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1.
Phil Cunningham
The Colours of Cape
Breton (Phil Cunningham, MCPS/PRS)
Phil
Cunningham: Accordion, whistles, cittern, and keyboards
Composed and recorded for THE COLOURS OF CAPE BRETON
Courtesy of Phil Cunningham Produced and arranged by Phil
Cunningham
Recorded July 2002 Inverness-shire, Scotland
The
“slow air,” often referred to as a “pastoral air,” has
its origins in the ancient piping and harping traditions of
Scotland and Ireland. Composers, ranging from Neil Gow (1727 -
1807) through to James Scott Skinner (1843 -1927), cultivated
a new “Golden Age” of composition in Scotland. Today,
present-day composers have continued the tradition of writing
slow airs.
Accordion
player Phil Cunningham, a native of Edinburgh, Scotland, is
one of those composers. A former member of Celtic bands Silly
Wizardand Relativity, Phil has written many fine airs
throughout his career. In 1984, he released an album of
pastoral music entitled AIRS AND GRACES. Many of his airs have
become popular in Cape Breton. Recently, Phil composed “The
Golden Tooth” for Cape Breton fiddler Natalie MacMaster.
Natalie recorded this air on her most recent LIVE album.
Another of his airs, “Tondor,” is a tribute to the
prestigious Danish music festival, and was featured on last
year’s Celtic Colours compilation, THE ROUTES OF THE WORLD.
Phil composed “The Colours of Cape Breton” last October
during the 2001 Celtic Colours festival. Inspired by a
spetacular early morning view of St. Ann’s Bay, Phil
dedicates this air to the people of Cape Breton and the new
friends he made at last year’s festival.
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2.
Liz Carroll
The Silver Spear
(traditional) / The Earl’s Chair (traditional)/ The Musical
Priest (traditional) - Arranged by Liz Carroll
Liz
Carroll: Fiddle
John Doyle: Guitar
Chico Huff: Bass
Zan MacLeod: Bouzouki
Jackie Moran: Percussion
Seamus Egan: Percussion
From
the album LOST IN THE LOOP
Courtesy of Green Linnet Records
Produced by Seamus Egan
Recorded 2000, Philadelphia
As
emigration from Ireland to America grew to staggering
proportions in the 18th and 19th Centuries, the cities of New
York, Boston, Philadelphia, and Chicago all became popular
destinations. Irish historian Lawrence McCaffrey called the
Irish the “pioneers of the American urban ghetto.” The
city of Chicago received many Irish immigrants, beginning in
the 1830s, and by the turn of the century, the number of Irish
in Chicago had swelled to over 200,000. There, during what is
known as one of the most dangerous periods of Chicago’s
history, the Irish music and dance thrived. Through repeated
waves of Irish immigration, by the 1950s, Chicago had become a
cradle of Irish Gaelic culture. Fiddler and composer Liz
Carroll was born on the south side of Chicago in 1956. Her
parents were both Irish
immigrants. Liz drew much of her inpiration from the local
community. Sessions at the Irish Traditional Musicians’
Association gave Liz a direct link to the music of early
Chicago. A gifted improviser, Liz’s approach to traditional
music is highly innovative. Liz is also a noted composer of
new Irish music, and throughout her career, many of her tunes
have become standards of other musicians’ repertoire on both
sides of the Atlantic.
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3.
Jerry Holland
Reichswall Forest (Dan R.
MacDonald)/ Easter Elchie (traditional)/ Winston in the 50s
(traditional)/ Mrs. Gordon of Knockspoch (traditional)
Jerry
Holland: Fiddle
Dave MacIsaac: Guitar
Hilda Chaisson: Piano
From
the album MASTER CAPE BRETON FIDDLER
Courtesy of Fiddlesticks Music
Produced by Jerry Holland and Dave MacIsaac
Recorded 1982, Halifax
During
the1970s, the media’s revival of Cape Breton fiddle music
led to THE
JOHN ALLAN CAMERON SHOW, a weekly
national television broadcast. Canadians heard legends Angus
Chisholm and Winston Fitzgerald, alongside an intriguing young
fiddler named Jerry Holland. With his long hair and sideburns,
Jerry looked out of place standing next to his mentors. There,
Jerry served his apprenticeship.
Jerry
was born in Brocton, Massachusetts (near Boston), in 1955 and
came to Cape Breton music through the influence of his father,
Jerry Sr., who was a fine fiddler himself. Boston was a cradle
for Cape Breton Gaelic culture. Jerry began to play at the age
of six and eventually performed at dances on a regular basis
with Bill Lamey and Angus Chisholm. In 1975, Jerry finished
high school and soon headed for Cape Breton, making it his
home. Jerry took immediately to the dance circuit and began to
refine his ideas on piano accompaniments and arrangements. In
1982, together with Hilda Chaisson and Dave MacIsaac, Jerry
heralded Cape Breton fiddling into a new era with the release
of MASTER CAPE BRETON FIDDLER.
This
album instilled in “the music” a gripping and youthful
quality, without altering the “trio” format established by
Winston Fitzgerald more than fourty years earlier. This
success was achieved through a stunning command of chord
substitutions and dynamics and a balanced repertoire of
traditional and newly composed tunes. The album went on to
become the new standard for Cape Breton fiddling.
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4.
The Rankins
O Tha Mo Dhuil Ruit
(traditional)
Raylene
Rankin: Lead vocals, percussion
Cookie Rankin: Background vocals
Heather Rankin: Background vocals
Jimmy Rankin: Background vocals, acoustic guitar, and
percussion
John Morris Rankin: Background vocals, Piano, and percussion
Gordie Sampson: Guitars
Viktor Krauss: Acoustic bass
Scott Ferguson: Drums and percussion
The Rankins: Hand-claps
Arranged
by The Rankin Family
Published by Rankin Family Inc. (SOCAN)
From the album UPROOTED
1998 EMI Music Canada Courtesy of EMI Music Canada
Produced by George Massenburg
Recorded Oct. 1997, Nashville
In
the 1980s, Cape Breton gave birth to an unprecedented movement
of traditional music. By this time, the home-tape network had
been firmly established throughout Cape Breton and North
America. Cape Breton fiddlers had already been traveling to
Boston, Detroit, and Toronto for more than fourty years to
perform at dances. Throughout the 1960s and 70s, prestigious
festivals, such as Newport, Smithsonian Folklife, and
Mariposa, all featured Cape Breton music. The 80s saw Cape
Breton musicians take their place on the world folk circuits.
The
Rankin Family, comprised of five sisters and brothers, paved
the way to innovative styles of music, eventually establishing
a status previously unheard of within the realms of
traditional music. Although they did not officially form The
Rankin Family until the late 1980s, the Rankins had been
performing as a family in their community of Mabou for many
years. With a rich repertoire of songs in Gaelic and English,
and impeccably arranged instrumentals, The Rankins met with
chart-topping success. One of the most impressive elements to
the sound of The Rankins is the voice of Raylene Rankin. Her
stunning and crystal-like voice is unmistakable in the world
of folk music. Today, The Rankins have retired as a band, but
Raylene and her two sisters continue to perform and record as
The Rankin Sisters.
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5.
Daniel Lapp
Sweet Reunion
(Daniel Lapp / SOCAN)
Daniel
Lapp: Fiddle, trumpet, percussion
Kathryn Tickell: Fiddle
Tony McManus: Guitar
Mary MacMaster: Harp
Julian Sutton: Melodeon
Norman Holmes: Flute
From
the album REUNION
Courtesy of Daniel Lapp
Produced by Daniel Lapp
Recorded 2001, Edinburgh, Scotland
St.
James Bay (in northern Canada) was an early destination in the
new world for Celtic music. The Hudson Bay Company was founded
there in 1670, the same year coal was first mined on Cape
Breton Island. Eventually, the music would pass along the
voyager routes, settling in the Métis culture of Manitoba and
eventually, throughout northwestern Canada and Alaska. The fur
trade, lumber camps, gold rushes, and eventually, the building
of the railroad would mold and shape this music all along the
way west. Like Cape Breton, British Columbia would provide an
industry-based social fabric for sustaining traditional
music.
Today,
there is a rich repertoire of indigenous BC fiddle tunes. BC
fiddler Daniel Lapp collected many of these tunes in 1990. One
year later, he performed these rare tunes at the University
College, Cork in Ireland, during the Fiddlesticks Festival. It
was a long way home for this music. This year, Daniel traveled
to Edinburgh to record his new album. There, he was reunited
with piper and fiddler Kathryn Tickell for the first time
since the 1989 Shetland Folk Festival. Daniel, who is also a
trumpet player, is known today as one of Canada’s finest
fiddlers and performs regularly with his band Lappelectro, a
west-coast based “jazz electronica” quartet. He also
performs in Bowfire, an ensemble of eleven diverse fiddlers.
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6.
The Barra MacNeils
Kantara to El Arish
(traditional)/ Hock hey Johnny Lad (traditional)/ Doug MacPhee’sStrathspey
(J. Campbell)/ Hamish the Carpenter (traditional)/ Margaree
Reel (traditional)/ (Arranged by Sheumas, Kyle, Stewart, and
Lucy MacNeil / SOCAN)
Kyle
MacNeil: Fiddle
Lucy MacNeil: Fiddle
Carl MacKenzie: Fiddle
Hector MacKenzie: Fiddle
Hughie Campbell: Fiddle
Michael Anthony MacLean: Fiddle
Sheumas MacNeil: Piano
From
the album THE CHRISTMAS ALBUM
Courtesy of The Barra MacNeils
Produced by Declan O’Doherty
Recorded 1999, Irish Cove, Cape Breton
Directly
across from the former summer home of Alexander Graham Belle
on Baddeck Bay, lays the community of Washabuck. There, in the
shadow of this great inventor, fiddler Vincent MacLean, a
friend of Belle’s, raised a family of twelve, several of
whom invented highly personal styles of fiddle playing. Most
famous was Joe MacLean, who recorded duets with Bill Lamey in
the 1940s. Joe went on to have a prolific recording career,
and his music is now available on the Rounder Records label.
His brother, Michael Anthony, is featured on this track.
Although now in his eighties, Michael Anthony still plays the
fiddle with a remarkable youthful quality. His sister,
Theresa, recorded two albums for Rounder Records in recent
years.
Another
prestigious musical family from Washabuck is the MacKenzie
family. Carl MacKenzie has recorded several albums since his
own 1970s Rounder Records release. His brother, Hector, is
also a noted fiddler and composer. Another brother, Charlie,
was a well-known singer. Their sister, Jean, raised her own
musical family, The
Barra
MacNeils. During the early 1980s, The Barras brought east
coast music to a wider audience. The foundation of the sound
of The Barras is the Washabuck accent of fiddlers Kyle and
Lucy MacNeil. For a 1999 Christmas album, The Barras brought
together Washabuck’s fiddlers for this tribute to an
unmistakable accent within the mosaic of Cape Breton music.
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7.
Andre Marchand, Lisa Ornstein and Normon Miron
Le batteux (traditional)/
Le Petit cheval rouge (traditional)
Andre
Marchand: Feet
Lisa Ornstein: Fiddle
Normand Miron: Harmonica
From
the album LE BRUIT COURT DANS LA VILLE
Courtesy of Mille-Pattes Productions
Produced by Andre Marchand
Recorded 1995, Quebec
Amongst
the first Irish and Scots to arrive in Quebec were servants en
route to Virginia, who were captured by French warships.
During the famous Plains of Abraham (1759), the battlefield
included landless Irish and dispossessed Scots.
Throughout
the 19th Century, the Irish became the most numerous Anglo-
immigrants in lower Canada. In Quebec, there were Irish who
developed distinct ethnic identities, yet most intermarried
with French people and adopted the French language. It was a
cultural exchange that would have a profound effect upon
traditional music in that province. One of the richest fiddle
regions in Quebec surrounds the town of Joliette, north of
Montreal. In this French speaking district, Irish music
heroes, such as Michael Coleman and James Morrison, are
admired alongside Joseph Allard and Jean Carignan, heroes of
the Québécois tradition. It was this region that gave birth
to La Bottine Souriante. Andre Marchand, Lisa Ornstein, and
Normand Miron were all members of La Bottine Souriante (Andre,
a founding member), and today, they play as a trio. Their
sound harkens back to those early La Bottine days. The two
reels on this track might well have started their lives as
Irish reels. The irregular measure structure betrays French
adaptation. It should come as no surprise that in recent
years, these two reels eventually found their way to Galway on
the west coast of Ireland. Traditional music often finds its
way back home.
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8.
Margaret Bennett
Oran Chaluim Sgaire
(traditional) - Arranged by
Martyn Bennett
Margaret
Bennett: Vocals
Hamish Napier: Accordion and flute
Findlay Napier: Guitar and vocals
Gillian Frame: Fiddle and vocals
Martyn Bennett: Fiddle, viola, flute, whistle, and vocals
(bass)
From
the album IN THE SUNNY LONG AGO
Courtsey of Footstompin’ Records
Produced by Martyn Bennett
Recorded 2000, Isle of Mull, Scotland
Scottish singer and folklorist Margaret Bennett has unique
connections with Canadian folk history. She authored Oatmeal
and the Catechism: Scottish Gaelic Settlers in Quebec,
(McGill- Queen’s University Press) and The Last Stronghold:
Scottish Gaelic Traditions of Newfoundland (Breakwater Books),
which are two important documentaries on isolated Gaelic
cultures. The latter focuses on the Codroy Valley of
Newfoundland and its unique Gaelic customs. The Codroy Valley
is located on the extreme southwestern corner of the province,
in near proximity to Cape Breton. From 1825 - 1845, the valley
was settled by Scottish and Irish people who had travelled to
Cape Breton first looking for a new home. The scarcity of land
in Cape Breton led them across the water to this fertile
valley.
For
THE LAST STRONGHOLD, Margaret collected numerous recordings of
rare Gaelic songs, along with fiddle and pipe music. Margaret
was brought up on the Isle of Skye, moved to the Shetland
Islands, and eventually emigrated to Newfoundland in 1968.
There, Margaret studied at Memorial University in St. John’s,
which led to her extensive field work on Gaelic traditions in
that province. Her new album is a tribute to the countless
kitchen sessions she experianced in Newfoundland.
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9.
Joe Derrane, Frankie Gavin and Brian McGrath
Peter Feeney’s
Dream (Joe Derrane)/ The Flower of the Flock
(traditional)
Joe
Derrane: Button Accordion
Frankie Gavin: Fiddle
Brian McGrath: Piano
From
the album IRELAND’S HARVEST
Courtesy of Mapleshade Records
Produced by Paul MacDonald
Recorded Oct. 2001, Maryland, USA
The
streets of Chicago would seem an unlikely place for the
largest archival project in the history of Irish music. Yet,
near the end of the 1800s, flute player and Chicago police
chief Francis O’Neill collected and compiled several volumes
of Irish dance music. As O’Neill once remarked, “The time
was opportune then and will never occur again.” Chicago was
then home to musicians from all the counties of Ireland and
host to a stream of visiting musicians. An excellent biography
of O’Neill’s extraordinary life is entitled A Harvest
Saved (Ossian) by Nicholas Carolan. The legacy of O’Neill’s
work can be heard throughout the first 78RPM recordings
released in America. Michael Coleman, James Morrison, and The
Flanagan Brothers were all prolific recording artists during
this period, and O’Neill received credit as the source of
much of their repertoire. The impact of the 78RPMs reached
around the world. When Joe Derrane prepared for his first
78RPM recording sessions in 1947, he turned to O’Neill’s
Collection. Thirty years later, on a visit to New York City,
Frankie Gavin, a young Galway fiddler, heard these discs for
the first time. He found a new hero. Frankie eventually
recorded many of Joe’s settings with his band DeDannen. In
1993, Joe returned to “the music” after a hiatus of over
twenty-five years. Again, he turned to O’Neill’s
Collection to learn the current repertoire. It has been a new
career for Joe since returning to “the music” with three
albums and concerts around the world. Joe and Frankie first
played together at the 1997 Tondor Festival. Last year, Joe
and Frankie recorded IRELAND’S HARVEST as a tribute to the
great masters from “The Golden Age of Irish Music in
America.”
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10.
Dave MacIsaac with Mary Jessie MacDonald
Johnny Galbraith
(traditional)/ The Tweeddale Club (traditional)/ Miss Campbell
of Monzie (traditional)/ The Merry Lads of Ayr (traditional)/
The Marquis of Queensbury (traditional)
Dave
MacIsaac: Guitar
Mary Jessie MacDonald: Piano
From the album FROM THE ARCHIVES
Courtesy of Dave MacIsaac
Produced by Dave MacIsaac
Recorded 1999, Halifax, N.S.
During
the 1940s, a young piano player named Mary Jessie MacDonald
often sat in the balcony of the Strand Theater in New
Waterford, Cape Breton. There, she would listen to The Gibb
Whitney Orchestra, a popular Sydney jazz band. Mary Jessie was
drawn to the sound of the acoustic bass. The bass player, “Wooden
Allan” MacDonald, would have a profound effect on this young
piano player and her style of piano accompaniment for
traditional music. She introduced walking bass lines to Cape
Breton music. In the early 50s, when Mary Jessie moved to
Boston, she
would
carry that style with her.Mary Jessie became the “fiddler’s
choice” for piano accompaniment. There, she would make
numerous home-recordings. Mary Jessie’s left-hand bass lines
distinguished her from the other piano players.
In
Halifax of the 1970s, guitarist Dave MacIsaac gleaned these
bass lines from his archives of home recordings of Winston
Fitzgerald, Angus Chisholm, and Joe MacLean. Dave also
emulated Mary Jessie’s syncopated rhythms and seamless
marriage of harmony and melody. Through this adaptation, Dave
MacIsaac would become an innovative pioneer of the Celtic
guitar. Dave and Mary Jessie would eventually perform together
on many occasions, including Expo ’86 in Vancouver. In 1997,
he recorded, along with Mary Jessie, on Natalie MacMaster’s
album, MY ROOTS ARE SHOWING. Two years later, Dave recorded
with Mary Jessie, as his accompanist, on his latest album,
FROM THE ARCHIVES.
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11.
Joe Peter MacLean
Òran Mór MhicLeòid
(traditional)
Joe
Peter MacLean: Fiddle, Gaelic vocals
John MacLean: Highland pipes
Recorded
for THE COLOURS OF CAPE BRETON
Courtesy of Joe Peter MacLean
Produced by Paul MacDonald
Recorded 2002, North River, N.S.
Along
the shores of the Bras d’Or Lakes of Cape Breton, lay the
communities of Boisdale, Beaver Cove, and Christmas Island.
During the 19th Century, these communities all had “rear
lands” that were home to an isolated Gaelic culture. These
communities were known as “rear of Boisdale,” “rear of
Beaver Cove,” and “rear of Christmas Island.” There,
before the age of the railway, the settlers braved the
harshest of winters. Yet, they responded to their hardships
with poetry, Gaelic songs, fiddle music, and pipe music.
However, the coming of the railroad along the Bras d'Or Lakes
was the beginning of the depopulation of the rear lands. Many
residents moved inland to work closer to the railroad. Coal
and Steel industries also attracted people away from all the
isolated communities. Today, all that remains are rock piles
and old apple trees, yet the music and Gaelic songs have
adapted to the new centuries.
Joe
Peter MacLean was raised in McAdam’s Lake, near the rear of
Bosidale, in a Gaelic speaking family. Today, he is one of the
few remaining Gaelic speaking fiddlers on the entire island of
Cape Breton. He is recognized in Scotland and throughout the
Celtic world for his unique talents. A Gaelic singer as well,
Joe carries on the age-old tradition of community musician and
performs on a regular basis throughout the Christmas Island
district and throughout Cape Breton. On this recording, Joe
blends the three traditions from his community heritage:
Gaelic song, the fiddle, and the pipes.
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12.
Fine Friday
Cold Blow (traditional)
(arranged by Fine Friday)
Kris
Drever: Vocals and guitar
Anna-Wendy Stevenson: Fiddle
Nuala Kennedy: Flute and vocals
From
the album GONE DANCING
Courtesy of Footstompin’ Records
Produced by Ian Carr
Recorded 2002, Penicuik, Scotland
Edinburgh
of the mid-18th Century gave birth to an intellectual and
artistic flowering that is often referred to as the “Scottish
Enlightenment.” Classical music and traditional music
thrived in Edinburgh during this period, and many composers
were involved in both realms of music. In the Scottish
Highlands, this period was also known as the “Golden Age of
Fiddle Music” Edinburgh would play an important role in the
publishing of traditional music from the Highlands. Many of
the great collections were published there. With the coming of
Irish immigrants, Edinburgh would become one of the important
crossroads for musicians throughout the British Isles. Today,
Edinburgh still hosts a vibrant sub-culture of traditional
music. There, paths cross for musicians from Scotland, Cape
Breton, Shetland, Orkney, Ireland, and many parts of Europe.
The
Edinburgh night-life consists of an ever-changing lineup of
Celtic bands, duos, and trios. In fact, many of Edinburgh’s
musicians play in several bands. This intermingling is true of
Fine Friday. This Edinburgh-based trio of session musicians
includes singer and guitarist Kris Drever, who was born in
Orkney, Scotland. Flute player Nuala Kennedy is originally
from Dundalk, Co. Louth, Ireland. In 1995, Nuala moved to
Edinburgh as a student and has been a regular session player
since that time. Edinburgh born fiddler Anna-Wendy Stevenson
studied classical music and toured in America before returning
to Edinburgh and to traditional music.
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13.
Shawn MacDonald
The Weeping Birches (J.S.
Skinner)
Shawn
MacDonald: Fiddle
Mary Jessie MacDonald: Piano
Recorded
for THE COLOURS OF CAPE BRETON
Courtesy of Shawn MacDonald
Produced by Paul MacDonald
Recorded 2002, Lingan, Cape Breton
The
Scottish composer James Scott Skinner remains a controversial
figure in the history of Scottish fiddle music. This fiddler
rose to fame in the late 19th Century, bridging a gap between
traditional and classical music. Perhaps this controversy has
been due in part to the rather large opinion Skinner held of
himself. Indeed, Skinner deplored ancient trademarks, such as
the “doodle,” a bowing grace note called a “cut” in
Cape Breton. All arguments aside, Skinner’s music stands on
its own. Seventy-five years after his death, Skinner’s music
has made a home alongside the traditional repertoire. In Cape
Breton, countless Skinner tunes are part of the daily
repertoire of Cape Breton fiddlers and are played in front
parlors, on dance floors, and in concert halls.
Shawn
MacDonald is a unique fiddler in the Cape Breton tradition. As
a young boy in the early 1980s, Shawn traveled to Scotland to
study with Tom Anderson at Sterling University. There, he
would learn much of the Aberdeen repertoire, which, of course,
included Skinner’s music. Shawn also studied with Aly Bain.
Forging his own unique style, Shawn was drawn to the great
Scottish tradition of pastoral airs. On this recording, Shawn
performs Skinner’s air, “The Weeping Birches.” This air
was popular during the 1940s and 50s with Winston Fitzgerald
and Angus Chisholm.
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14.
Colin Watson
Ged A Sheòl Mi Air M’Aineol
(traditional)
Colin
Watson: Gaelic vocals
Addtional milling singers include:
Mary Jane Lamond, Maxie MacNeil,
Jim Watson, Hector MacNeil, Frances
MacEachen, Peter MacLean, Jeff
MacDonald, Joe Peter MacLean, Beth
MacNeil, Allan MacLeod, Jamie
MacNeil, Rod C. MacNeil, Seamus
MacNeil, and Angus MacLeod.
From
the album CÒMHLA CRUINN (GATHERED TOGETHER)
Courtesy of Féis an Eilein
Produced by Wendy Bergfeldt
Recorded April 2002, Christmas Island
In
the early 1950s, Cape Breton Gaelic singing was a curiosity to
an influential group of folklorists in New York City. This
tight-knit group of folklorists included Moe Asche, Sidney
Robertson Cowell, Diane Hamilton, and Ralph Rinzler. Cowell
and millionaire-folklorist Hamilton independently came to Cape
Breton during the summer of 1953 to conduct field recordings,
and each
published
their recordings in 1955. In 1964, after reviewing the work of
both Hamilton and Cowelle, folklorist Ralph Rinzler followed
in the footsteps of his predecessors and recorded many of the
same Gaelic singers.
Rinzler
returned in 1966, and eventually, he compiled more than fourty
audio reels of traditional Gaelic music. All of these
important recordings mark a period of transition for milling
songs within the Gaelic tradition. By the 1950s, the role of
milling frolics in the community already began to change from
the necessary task of shrinking wool to an evening’s
entertainment for the community and for tourists.
The
North Shore Gaelic Singers grew out of this period, and they
gave much inspiration to Gaelic singers and communities
throughout the island. One of these communities is Christmas
Island, which hosts Féis an Eilein (Festival of the Island),
an annual program of workshops and concerts. This year, they
released an album of Gaelic songs entitled CÒMHLA CRUINN
(GATHERED TOGETHER).
The lead singer here, Colin Watson, is the youngest singer on
the recording, yet he was raised with Gaelic as his first
language. He is also a member of a new Cape Breton group
called Triskele.
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15.
CARLOS NUNEZ
Jigs and Bulls (C.
Nunez)
Carlos
Nunez: Gaitae and bagpipes
Donal Lunny: Bodhran and bouzouki
Juan Manuel Cañizares: Flamacoe guitar
Carles Benavent: Bass and percussion
From
the album OS AMORES LIBRES
Courtesy of BMG Canada
Produced by Donal Lunny
Recorded 2000, Dublin, Ireland
Galicia
and Asturies, located in the highland regions of Spain, host a
mysterious traditional music, a blend of ancient Celtic
repertoire with flamenco rhythms. There are also elements of
Andalusian music (from the north of Morocco) amongst the many
connections of this music. During Franco’s rule of Spain
(1939 - 1975), flamenco traditions overshadowed northern
traditions, and it was not until the 1970s that Celtic-based
traditions came to light. As piper Carlos
Nunez
said, “In Galicia, our Celtic connections came out, and we
looked north.” He also looked west. Carlos found that the
music followed the immigration routes to places such as
Venezuela and Cuba, where there is Galician pipe music today.
His research into traditional music also took him to North
Africa. Reconstructing the Galician piping tradition, Carlos
took inspiration from Scottish and Irish pipers.
Carlos
was thirteen years old when The Chieftains came to his village
to play. He pointed out the similarities between the Galician
and the Irish music to piper Paddy Maloney. Eventually, Carlos
became a guest member of The Chieftains, with whom he has
toured the world. Today, his music has taken its place within
the Celtic realm and on the world stage. Carlos recently
recorded on Sharon Shannon’s album THE DIAMOND MOUNTAIN
SESSIONS.On his latest album, Carlos involved numerous Irish
musicians, including Donal Lunny and Frankie Gavin. OS AMORES
LIBRES includes more than eighty-one guest musicians and
unravels the mysteries of Galician music and its unique
connections to a variety of world music.
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16.
John MacLean
Hey Johnny Strathspey
(traditional)/ Hey Johnny Reel (traditional)/ Mary Jane Currie’s
Reel (traditional)/ The Bird’s Nest (traditional pipe
setting)
John
MacLean: Highland pipes
Recorded for THE COLOURS OF CAPE BRETON
Courtesy of John MacLean
Produced by Paul MacDonald
Recorded 2002, North River, N.S.
One
of the great strongholds of pipe music during the 18th Century
was the Scottish island of South Uist in the Outer Hebrides.
Many of the immigrants from South Uist to Cape Breton settled
in the communities of East Bay, Frencvale, McAdam’s Lake,
and Boisdale. There, they nurtured strong piping traditions
well into the last century. A fire-tower watchman from this
district, who worked throughout the 1930s and 40s, remarked
that he could often hear pipe music in all directions.
Actually, in this district, the pipes were the featured
instrument for step-dancing and set- dancing.
One
of the most notable piping families of that era was the Currie
family. Brothers Paddy and Alex Currie were outstanding pipers
in their day. They played for dancers throughout their long
careers. Alex Currie, one of Cape Breton’s great
improvisers, never gave up the old-time pipe style learned as
a young boy. He would become a hero to the old-time piping
revival and gave his last performance during the 1997 Celtic
Colours festival. Alex’s nephew, John MacLean, continues
this tradition. His father was Johnny MacLean, another noted
fiddler from Washabuck. Johnny “Washabuck” hosted numerous
house parties in his Toronto home during the 1960s. There,
young John met the likes of Winston Fitzgerald, Johnny Wilmot,
and Bill Lamey. Returning to Cape Breton in the early
eighties, John made visits to Alex’s home in Frenchvale,
adopting much of his repertoire. Today, John is recognized as
one of the finest exponents of old-time bagpipe music.
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17.
Cucanandy
The Wounded
Hoosier (traditional)
Jasan
Cade: Fiddle
Mike Casey: Flute, dulcimer, and guitar
Malke Rosenfeld: Flute
From
the album HE DIDN’T DANCE
Courtesy of Cucanandy
Produced by Pete Sutherland
Recorded 1999, Charlotte, Vermont
Much
of what is known today as “old-time” American music began
its life with the Irish and Scottish immigrants who took
routes in the southern Appalachian Mountains throughout the
early 1800s. The music did not remain trapped in the
mountains. Rather, the changing forces of politics and the
labor movement would ensure a life stream for old-time music.
The American Civil War played a great role in dispersing this
music throughout North America. For example, one Confederate
company alone, from the Barksdale’s Mississippians, was
comprised of ninety men, seventy-five of whom were fiddlers.
Eventually, old-time fiddle music became culturally embedded
in nearly every state of America. The traditional music
landscape of America would become a kaleidoscope of regional
styles.
A
few old-time tunes even filtered their way up to Cape Breton
during the early part of the last century. Today, even though
the original melodies have been transformed many times over,
strains of the early fiddle and bagpipe music can still be
heard throughout the current American old-time repertoire. “The
Wounded Hoosier” is a fine example. Cucanandy learned this
air from a 1940 acetate disc of fiddler Marcus Martin
(1881-1974), who lived in North Carolina. On this recording,
Cucanandy brings this plaintiff air back home through a
distinctively Celtic interpretation of early American
heritage. Based in North Carolina, Cucanandy specializes in
Celtic music and dance from Ireland, Canada, Scotland, and the
American South.
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18.
The Alison Brown Quartet
Lorelei (Alison
Brown)
Alison
Brown: Banjo and guitar
John R. Burr: Piano and keyboards
Garry West: Bass
Kendrick Freeman: Drums
From
the album REPLAY
Courtesy of Compass Records
Produced by Gary West
Recorded 2000, Nashville
Eventually,
“old-time” music converged on large cities in the American
heartland. String bands were firmly entrenched by the early
1920s, an era that saw the birth of live radio broadcasts.
Nashville, Tennessee, of course, is considered the birthplace
of country music, and there, the GRAND OLE OPRY featured
America’s early string bands. The expansion of the recording
industry during the 1920s brought this music to a national
audience. From the 1927 BRISTOL SESSIONS, a collection of more
than seventy-six 78RPM sides, the Victor Recording Company
would fulfill the public’s fascination with this new genre
of music. In 1939, mandolin player Bill Monroe and his Blue
Grass Boys joined the Grand Ole Opry.
The
style known today as “bluegrass” was born. Country music
would go its own way. Determined to carve out a sound of his
own, Monroe gave new life to great old music. The banjo, which
had its meager beginnings as a “gourd” type instrument
brought to America from Africa, became the foundation of the
“high lonesome sound.” Nashville-based banjo player Alison
Brown is at the forefront of contemporary bluegrass music. For
the banjo, Alison has championed a “mellow” sound and has
introduced the banjo to a much wider audience through her
genre-bending excursions. Alison began playing the banjo at
age ten, and, as a teenager in San Diego, performed as a
member of several bluegrass bands. She toured as a member of
the Alison Krauss Band before founding the Alison Brown
Quartet in 1993.
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19.
Sharon Shannon with Natalie MacMaster
Union Street Session (Paul
Cranford / SOCAN)/ The Primrose Lass (traditional)/ The Gravel
Walk (traditional)
Sharon
Shannon: Button accordion
Mary Shannon: Mandolin
Natalie MacMaster: Fiddle
Dounough Hennessy: Guitar
Trevor Hutchinson: Bass
Mathew Foulds: Congas
Recorded
for THE COLOURS OF CAPE BRETON
Courtsey of The Daisy Label
Produced by Paul MacDonald
Recorded October 1997, Point Aconi, Cape Breton
The
great Donegal fiddler John Doherty once said, “There is only
a paper wall between Irish and Scottish music.” The same can
be said of Irish and Cape Breton music. This close
relationship in music was the case in 1997, when fiddler
Natalie MacMaster joined Sharon Shannon for a Celtic Colours
festival performance and for this rare recording. They had met
several years before in Washington, D.C., and their paths had
crossed just a few other times in their careers. Yet, when
they got together for this recording, there was an instant
rapport. They cut two tracks that afternoon, “The Magic Foot”
and “Union Street Session.” “The Magic Foot” was
released on the 1998 Celtic Colours compilation and on a
compilation of Sharon’s music, THE BEST OF SHARON SHANNON.
Paul
Cranford composed “Union Street Session” for fiddler Kyle
MacNeil of the Barra MacNeils. Sharon had learned the tune
previously that year from Natalie, who was visiting Galway
during Easter. On that visit, Sharon’s brother, Gary, played
the second reel on the flute. “The Gravel Walk” is a tune
shared by both traditions and Natalie recorded it on her last
CD, LIVE. Sharon played “Union Street” as her opening
number during the 1997 Celtic Colours festival, which was her
first visit to Cape Breton. It was the beginning of a week of
magic. The reel immediately became the most popular tune of
the week during the after-hours sessions until it was
eventually replaced by “The MagicFoot.”
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**
Cape Breton guitarist and producer Paul MacDonald has
produced five previously released Celtic Colours compilations.
His numerous recording projects include fully annotated
reissues and contemporary releases of Cape Breton, Irish,
Scottish, and Appalachian traditional music.
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