first met whilst a student there. I’d played with him in various line-ups of the Mick West Band ever since, so when the chance to make his last album ‘Sark O Snaw’ came round I really wanted to do it, not least because having played with Mick for many’s the year he’d never properly captured the best of his music on record – I wanted to change that, and I think we did, to cut a long story short. It was a labour of love like most records I’ve worked on, probably ending up with a negative hourly rate or something close it, who cares, it’s a lovely document to have.
In terms of who to work with…if they can play well with heart and soul and give and take, and we can get along well, that’s the only ingredients required. I’m pretty happy doing a lot of the work I do for those very reasons.
Take 5 is an ongoing project you are involved with. Can you tell us a little bit about it and how’s it going so far?
It’s been a very nice experience. Firstly Take 5 then this year Take 5 Europe which is new extension of it. It’s about artist development essentially, through talks/discussions/networking (that mostly over one week) and making music with the other Take 5 participants you’re given tools or ideas at least aimed at perhaps focusing one’s career, taking a look over what you’re doing and what you might be doing…it’s positive certainly if anything at all.
This year the ensemble of musicians on Take 5 Europe proved to be a surprisingly cohesive group – not a typical line-up – 2 basses, vibes, drums, guitar, trumpet, 2 saxes + me. They’re a very nice bunch of people and amazing players, in late 20s or 30s – 2 each from Netherlands, France, Poland, Norway and the UK. We’ve been playing at the festivals run by partners of the scheme in Molde, Rotterdam, Coutance, with just 2 performances left to do in November in Poland and London. Playing and hanging out with John Surman on both these Take 5 weeks was certainly noteworthy, great musician and lovely chap.
I know you have played the bagpipes for a long time. But if you were a listener, what makes a bagpipe and amazing instrument?
There’s something primal going on with it that’s for sure. I can’t get into any physics that’s for sure too…I can but agree there is something about the sound that speaks to an enormous variety of people from every part of the world. Being very loud (if we’re talking the GBH here) is surely a bonus.
There you have it folks. Be sure to keep track of his schedules and keep him on your radars. The new projects sound amazing!
Fraser Fifield
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Pic of the day: Colin Nea-Between the Jigs and Reels
COLIN NEA will be launching his CD ‘Between the Jigs and the Reels’ at 9pm, Thursday the 8th November in the Temple Gate Hotel
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Enda Seery: Website updated and revamped!
The musician/composer of The Winding Clock has introduced a new feel and look to his official website. Visit :http://www.endaseery.com/
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Featured Video: Therese Honey: Paddy Cronin’s Jig – Jenny Pippin from ‘Summer’s End’
Yes yes! We have a new addition to our list of harpists to watch out for. Therese Honey creates a relaxing wall of strings with with the talent of Jenny Pippin. Have a listen 😀
Track 2 from the 2012 http://www.Waterbug.com release, Summer’s End. Photos of the Dingle Peninsula were taken in April 2011 by Therese Honey and Larry Mallette. Therese learned Paddy Cronin’s Jig from Gráinne Hambly. Jenny Pippin is from O’Neill’s “Music of Ireland,” 1903. www.theresehoney.net
Celtic Music Fan 