Halifax

www.tristanlegg.com getting a makeover

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http://www.tristanlegg.com/

That’s it. Bigger Man was an an indication for bigger and better things to come from  Canadian singer songwriter Tristan Legg. His gig calendar is also full for the month of April. More shows are coming up next month.

Tristan Legg

Tristan Legg

He is known for his strong voice and passionate live performances. His influences range from bluegrass, Celtic, folk and rock. Apart from his amiable stage presence and excellent charisma, he also represents the beautiful thriving music of Eastern Canada. His favorite quote is “you know how to read music right? u know what a rest is…? trying using it every now and then” by John Ferguson.

When asked about his musical influences, this is what he has to say:

“My influences range from blues great’s such as B.B. king. Stevie Ray, Garrett Mason,Eric Clapton but also great celtic artist as the Pogues, Gerry O’conner, Planxty, Christy Moore.
Some local artists that have also influenced me not just musically but personally are Darren McMullen, Roger Stone, John Ferguson, Anthony Rissesco, Bruce Timmins, my father and the Gig Dogs. There are also many other great local artist’s that have had a great influence on me which i’am very thankfull for.”

We just have to wait and see for more musical goodies from Tristan Legg. In the meantime, enjoy the two videos below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pluwa5zHgL8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1S0m45HV3qg

 

Meet Maxim Cormier, Fresh From the Nova Scotia Celtic Music Scene (Interview)

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Maxim Cormier

Instrumental music is the rage again as Celtic musicians release fantastic albums this year. One of them is this young man from Cape Breton. His name is Maxim Cormier. He just released a self-titled album which I really enjoyed and wrote about in my  review. His music is filled with youthful energy and the serenity of the Nova Scotia landscape. I am sure his music will appeal to everyone , even those who are not into Celtic music. This is because the charm of his music lies in the understanding of the various moods that inhabit the landscapes of the soul. And this is a  universal thing. So if you haven’t gotten yourself a copy of Maxim Cormier yet, now is the time. And I mean it. You will enjoy this album!

Halifax is steeped in diverse music.Can you cite the artists you listened to after you got your guitar in your 11th birthday?

I grew up in Cheticamp NS. a small francophone community on Cape Breton Island. I grew up listening to just about everything other than the popular music that has been released during my lifetime. haha. I listened to my parents’ favourites (such as Supertramp, the beatles, james taylor, etc). Being from Cape Breton, Celtic Music has also been a huge influence on my playing.
For the last 4 years, I have been listening to a lot of Classical Music (From J.S. Bach to Bela Bartok to Steve Reich to Leo Brouwer, etc), Jazz (Esbjorn Svensson Trio, Chick Corea, Pat Metheny, Lenny Breau, etc), and “contemporary acoustic guitarists” such as Michael Hedges, Pierre Bensusan and Don Ross.

The opening track Anticipation reminds me of the sound of a clock ticking. Was this intentional on your part?

In Anticipation was not intended to sound like a clock. I do understand why you got that feeling though. In Anticipation is hard for me to describe. It’s almost polyrythmic and it has an almost constant sense of pulse throughout most of it. Like I said, it’s hard to describe..

In Anticipation was one of those pieces that kind of just came to me out of nowhere. I knew wanted to find a way to keep the bass notes ringing constantly while bringing a sense of pulse to it. Which is where the idea of the pulsating bass notes came from. Then, in an effort to not let the pulse take over, I added a syncopated melody against it.

I think the parallel between “In Anticipation” and a clock is that the low sounding pulse isn’t a dominating sound in my piece. The click of a clock isn’t dominating sound in everyday life.. In fact, it’s hardly noticeable unless you have a migraine.

Track 7 (Mezquida) is a personal favorite. What’s the inspiration behind the melody?

I’m really glad you like Mezquida. It was written as an homage to Cuban classical guitar composer Leo Brouwer, who’s full name is Juan Leovigildo Brouwer Mezquida.

I stumbled upon the opening chord I used in Mezquida when I incorrectly played the opening chord to a Leo Brouwer Etude (Etude #6). The main melody was inspired by that opening chord that I discovered. The rest of the piece features ideas such as alternating measures of 7/8 with measures of 4/4 and moving chord shapes around while maintaining constant open string.

 If a much younger guitar enthusiast approaches you for an advice about releasing a guitar album, what are the dos and don’t s you’d like to share?

I don’t have enough studio experience to feel comfortable giving extensive advice. What I can say is 1) Go to a professional recording studio with state of the art gear, a great sounding room and a good engineer. bedroom studios are getting popular, but I really believe they should mostly be used to make demos. 2) Know what you want and stick with it. I knew before walking in the studio what pieces i was going to record and who was going to play on the tracks that needed accompaniment. 3) Despite having just said “stick with it”, keep an open mind. If you have a good engineer, he/she’s probably worked on more projects than you have 😉

I am curious about the album photos. They really convey the easy and expansive feeling of the music in this album. Where did the shoot happen?

The shoot was in my hometown (Cheticamp, NS). Photos by Jaron Felix in may 2012.

 What will happen now that the debut album is out and what are the big musical things you are anticipating?

I just finished the 3rd year of a Bachelor’s of Music with a concentration in guitar performance at Dalhousie University (Halifax, NS). I’m currently part of a classical guitar quartet and I’m also building a jazz repertoire. This summer, I will do some touring. In september, I will return to Dalhousie to complete my degree. Once I graduate, I want to tour Europe for a 3-4 months then I’d start working on a second album.

That sounds like a great plan. You seemed to have figured everything out in your musical career! I know that you have performed with great musicians spanning world class venues including the Celtic Colours. For those who are yet to take part in these Celtic music events, what can they expect?

Celtic Colours is so much fun. SO MUCH FUN. It’s a 9 day festival held in Cape Breton during the month october. It features world class musicians from all over the world as well as the top local Celtic musicians. It also features Gaelic Song, Dance, etc. Celtic Colours events are held in venues all over Cape Breton. At night, when all the shows are over, everyone meets up at the Gaelic College in St Annes where “Festival Club” happens. Festival Club is magical. Fans and keen listeners come to have a drink and listen to more music as the musicians take this opportunity to play with old friends or with new musicians they’ve just met.

 What are the top 7 albums you are listening to currently?

1- Chick Corea Akoustic Band
2- Los Angeles Guitar Quartet “Guitar Heroes”
3- Bela Fleck and Edgar Meyer: Music for Two
4- Michael Hedges: Aerial Boundaries
5- Scott MacMillan’s “Mackinnon’s Brook Suite”
6- Esbjorn Svensson Trio: Strange Place for Snow
7- Any recording of Andrés Segovia

Where can people buy your new album?

People can buy my album at:
http://www.cdbaby.com/artist/MaximCormier
https://itunes.apple.com/ca/album/maxim-cormier/id561181401?ign-mpt=uo%3D4

and people in Nova Scotia can buy it at:
-Select Sounds (bedford)
-Obsolete Records (Halifax)
-CD Heaven (Dartmouth)
-Antigonish 5c to a dollar store
-Celtic Music Interpretive Center (Judique)
-Charlie’s Country Music Store (Cheticamp)
-Cape Breton Curiosity Shop (Sydney)
-The Coast store (Glace Bay)
-Gaelic College Gift Shop (St Annes)

These are just misc questions:

Favorite Color: I honestly don’t have one.

Zodiac Sign: Scorpio.

Pet Peeve: Forgetting something at home. It seems to happen far too often lately.

What’s great about being in Music: Being able to explore what I love while getting a degree for it.

Best Childhood memory: Playing for over 5000 people at “Les Jeux de la Francophonie Canadiennes 2005”. I was 14.

Things you can’t travel without: New music to listen to.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=xkBVvWKQkx4

***

Huzzah!

What’s hot this month:

Artist: Kevin O’Donnell

Album: Deep is the Well

Players: Jim DeWan, Finbar Furey, Larry Gray, Kathleen Keane, Bill Lanphier, Maurice Lennon, Haley O’Donnell, John Rice, John William, and Jessica Willis

Style: Irish Country, Americana

Tracks:

  • A Letter Home
  • When I Was Young
  • Factory Girl
  • Downtowner Motel
  • Girl from Durango
  • Illinois & Michigan Canal
  • Camp-Farm Road
  • Rusted Dreams
  • She
  • The Ballad of Jackie Ryan Fagan
  • Saint Malachy’s Waltz
–

Album: “Babel Pow Wow“

Artist: Dom Duff

Location: Brittany

Original Release Date: April 18, 2013

Tracks:

1. Buan yann buan

2. Bitter Lands of Llydaw

3. Noa

4. Chikoloden groove

5. Floc’h ar jabadao

6. A-du gant an avel

7. Babel pow wow

8. Houarn & lêr

9. Buzhug’o’matik

10. Koroll gouez

11. Treizh

12. En tu all d’an treizh

13. Foeter breizh

–

Artist: Enda Seery

Album: Síocháin na Tuaithe

Location: Streamstown, Co. Westmeath

Players:ENDA SEERY-Whistles, flute, keyboard, vocals. JOHN BYRNE-Guitar.

JAMES HUGHES-Fiddle. EOGHAN MACAOGÁIN-Whistle. TOM DELANY-Guitar.

Tracks:

  1. The Scholar/Sam’s Delight (ES)/The Night Owl Time (ES) Reels 4.02
  2. The Castle/The Nightingale Jigs 3.25
  3. Peggy in the Settle/Day Trip to Galway (ES) Single Reels 2.47
  4. It’s A Working Man I Am Song 5.12
  5. The Dairy (ES)/The Belfast Hornpipes 4.06
  6. Santa Cruz (ES)/Friends from the States (ES) Jigs 2.38
  7. Amhrán na Leabhar Slow Air 3.03
  8. An Bhfuil an Fear Mór Istigh? Set Dance, Slip Jig 2.39
  9. The Golden Keyboard/John Blessing’s/The Highlandman Who Kissed HisGranny Reels 3.23
  10. My Aunt Jane/The Gullane/The Rambling Sailor Polkas 3.42
  11. Jearóid/You Rogue You Daren’t Meddle Me Slow Reel, Reel 3.02
  12. The Killeigh/Langton’s of Kilkenny (ES) Hornpipes 3.20
  13. Loving Hannah Song 4.28
  14. Tatter Jack Walsh/An Luradán/The Hag With The Money Jigs 3.31
  15. Síocháin na Tuaithe (ES)/Ralph’s Paw (ES) Slow Waltz, Jig 3.23
  16. Larry’s Favourite/The Floating Crowbar/The Chicago Reels 4.51
–

Band: The Indulgers

Album: Whiskey Tonight

Location: Boulder/Golden Colorado

Members: Damien McCarron – Vocals, Guitar
Mike Nile – Vocals, Guitars, Mandolin, Harmonica and Electronic Bagpipe
Renee Fine – Fiddle/Violin
Aaron Haywood – Bass
Francesco(Cheech) Mannone – Drums
Guesting on occasion:
Neale Heywood – Guitar
Ryan Bunnell – Guitar

Tracks

1. Whiskey Tonight/2. Ceili Mor /3. It’s You /4. Hold On to You /5. Story Rory /6. Lady Jane /7. New Lease On Life /8. Man of All Seasons /9. Doin’ Fine/10. Roll This Stone/11. The Cure/12. Dreaming of You/13. Big Storm Rising/14. Dublin Day

Papilio: Neo-Celtic, Contemporary-Traditional Trio Based in Nova Scotia

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From: Halifax, NS

Members:

Jennifer Publicover (flutes/bodhran)
Anthony Rissesco (fiddle/vocals)
Phil Schappert (guitars/bouzar/vocals)

Layne is working at a music venue (DeCoste Centre)in Pictou Nova Scotia as his summer job. This Celtic group is performing there for the next two nights. He calls them “Absolutely AMAZING!!!!”. I have to take his word for that because they really are.  Their recordings have that silky texture.The musical vibes are always reflective of Nova Scotia’s maritime side. Their track F Strathspeys & Reels (trad) will send traditional music lovers smiling. The cover of Caledonia originally by Dougie MacLean gains a new shine.

Listen here: http://www.myspace.com/papiliomusic

About

Papilio is a neo-celtic, contemporary-traditional trio based in Nova Scotia. Come on a musical tour with us through the cultures of Ireland, Scotland, Brittany, Spain, Cape Breton, Scandinavia and uncharted lands beyond…
Biography

Papilio is a neo-celtic, contemporary & traditional world music trio from Nova Scotia. Come on a musical tour with us through the cultures of Ireland, Scotland, Brittany, Spain, Cape Breton, Scandinavia and uncharted lands beyond…to capture the spirit and energy of celtic and other musical traditions in a fresh, progressive way, with a sprinkling of our own compositions as well.

Visit our MySpace page to hear some tracks: http://www.myspace.com/papiliomusic

And here is our brand new website!
http://www.papiliomusic.ca/

We are available for concerts, festivals, conferences, pubs, ceilis, workshops and private functions in and around Atlantic Canada and the Northeastern United States.

Anthony Rissesco (fiddle, vocals)

The newest member of Papilio, Anthony is a versatile violin player and teacher, experienced in all styles of playing from classical violin to traditional fiddle. He tours regularly with singer Lennie Gallant and is also a member of the Halifax band The Gig Dogs. As a music student at Dalhousie University, Anthony studied classical violin under Phillippe Djokic. He has won fiddle competitions throughout Canada, including the Maritime Fiddle Championship. In 1990, he came third in the prestigious Canadian Open in Shelburne Ontario, and he was chosen to represent Nova Scotia at the Grand Masters Competition in Ottawa for six consecutive years. Anthony has played with Symphony Nova Scotia, Bruce Guthro, Cyril MacPhee, Anne Murray, and Peggy Seeger.

Jennifer Publicover (flutes, bodhrán, vocals)

Jennifer leads a double life as an active freelancer on both the modern orchestral flute and wooden Irish flute, and is proud to be a founding member of Papilio. She earned her Master’s degree in flute performance at the University of Toronto and her B.Mus. at Mount Allison. Driven by the desire to develop her own unique voice beyond her classical training, Jennifer has been drawn to the Celtic music of her native Nova Scotia, Ireland, Scotland, Brittany and beyond. A familiar face at Halifax sessions, she has been a long-time participant in and supporter of the Boxwood Festival, an annual traditional flute workshop in Lunenburg directed by recording artist Chris Norman. In her alter ego as a classical flutist, she performs as an alternate player for such institutions as the Charlottetown Festival Orchestra, Symphony Nova Scotia, and the Stadacona Band, frequently appearing in many orchestras, pit orcheatras, pro concert bands and chamber groups in and around Halifax. She is also in demand as teacher, and is a busy mom of two.

Phil Schappert (guitar, cittern, vocals)

Phil has been playing for more years than he can remember. Dr. Phil, as he’s known to his students, has an alter ego as a PhD entomologist/botanist who has written books about plant/insect interactions (FYI, Papilio is a genus of swallowtail butterflies, represented in Nova Scotia by Papilio canadensis, the Canadian Tiger Swallowtail). Introduced to Irish and Scottish traditional music by Don Ross–and Joel Shore, his fiddle-playing PhD supervisor–early in the last decade of the last century, Phil has developed a particular fondness for the music of Brittany, celtic Spain and Scandinavia. He plays fingerstyle guitar, and plays guitars made by Russel Crosby of Nova Scotia. Phil has played in neo-celtic/jazz/folk/trad bands in Toronto and Austin. He and his wife, Pat, returned to Canada from Texas in late 2007. Halifax is their playground of choice…

Review: Papilio ~ EP Emergence

Papilio is a very musical trio consisting of Jennifer Publicover on flutes and bodhran, Anthony Rissesco on violin and vocals and Phil Schappert on guitar and bouzar (guitar shaped bouzouki). Emergence is a 6 cut EP which one hopes will lead to a full-length recording. Their music has roots in the Celtic world of Scotland, Ireland, Brittany and Cape Breton. They also show Nordic and Eastern European influences.
The recording opens with a Nordic polska followed by Jennifer’s “Chorolations” written in the style of an Eastern European “Oro” or “Choro”, hence the name. Anthony then gives a fine rendition of Dougie MacLean’s classic song Caledonia before he launches into a set of Cape Breton style strathspeys and reels on cut 4. A beautiful Scottish air gives way to an Irish slip jig while the closing set has a Breton march and three rousing jigs from England, Scotland and Ireland respectively.

The music of Papilio, which is Latin for butterfly and a result of Phil’s other career as a biologist, is arranged, played and presented with style and grace as well as a high degree of musical proficiency. They have a “big” sound for a trio and I would certainly look forward to a full CD in the future.

John Ferguson for CelticLife magazine: http://www.celticlife.ca/