I admit it. Me and The Fretless haven't quite met, and I have honestly tried. And I'm a bit mystified about it... Let me make this clear: I have nothing but the highest respect for the Canadian modern folk string quartet. They are excellent musicians and they have deserved their nearly iconic reputation and the … Continue reading The Fretless: Glasswing
Tag: Canada
A triple dose of Shane Cook: talk about a blazin’ fiddle, eh?
Canada's fiddle wizard Shane Cook's music has kept me going these past couple of weeks when the dying Finnish winter first turned into grey slush, followed by winter's comebacj (of course) and then more slush, with the sun nowhere in sight. The gloomy scenes outdoors have been successfully countered by the Cook magic! If you … Continue reading A triple dose of Shane Cook: talk about a blazin’ fiddle, eh?
In case you didn’t know: your Xmas needs Natalie MacMaster & Donnell Leahy
As I checked back on my past Xmastime writings, I realized I had not commented on these Canadian fiddle greats' A Celtic Family Christmas, although I had listened to it and liked it a lot. So now that I bumped into the albums extended 2020 edition, I put it on and liked it even better … Continue reading In case you didn’t know: your Xmas needs Natalie MacMaster & Donnell Leahy
Genticorum: Au coeur de l’aube
The magnificent Quebec trio of Yann Falquet, Pascal Gemme and Nicholas Williams (who replaced Alexandre de Grosbois-Garand a while back) have come up with an album that rocketed into the #1 position in my Genticorum albums ranking.Not only does Au coeur de l'aube (At dawn) have beautiful cover art, the music itself is warm and … Continue reading Genticorum: Au coeur de l’aube
Need music for a Celtic & Folk Xmas? Here’s my recommendations
The snow fell even here in the south of Finland over a week ago and, contrary to forecasts then, it has stayed, with more falling almost daily. It’s looking downright Christmasy out there and checking the calendar proved it - it’s time to take out Ye Olde (well not that old, really) Xmas music! I … Continue reading Need music for a Celtic & Folk Xmas? Here’s my recommendations
Listening Diary for June 6-12, 2022: Natalie MacMaster, Mishra, James Harper, the olllam, Eabhal
Master fiddlers are one of my favorite things in this world and Natalie MacMaster 🇨🇦 is one of the greatest. I love the energy in her playing; so much light and joy there. Her 2019 album Sketches was just the right soundtrack for a leisurly walk in the sunny and warm Finnish Saturday. I've never … Continue reading Listening Diary for June 6-12, 2022: Natalie MacMaster, Mishra, James Harper, the olllam, Eabhal
Album Review / Bèolach: All Hands
As a non-professional music blogger, I sometimes simply miss a new release and notice it only after some time has passed. So it was with this one; All Hands was released in late 2019 but I got up to speed with it only a couple of weeks ago. Thankfully, my tardiness takes nothing away from … Continue reading Album Review / Bèolach: All Hands
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