Xabi Aburruzaga "Bost"
Own Label, 2019
Three years after his previous album KeltiK,[61] this Basque button-box master has put together a collection of his own compositions - with a little help from his friends - which expresses his musical journey through Ireland, Scotland, Quebec, Palestine and elsewhere. There are many influences here, from modern jazz to ancient Middle Eastern traditions, but the result is mainly Basque, and mainly brilliant.
Starting with a Quebec sound, jaw harp and fiddle, foot percussion, Reel Québécois nevertheless gets its character from Xabi's home on the banks of the Bilbao estuary. The lightning waltz Hauspoaren Infernutik is a typical dance showpiece on the trikitixa, the flexible Basque accordion which drives most tracks here. With virtuoso performances on percussion, fiddle, and the txistu or Basque three-hole pipe, Bost presents the cream of contemporary folk from this remote corner of the Bay of Biscay. Songs about love and lamentation, slow and fast dances, the sounds of flamenco and fandango: every piece brings something new. Bost means "five" in the Basque language: Aburruzaga's fifth album, and the title tune (track 5) in 5/4 with a nod to Brubeck but a very natural melody for northern Spain. Meigas steps across to Asturias, I think, a song more akin to the fiestas and muñeiras of Asturia and Galicia, with guest piper Anxo Lorenzo. Atxarre adds Irish pipes and Swedish nyckelharpa to the Basque clarinet and massive txalaparta.
So much variety, and we're only half way! A funky waltz, a Palestinian protest polka, a hymn to fatherhood, the quintessentially Basque 88ko Trapelketa,and more: the second half of Bost is as varied as the first. Songs and tunes, dances and airs continue to amaze with their skill and strangeness. Their slightly alien character is reinforced by the album artwork, at once earthy and mystical, and by the very particular Basque lyrics - although full translations in Spanish, French and English are provided in a separate booklet, so no excuses for not understanding these songs! Bost is very different from what most of us are used to, but also very familiar: I can almost hear Blair Douglas singing the final cowboy Cajun Zortzi Jauzi!
© Alex Monaghan
Penny Pascal "Grand Voyager"
GO Danish Folk, 2019
An unusual release in many ways, Grand Voyager (who names their debut album after an SUV?) is only available as a digital download or stream: there are no CDs or other physical media. These four established Danish and Swedish folk musicians have cut loose with a fabulously unscripted recording, new music and improvisations, most of which is also available on YouTube so check that out. Two fiddles, cittern and bass create a wild and surprising soundscape, from the savage Wreck with its screeching discords and thunderous bottom line, to the rippling oriental Fantasten.
There is dance music in the shape of the jig Daggry and the oldtimey reel Thrill of the Hunt. There are cinematic mood pieces such as the gentle Kite Flyer and the driving Hopped the Train to Hudson. The core of Penny Pascal's music is Scandinavian, but there's more than a hint of eastern Europe, and quite a few borrowings from North America. The drama is increased by some extreme dynamics, delicate to deafening, and by the occasional vocals which seem almost incidental except on the redneck rock anthem Murky Deep. This is the first spontaneous outpouring from Penny Pascal, so who knows what else they have bottled up in their tortured musical souls? Wrap your mind around Grand Voyager, and watch this space for more surprises from this creative quartet.
© Alex Monaghan
Alanna Jenish "Reflections"
Own Label, 2019
In Reflections this young fiddler and multi-instrumentalist from Ontario has created a wonderful tribute and memorial to her sister Colleen, lost at a tragically young age, as well as a damn fine debut album. Alanna Jenish plays mainly Irish, with a bit of Scottish and a good helping of Canadian originals including a couple of her own tasty tunes. Her deftly articulated fiddling is augmented by banjo, mandolin, guitars and piano - not to mention backing vocals on the two songs here. This CD is an even split between dance music and slower pieces. The opening set of popular jigs jauntily played, a pair of old Irish reels topped off by Gordon MacLean's Mortgage Burn, and the joyous bluegrass breakdown Eighth of February bring us to the first vocal number, Down the Road by Mary McCaslin, beautifully delivered by Brant Garret with a strong country arrangement.
Horizon Lines features a traditional jig jointly arranged with Colleen as a fiddle and piano duet, followed by one of Alanna's pieces which deserves to be widely played. The moving air When I Think of You leads into a version of Margaret's Waltz which has changed shape on its travels from Shetland. Whispers of the North brings back that Canadian country sound, strongly sung by Garret again, and compellingly backed by Alanna and her friends Jake Lauzon and Mika McCairley on guitars and piano. The Birds combines an old air with one of Brian Pickell's great oldtime fiddle compositions. The delicate and graceful Benny and Bea's Waltz is another opportunity for Alanna's fiddle to shine, delightful light touches and sweet tone, before the final stomping duo of Leslie's March and Liz Carroll's cheeky reel Leading Role with another of Alanna and Colleen's arrangements. This is a very special recording for all involved, and proceeds will be going to mental health charities, but it's also an extremely enjoyable selection of great music from some names I hope to see more of in the future.
© Alex Monaghan
Kevin Burke "Sligo Made"
Loftus Music, 2019
Kevin Burke has done it all, from the Bothy Band to solo stardom.[67]
Born a Londoner, his Sligo roots have taken him all over the world, and now he's recorded an album back in his parents' home county. Burke's fiddle leads most tracks here, but he's joined by many well-known Irish musicians with Sligo connections for duets, ensemble pieces, and the finest of traditional accompaniment. The material on Sligo Made is not the wall-to-wall reels you might expect from Sligo - far from it in fact! Barely three and a half sets of reels feature here, alongside jigs, hornpipes, polkas, slides, and two American showpieces paying homage to Kevin's adopted home.
John Carty adds his fiddle to two great Bothy Band jigs, Morrison's and The Pipe on the Hob, and to the lyrical Fahy's Hornpipe which leads into a great twin-fiddle version of The Foxhunter's Reel. Piper Leonard Barry joins Kevin for two sets of slides, which as Kevin will tell you himself are based on four units of jig. John Joe Kelly and Michael Holmes provide perfect bodhrán and bouzouki accompaniment throughout, while Brian McDonagh duets on bouzouki for the final set of jigs. Jesusita en Chihuahua and John McGann's dreamy waltz Canyon Moonrise get the stateside sound of Seamie O'Dowd's guitar and Steve Wickham's fiddle. Owen Davey's Reel and Patsy Sean Nancy's were brought to the party by John Carty - the first one is new to me, the second is a great reel played in two octaves here. Barry's pipes are in action again for three fine reels, ending with The Devils of Dublin, before Burke and McDonagh bring proceedings to an end with The Gallowglass and the well-known Coach Road to Sligo: full circle indeed, and a fitting tribute to all the musicians who have made Sligo music the worldwide phenomenon it is today.
© Alex Monaghan
Jenna Reid "Working Hands"
Own Label, 2019
A fifth album, and a bit of a departure for Jenna Reid: Shetland's fiddle diva has become recognised as a composer of great tunes, winning a major award at the end of 2019, and has extended her repertoire to include more contemporary styles, although still in keeping with Shetland and Scottish traditions. The combination of her cool jazzy Metronome Man with the ancient Shetland jig Maggie o' Ham shows how much Jenna's music is a continuation of the Shetland fiddle thread, from ancient Nordic music through the swing influences of the fifties and sixties, to the present folk-jazz-classical fusions of Fiddlers' Bid and other Shetland bands. There's a lot to take in here, fascinating new music as well as fresh views on old favourites, with every track revealing hidden treasure.
Jenna is joined by fellow Shetlander Harris Playfair on piano for most tracks, and by Mr McFall's Chamber with its thoroughly modern strings. Su-a Song is a feather-light air written for their wonderful cellist Su-a Lee who has become a fixture at Scottish fiddle events. A couple of drummers also provide support on Working Hands, but the focus of this album seems to be on the melody lines. The Boys of the Borders reels have something of an old modal cast, while McFall's March is much more modern in character. Jenna's jig Olivia Rose also harks back to the short repetitive melodies of Shetland, hypnotic for those long dances. Each of these tracks is strikingly arranged to accentuate the melody and hold the listener's attention. Freddie's Tune and Da Homin, traditional Shetland airs, are much starker, leaving Jenna's fiddle to express itself through superb tone and dynamics. The final Hallgrimkirkja is almost a tone poem, emulating the vaulted roof of Rejkjavik's cathedral with its high chilling notes above a stony ground.
© Alex Monaghan
Mike Katz & Alasdair White "Best Sets"
Own Label, 2019
The search for the best sets is a quest with which many of us are familiar - and not just musicians. Setting the right combination of rhythm and tempo, deciding when to press on and when to hold back, matching the top and bottom parts, and adding that extra touch of spice when needed, is part of what defines great performers. Technique is important too, of course, and stamina, but these Battlefield buddies have had years of performing together and with other partners so their physical compatibility and staying power have been well tested. This recording displays the fruits of Mike and Alasdair's experience in mixing and matching the best of Scottish pipe music.
It turns out that most of the ingredients for Best Sets were already well known in the mid 19th century. Katz and White draw on a number of obscure collections as well as more familiar sources to put together sets of reels, jigs, marches, strathspeys and more: Rìdhladh am Botul Mòr, An Nighean Ghoirid, Bruachain Mhelinis and other greats from the Gaelic tradition are joined by more military titles such as Dugald MacColl's Farewell to France 1914-18, Captain Murray's Quickstep, Chasing the Kaiser and The Heroes of Vittoria, all superbly played on fiddle and pipes. If you're looking for new tunes to learn, Glen Saul by John Maclellan is a cracker, as is The Banks of Drumpeller by Neil Ramsay. For its name alone, I'll be focusing on I Would have Preferred Thee at First but Not Now Sir.
Katz and White play much of this music on old smallpipes in keys which are not at the modern Highland bagpipe pitch, and using the original ornamentation, which gives an old-fashioned sound but makes Best Sets accessible to more musicians. There are also a number of well-known tunes here in interesting older settings: The Grey Buck, Johnny Cope, The Wee Highland Laddie, and the recently popular Wee Donald in the Pig Pen. Variety is limited with only two instruments available, but Alasdair and Mike keep things interesting with solos and harmonies, as well as varying the tempo within and between the sets. Sets is what it's all about, of course, and whatever your preference you'll be blown away by the climax here: Kenny's Dance with his Sweetheart, Mrs Chisholm's Delight and of course Hey My Nanny!
© Alex Monaghan
Inver "Heading Out"
GO Danish Folk, 2019
Built around the accordion and whistles of Rune Barslund, with Kevin Lees on fiddle and Matthew Jones on guitar, this is Celtic music from Denmark's finest. Most of the material on Inver's debut album was written by the band members, and it sits very comfortably with classic pieces such as Richard Sherlock's Reel and a Breton Dañs Plinn. Joanie Madden's wonderful three-part jig The Cat's Meow is the obvious partner to The Mouse in the Cupboard: in our local session we top it off with Kevin Crawford's Spotted Dog. Christy Leahy's P&O Polka is another great contemporary tune in traditional style, as is Liz Carroll's popular reel Wissahickon Drive: both are smoothly played here.
Heading Out opens with two of the band's own tunes, separated by a slowed-down take on David Lim's reel The Bunny's Hat. This is perhaps the most Scandinavian section of the album, polska rhythms and melodies that evoke pine forests rather than peat bogs. Kevin's waltz The Simple Things is a gentle gem, like an updated Inisheer. Rune's lovely Vals Til Mor og Far produces one of several guitar solos from Matthew: it has been recorded a few times previously, notably by Tim Edey and by The Recollective, a sure sign of a good tune. The final White Swan set sounds Scottish to my ears: I can imagine Battlefield playing this set of jigs, perhaps switching to pipes for the final melody, although the fiddle and whistle arrangement here works well for three more Lees and Barslund compositions. With an expert touch on the tradition, and a tank full of their own tunes, Inver are well prepared for this first foray into the wilds of Celtic folk.
© Alex Monaghan
Tailcoat "Tall Tales in Tiny Pieces"
GO Danish Folk, 2019
A surprising album from this Scandinavian quintet - almost as surprising as its Danglish title - the music of Tailcoat is both traditional and contemporary, edging towards New Age in its relaxed airy melodies, but with a bit of rock backing. Combining nyckelharpa and fiddles, both regular violin and Norwegian Hardangerfele, the front line is very Scandinavian in character. The melodies themselves are a mix of new and old in style, some formal marches and dances, others more fluid, mainly rooted in Nordic traditions but taking elements of southern and eastern European music. Almost all of Tall Tales in Tiny Pieces was composed by the band members, established performers and composers in their native countries. The arrangements underpin tight Scandinavian harmonies with cittern melody lines and chords, supple bass lines, and a wide range of percussion from around the globe.
The opening tracks are gently seductive. Vinterklockan offers complex weaving lines producing a soothing blanket of sound, building to an energetic climax before collapsing again. Tronds Etter is a rippling melody with subtle rhythms. This understated approach continues until about half way through Tall Tales in Tiny Pieces, when Nibbla suddenly launches a flurry of notes before settling back to Tailcoat's resting state. Sönderhoning is a re-awakening, an insistent rhythm pulling people out of their beds and into the street perhaps. There's an element of menace to Sneakers, an exotic mysticism in Monsunen. The final tracks return to more familiar Nordic territory: modern polskas and waltzes, exquisitely written and performed, a fine end to an intriguing debut album.
© Alex Monaghan
Duo De Schepper Sarczuk "Port de Taipana"
Appel Rekords, 2019
Arouk Sarczuk and Florian De Schepper play violin and guitar, viola and bouzouki, and write their own music based on traditions from all over Europe and beyond, as well as influences from their jazz and classical training. With backgrounds in the eclectic Belgian folk scene, they manage to combine all these strands fairly successfully. This is their second album, and it presents a wide range of material with some great moments and very little explanation. The calypso-like title track is a winner, one of several pieces on Port de Taipana which stick in the head and will probably end up on the session scene.
De Schepper and Sarczuk defy categorisation. Bohmloze Wals could be French café music, Crazy for Cachi is beyond Balkan, and Berceuse de l'Hibou is more like contemporary North American folk. I particularly enjoyed the smooth and sophisticated Valse pour Riet and the grinding Bemol which combines Latin rhythms with a Klezmer melody. DDSS finish on a furious modern reel which could be Canadian, Scandinavian, even Scottish: technically impressive, toe-tapping and totally original, One Take closes a varied and absorbing CD.
© Alex Monaghan
Ellinor & Leonor "Årsringar"
Kakafon Records, 2019
I was a little confused by this CD title, never mind the record label, but it turns out Årsringar are the annual growth lines in a tree trunk which show its age. Ellinor & Leonor certainly can't be accused of that: these young musicians play with a command and poise which belies their tender years. They are already hardened performers, with both classical and traditional training in the Swedish style. On this second album they interpret old Swedish dance music - polskas mainly, plus two waltzes and a handful of other forms - on fiddle and cello. Their style inclines towards classical baroque, precise and intricate, with less wildness and savagery than some Scandinavian players. Most tracks are a single melody, repeated and varied and arranged with skill. A graceful wedding march from Enviken, a growling polska, and the charming Vals efter Saras Jon are followed by two tunes from Lars Hedin's 19th century manuscript and the chilling Vallåt with keening vocals, perhaps the most stark and troll-like pieces here.
A plethora of polskas is interrupted by the cheery Karusellen which may be familiar from recordings by Spaelemeninir i Hoydolum almost half a century ago, and by the wonderfully named Uggelbovalsen - elbow boots have fallen out of fashion, but this subtle melody is still in vogue. The playful Schottis efter August Medin from the 1800s is more like something an Edinburgh jazz fiddler might dream up, quite a different groove from the rest of Årsringar, a total surprise and delight. Normality is restored with the G minor Polska efter Jon Åman, and then the final Polonesse de Nyström, a stately return to the baroque elegance of Ellinor Fritz's fiddle and Leonor Palazzo's 5-string cello. Just two instruments for an hour of music, yet this album never drags, and I'm already looking forward to more from this extremely accomplished pair.
© Alex Monaghan
Fidil "Decade"
Raelach Records, 2019
These three fine young Donegal fiddlers - Aidan O'Donnell, Ciarán Ó Maonaigh, and Damien McGeehan - are still well below the average age of the species, but ten years after forming the trio Fidil they play with rare maturity and
gravitas.[42][47]
Decade contains some beautifully arranged and delicately performed pieces - airs, mazurkas, waltzes and more - as well as several sets of reels where if fiddles were Formula 1 cars the wheels would be coming off at the turns. In between these two extremes are great tunes such as the slip jig Brose and Butter, the aptly named Fantastic Reel, and The Merry Sisters. Fiddle-only groups are not so unusual these days, but Fidil stands out in that there is no attempt to make the instruments sound like anything else - no percussion, no fancy acoustic effects, not even much pizzicato, just three fiddlers playing Donegal music.
A Fig for a Kiss has been one of my favourites since the 2002 Providence album, despite its sad tale of internal congestion. Other highlights here are The Teelin Highland, a Donegal classic, and the slow air When the Ship Leaves the Harbour which bears a passing resemblance to The Mountains of Pomeroy. Incidentally, I'm assured that there are no mountains at all in Pomeroy. Talking of resemblances, the set dance Maggie Pickie sounds like a grown-up version of Some Say the Devil is Dead, well worth learning as a party piece. James Scott Skinner's challenging Hurricane certainly puts the wind up these lads, but they settle into the following Jolly Tinker with ease. The penultimate track shows some of the accompaniment possibilities of the fiddle - plucked low notes, droning open strings, chopped chords and clever harmonies. Decade finishes with reels, of course: Aidan's Blest Among Women and the classic Kitty the Hare, strongly played, underlining the raw power of the Donegal fiddle style.
© Alex Monaghan
Gangspil "2"
GO Danish Folk Music, 2019
A double CD of lively Danish dance music - not the stodgy stuff that conjures up silver buckles and tricorne hats, this is music to kick up the dust and drink the barrel dry during those long Danish nights. Well, mostly: fiddler Kristian Bugge and box-player Sonnich Lydom throw in a few sombre pieces, and there are one or two slower songs, but the biggest part of this release is an invitation to dance. Even the handful of songs here are rhythmic and driving, from the jaunty Mikkel Ræv to the waltzing Det Lider mod Kvælden. Whether you listen, play along, or move your feet to this music, it'll lift your spirits and make you smile.
There are some well-known pieces here - Dronningens Livstykke, Førbysæt, Sensommervals and a couple more - but most of these forty-odd melodies are new to me. Tyrolervalse keeps its alpine character in Denmark's flat landscape, and Ny 6tur would fit an English barndance or even an Irish céilí. Olga Polka sounds Danish through and through, while Bornholmervals leans toward the eastern end of the Baltic. The various melodies from the 18th-century Rentlow manuscript are fascinating, and there are several four-beat dances which would easily pass for English reels or Northumbrian rants. Bræmsen og Fluen is a dead ringer for the ancient melody used for the Abbots Bromley Horn Dance, Polskdanse leads a double life as central French pipe music, but Dagmar Polka could only be Danish. All these tempos and styles are superbly handled by Bugge and Lydom (who switches to harmonica a lot), and the Gangspil duo is joined by friends on piano, guitars and vocals, although just fiddle and free reeds is a full and satisfying sound.
© Alex Monaghan
Gruberich "Im wilden Alpinistan"
Own Label, 2019
Almost on the Austrian border, in an area which has long been a meeting place of Eastern and Western cultures since the days of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Thomas Gruber writes music of an eclectic folky nature and plays it with cellist Maria Friedrich and harpist Sabine Gruber-Heberlein. Gruber himself, looking like a cross between Ace Ventura and Emmett "Doc" Brown, is a master of Bavarian button accordion and hammered dulcimer: his compositions feature one or the other, and sometimes both. The Western sounds of Flic Flauder are followed by the oriental mood of the title track and the South American rhythms of Drunken Alpaka, all in intricate three-part arrangements. Bazzarango is a Bavarian take on the tango, and Kuh is a bovine psychedelic dream which could almost have been written by the Beatles.
The standard of musicianship in this trio is very high, and the pieces are challenging so there's not much for the average folkie to pick up here. Gruberich's Alpine itchy feet take them to the Mediterranean for the light-stepping waltz Madlaina, to ancient Egypt for Kasimaldo, and to the frozen wastes of Scandinavia for Mondscheinig. The final two tracks contain a bit of everything, from pagan howls to plodding chelonians. It's a kaleidoscope of styles and sounds, as unpredictable as Alpine terrain, but if you like your music to surprise you, and you're not averse to the occasional llama, give this CD a listen.
© Alex Monaghan
Andrea Beaton & Troy MacGillivray "Face the Music"
Own Label, 2019
The Beaton and MacGillivray families trace their ancestry to the island of Eigg and boast some of the finest musicians and dancers in Nova Scotia. Troy and Andrea both play fiddle and piano to world class standard, and such is the cultural heritage of their communities that they are frequently called upon to play for dances in the village halls around Cape Breton Island. This album was recorded at one such dance, in Creignish Recreation Centre, and is basically a Cape Breton ceilidh in a box. The starts and stops are impromptu, as is typical of square dances, and the background buzz can be clearly heard as fiddle and piano weave big sets of jigs, reels and strathspeys. One or two tracks here were played for listening, but Face the Music is essentially music for dancing, from two of the best in the business.
The Marchioness of Huntly and The Cape Breton Fiddlers' Welcome to Shetland, St Kilda Wedding and The Hills of Glenorchy - most of the tunes here are from the Scottish tradition, and a number come from local sources including the Beaton family. Andrea's Missing Marc and Smirnoff Gigolo enhance a huge set of reels which includes Ronnie Cooper's Hayfield House, the traditional Ale is Dear (some things never change), and two compositions by Andrea's father Kinnon Beaton. That medley features Andrea on fiddle, while the opening four tracks enlist Betty Beaton on piano for twin fiddle power, and the middle section sees Troy leading on a great selection of tunes including Pat and Al's by the fabulous Liz Carroll, Traveller's Jig by John Arcand from Saskatchewan, and a slew of Scottish reels by composers from Gow to Skinner. The pair swap places again for two of my favourites here: Paddy's Leather Britches and the helpfully titled Traditional Winston Jig. The finale combines Troy and Andrea on fiddles for Allan Henderson's jig Thursday Night at the Caley with a fiddle and piano bravura performance of Johnny Cope. There's certainly plenty to delight dancers and listeners alike on Face the Music!
© Alex Monaghan
Beòlach "All Hands"
Own Label, 2020
Young tearaways from Cape Breton, Beòlach are all grown up now, with responsibilities and sensible shoes - mostly - but they're still among the best traditional musicians on the planet, so after a short hiatus (what's 15 years between friends?) they've released a third album of fabulous Canadian Celtic music. Full of mature virtuosity, rounded understanding and carefully considered arrangements, All Hands relaunches the powerful Beòlach sound with hard-hitting reels, soulful airs, and pretty much everything in between. Two phenomenal fiddlers Mairi Rankin and Wendy MacIsaac, flawless piper Matt MacIsaac and legendary pianist Mac Morin make up this all-star quartet. Plus, no singers - it's "toons" all the way! What's not to like?
The many facets of Cape Breton music are immediately evident in the combination of a tune from the massive local John MacDougall collection, a composition by Skye piper Allan MacDonald, and a traditional Irish slip-jig, perfectly melded into one whole by these experienced hands. The magnificent march Kilts on Fire (don't try this at home, kids!) heads a trio of top quality reels, leading to the first slow piece: Veronica's, a muscular waltz by Mairi and Mac. Fiddle gives way to whistle for Schooner Lane, a reel by Beólach founder member Ryan MacNeil, adding accordion and fiddle notes for two more fine reels. Backstreet Girls is a big medley of fiddle strathspeys and reels from Wendy and Mairi, backed by Mac and by Matt's guitar for a very traditional Cape Breton dance sound.
The late great Oliver Schroer's beautiful Song for All Seasons richly deserves its resonant string ensemble arrangement here, a definite highlight. In total contrast, but another clear highlight, Matt fronts a set of Cape Breton pipe tunes which would knock spots off a leopard. Allan MacDonald's stunning march Road to Loch nam Bearnais is slowed to a gentle stroll, followed by the relaxed jig Sgian Dubh, building to a climax with Gordon Duncan's spiky Soup Dragon. The album could stop there, but no: they go for the big finish, Donald MacLeod's Gypsy Dance and another reel from John MacDougall. With the end in sight, something snaps and Beòlach revert to their teenage personas, fiery, unpredictable, rebellious, prickly even, for a final minute of mayhem. But it's all good fun - they may just need a new flux capacitor! Beòlach are back with a bang, and the future isn't what it used to be.
© Alex Monaghan
Branschke Armstrong Duo "Antithesis"
Own Label, 2019
Duo Gällmo Branschke "Double Yolks"
Own Label, 2019
European bagpipes, from German maker Matthias Branschke, are played by these two duos to create a surprising range of musical effects. Antithesis showcases a version of the central French bagpipe with various drones, allowing virtuoso playing on compositions by Callum Armstrong. Double Yolks is more traditional, German and Swedish dance music on the Swedish Säckpipa, instruments made by Branschke again. You'll need to enjoy bagpipe music to appreciate these CDs, but within that genre they offer a wide variety of sounds and styles.
Antithesis is very much an exercise in the possibilities of two bagpipes: counterpoint and harmonies, crossing rhythms, complementary drones, and some clever staccato passages. Technically it is highly impressive. Occasionally there is not quite a perfect understanding between Armstrong and Branschke for the fast and complex timing of their arrangements, but most of the time they are uncannily synchronised. From modern jigs to solemn mazurkas, Branschke's funky single composition Das Jahr des Springenden Häuptlings to the almost atonal air 4.30am, every track tries something different. My favourite, and perhaps the most conventional piece here, is the Playford-style Sleepy Summer Lanes.
Double Yolks is rather different. Swedish piper Olle Gällmo plays music from old Scandinavian manuscripts and archive recordings, pieces which have been passed down for generations or dusted off more recently, but either way they represent a time when musical borders were not clearly defined. I recognise French and English melodies among the polskas and polonaises here. There is also a slice of North German repertoire: a catchy Manschester and a lively Angloise amongst others. Many of these melodies are played in simple unison, some with harmonies. Vals efter Vardags Magnus is a lovely example of this music. Branschke and Gällmo use slightly different gracenotes, but otherwise it would be hard to tell them apart. Both these albums show rare skill, and flashes of humour to leaven this pure piping fare, as well as demonstrating Branschke's abilities as a pipemaker.
© Alex Monaghan
Ewen Henderson "Steall"
Own Label, 2020
Another outstanding musician from the Henderson family of Lochaber, Ewen may be familiar from Battlefield Band, Skipinnish, Mànran of which he was a founder, and a number of other groups. Ewen mostly plays fiddle on this solo debut, but he also picks up the pipes for a few tracks, sings three Gaelic songs, and plays whistle, viola and keyboards. Even so, he still needs help from Ewan MacPherson on guitars, James MacKintosh on percussion, James Lindsay on bass and Thomas Gibbs on a slightly surprising clarinet.
Steall is an intriguing album, at once modern and nostalgic. Some of the music here reminds me of the Mòd or even of music hall performances: Òran a'Bhranndaidh (check out the tweed and tartan video on YouTube), Gantocks with its crisp fiddling, and Seinn An Duan Seo with an almost classical piano accompaniment. Other tracks come unmistakably from the contemporary Scottish scene: the gorgeous air Camus Daraich which has all the hallmarks of Duncan Chisholm or Donald Shaw, the proudly swinging Westcoaster Hornpipe with that incongruous clarinet, and Henderson's own Dileab Na h-Aibhne which could be a movie soundtrack if there were ever a sequel to Local Hero.
Add to these the timeless traditional opening jigs, the delightful Limassol Waltz, the classic medley of march, strathspey and reel on a fiddle tuned up (or down) to fit over highland pipe drones, and the final air with a story doubtless related to another famous Aberdeen defeat. Steall certainly makes a splash, and offers a refreshing dip into new music for both the traditional purist and the try-anything purchaser of streaming sounds. The notes are bilingual, a nice touch, as is Ewen Henderson's website which has preview tracks, great photos, and lyrics for all three songs.
© Alex Monaghan
Probably the most famous Finnish folk band of recent times, Frigg focus on the fiddle music of the Kaustinen area, a rural municipality in the Central Ostrobothnia region (but you knew that) which has preserved its folk traditions for hundreds of years and has developed a culture of virtuoso performance and composition, particularly on the fiddle. Frigg was formed around the younger members of the Järvelä family, and two of these fiddlers still front the band: Esko and his sister Alina. Tommi Asplund and the phenomenal Tero Hyväluoma also play fiddles, with Petri Prauda on cittern/mandolin, Anssi Salminen on guitar, and Juho Kivivuori on double bass. There'll be a test later.
FriXX celebrates XX years of Frigg, and X albums, so if you like this there's plenty more to dig into. Much of the material on this tenth recording is by Esko, starting with the celebratory Juhlamarssi and the no less joyful Early Bird which exemplifies the links between Nordic and Bluegrass music. The first of four compositions by Tero is a much gentler piece, liquid and dreamy, setting up the driving Häkkisen Riili which leans far west into the North American backwoods for a virtuoso country reel. The more traditional-sounding Kekripolska is named for the Finnish harvest festival: its powerful rhythm makes a great dance tune. It's followed by the traditional Varpusen Polska which Frigg manage to cast as a Deep Purple anthem, a gossamer-light waltz, and a perpetual motion showpiece, all in the space of four minutes.
Frigg's music is not all fancy fiddling: Anssi leads the slow reel Terhen, and Petri's cittern provides a foil for the fiddles on Esko's almost cinematic Myrskyluoto, a sweeping evocative tune telling a stormy tale of life in the Finnish islands. Maanitus adds the ethereal Finnish kantele to a traditional dance form for a very ancient sound, and Jouko-Taiga is a strong but simple melody with all the harmonic potential of an oldtime classic. FriXX ends with the beautiful waltz VEP by Petri, in the same style as Roger Tallroth's popular Josefins Dopvals, a gorgeous tune and a fitting final piece for this excellent album which also comes with great sleevenotes and an outstanding press release! Now, can you remember all seven band members' names?
© Alex Monaghan
Mairi Rankin & Eric Wright "The Cabin Sessions"
Own Label, 2018
Fiddle and cello with Scottish and North American influences - a great combination, and a highly enjoyable album, but of you're expecting Fraser & Haas, think again! The Cabin Sessions takes a rather different approach. Ms Rankin's Cape Breton fiddle spans both hardline Scottish and broader Canadian styles, while Mr Wright brings modern bluegrass technique together with oldtime harmonies on cello and 5-string banjo. The opening reel Peaks of South Uist has a strong Cape Breton flavour, rhythmic and close to the floor, with chopped cello backing the Scots fiddle accent, but when Mairi shifts into Björk's Chauffeur by Ian MacLeod the mood becomes more like US East Coast fiddling. The slow jig Isle Inspired slides further into contemporary American territory, percussive cello and poignant fiddle, looking towards the distant Appalachian Mountains: even the endings are oldtime. Wright's drawling Hidden View is an unmistakable modern Montana hiking tune.
Still very few of those Haas-style cello leads or low bowed harmonies, although the fiddling on the traditional reel MacFarlane's could come straight out of Alasdair Fraser's playbook. Kelly's Peck is the first of three Rankin originals, a luxurious laid-back jig, followed by two and a half parts of the Irish reel Cregg's Pipes which finally elicits some melody from the cello, low and smokey. Eric switches to claw-hammer banjo for Cabin Hill, a swaggering air for Mairi's parents, then delicately fingerpicks his own Piegan Mountain, duetting with flash fiddling in a very expressive arrangement that reaches peak oldtime. The Cabin Sessions continue with reels and strathspeys in a modern Celtic groove, another air by Mairi Rankin with the subtlest of accompaniment, and the final driving 10.5 Miles from Town which shows off Eric Wright's oldtime cello on melody and harmony lines as well as railroad rhythms. Rankin and Wright have produced a true blend of their music here, more than the sum of its parts, moving them both towards exciting new possibilities.
© Alex Monaghan
