Tag Archives: Celtic music

Battlefield Band’s Time & Tide

One of the longest running Scottish folk bands, Battlefield Band celebrates three decades of music touring and recording. Time & Tide, their latest album, again sees a change in the lineup with the departures of Karine Polward and John McCusker. … Continue reading

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Various artists’ Evelyn: Music from the Motion Picture

Soundtrack albums are an aural companion to the visual aspect of a movie; once one has seen the movie then a reasoned judgement may be reached as to the effectiveness of the soundtrack within the context of the film itself. … Continue reading

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Celtic Fiddle Festival’s Play On, Drones & Bellows/Dragseth Duo’s Hiimstoun, Smoky Finish’s Tune the Speed, various artists’ The Independence Suite, and various artists’ A Highland Journey in Music

Alistair Brown wrote this review. Play On is the fourth release from a group of musicians who had no real intention of continuing as such beyond a one-off concert series in 1993. The project featured three of the Celtic world’s … Continue reading

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Various artists’ Gaelic Voices

Patrick O’Donnell wrote this review. The Gaelic languages are, to my ears, the most beautiful in the world. I don’t think any of the Romance languages can hold a candle to the poetry, grace and strength contained in a single … Continue reading

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An omnibus review of books about music and musicians: Bagpipers, Deadheads, Joni Mitchell, Gilbert and Sullivan, and more

Anthony Baines’s Bagpipes (Pitt River Museum, Oxford University, 1995) Kevin McManus’s Ceilis, Jigs & Ballads: Irish Music in Liverpool (Liverpool Institute of Popular Music, 1994) Tomás Ó Canain’s Traditional Music in Ireland (Ossian Publications, 1993) Mairéad Sullivan’s Celtic Women in … Continue reading

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Poor Man’s Fortune’s Blow Hard, Hamish Moore’s Dannsa’ Air An Drochaid, and The Mollys’ Tidings of Comfort and Joy

Some of the best Celtic music out there is that released by the bands directly – as are two of the three recordings under consideration here. They might be somewhat difficult to locate, but they’re worth your time to find! … Continue reading

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Kathryn Tickell’s The Kathryn Tickell Band, and Borderlands

Kathryn Tickell has made a name for herself as well as working tirelessly to promote her instruments, the Northumbrian smallpipes. Coming from a family of musicians, she has extended her work into academia through her position at Newcastle University as … Continue reading

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Kathryn Tickell’s The Gathering

Kathryn Tickell, Northumbrian piper and fiddler. Surely you don’t need to known anything else in order to tell Stephanie at Musikfolk that you want this CD, but I suppose you’ll make me tell the tale of this CD anyway. Tickell’s … Continue reading

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Kathryn Tickell & Ensemble Mystical’s Ensemble Mystical

Naomi de Bruyn wrote this review. I was looking forward to reviewing this CD with an anticipation I usually reserve for live gigs. The reason – a carnyx is actually played on it! And I’ve wanted to hear this elusive … Continue reading

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Kenny Mathiesen’s Celtic Music: Third Ear: The Essential Listening Companion, and June Skinner Sawyers’s Celtic Music: A Complete Guide

I was going to wait ’til Green Man had received its review copy of the forthcoming Rough Guide to Irish Music. But I decided that comparing these two books, which cover all Celtic music, and that book, which will cover … Continue reading

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