A Celtic Concert with Maggie Sansone & Friends

A Celtic Concert with Maggie Sansone, Robin Bullock, Shannon Dunne, Matt Bell, Regan Riley
"In Celebration of the 50th Anniversary of Saint Mark Presbyterian Church"

Date: Saturday, March 12, 2011
Time: 7:30 pm
Location: St. Mark Presbyterian Chuch, Rockville, Maryland.
Join award winning Celtic and folk musicians and dancers for a great family show.Featuring America's premier Celtic hammered dulcimer recording artist Maggie Sansone, "flat picking master" Robin Bullock, guitar, cittern, mandolin; Matt Bell, Irish Bodhran and who is a snare drum percussionist with US Army Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps ; Shannon Dunne, concertina, vocals and Irish Step Dancer who tours with Percussive Foot Works Ensemble and also Regan Riley, a champion Irish Step dancer, former member of the Teelin School of Irish Dance. . http://www.saintmarkpresby.org. Tickets and info: events@saintmarkpresby.org ; 301-530-2613; Saint Mark Presbyterian Church, 10701 Old Georgetown Road, Rockville, MD 20852
Tickets and info:
St. Mark Presbyterian Church
10701 Old Georgetown Road
Rockville, MD 20852
301-530-2613
http://www.saintmarkpresby.org.
events@saintmarkpresby.org

Directions:
http://www.saintmarkpresby.org/pagedirections.htm

Maggie Sansone:
http://www.maggiesmusic.com/mscalen.html

February Fiddle Club jam tunes

Chandler Becker sends the list of tunes played at the jam:

Spootiskerry, Sailor's Wife, Cushion Dance
My Wife's a Wanton Wee Thing
Primrose Lassies
Tongadale Reel, Knockadhu Reel, Tam Lin
Duke of Fife's Welcome to Deeside, Alex Dan MacIsaac's
Lime Hill, Highland Whisky, Jack Daniel's
Brenda Stubbart
Calliope House, Andy DeJarlis, The New Fiddle
The Wedding Jig
Barrowburn Reel, High Road to Linton
Laxo Burn
Muckin Out Geordie's Byre, Stool of Repentance, Stan Chapman Jig
Mom's Jig
Bonny at Morn
East Neuk of Fife
Crossing the Minch
Johnny Cope
Flowers of Edinburgh
Hughie Shorty
My Cape Breton Home

Ryan McKasson Workshop on March 5th

Liz Donaldson will host Ryam McKasson for a workshop at her home in Bethesda on March 5th, open to all, but with a discount for fiddle club members. Space is limited, so RSVP.

Ryan writes:

Scottish Fiddler's Guide to the Galaxy: how make magic happen with the bow and spawn a fauna of ornamentation on the fingerboard - and feel good doing it. Ryan will teach tunes from the Scottish tradition (Strathspeys, Reels, Jigs, Slow Airs), focusing on bowings and ornamentation. Ryan likes to teach music, not just tunes! Any instruments are welcome, but some of the lesson will be spent on fiddle specific bowings. Ryan teaches all tunes aurally, so sheet music will be available after the workshop, not during. The workshop will be taught at an intermediate to advanced skill level.

Click the image for the full-sized flyer.

Sources for Jerry Holland Collections

We covered some great tunes from Jerry Holland's second collection in fiddle club on Sunday. The question was raised, "Where can I buy Jerry Holland's books?" Well, here are several sources:

Cranford Publications:

1st Collection
2nd Collection

Mel Bay:

1st Collection
2nd Collection

Elderly Instruments:

1st Collection
2nd Colection not available through Elderly

One of the new features I plan to introduce here is a review of major publishing houses and vendors for Scottish and Cape Breton music. I was going to start with the Highland Music Trust, but I suppose Cranford Publications will have to come soon after!

Kale Brose recipe

I had a couple questions about the kale brose I brought to Fiddle Club on Sunday, so here's the recipe. Do you have any favorite Scottish recipes you'd like to share?


Kale Brose
3 pints chicken or vegetable broth (I used 2 pints chicken, 1 pint vegetable)
1/2 cup fine-ground Scottish oatmeal (Bob's Red Mill 100% Stone Ground Whole Grain Scottish Oatmeal is perfect. If you use a coarser ground like Old Wessex Ltd.'s Scottish-Style Porridge Oats, you'll probably want to put it in a coffee grinder for an instant.
1 pound curly kale
Salt & pepper to taste

Bring the stock to a boil, adding salt & pepper. Once boiling, reduce heat and add oatmeal. Stirring intermittently, let cook for 10 minutes. While this is taking place, wash the kale and tear the soft leaf from the hard stems, discarding the latter, and shred the kale. Put the kale into the boiling mixture, and stir for another 10-15 minutes until tender. Leave uncovered so that the color is retained. When the kale is fairly tender remove from heat and place in serving dish. Serve piping hot.

Save the National Centre for Excellence in Traditional Music - Online Petition

Forwarded from Jennifer Cutting:

Dear all,

It is very sad news to hear that Highland Council are considering the complete closure of the National Centre for Excellence in Traditional Music, based in Plockton in the Scottish Highlands. Over the last 10 years this specialist school has produced dozens of fantastic traditional musicians, please demonstrate your support for the school by signing the online petition here:

http://www.gopetition.com/petition/42495.html

all the best,

Simon McKerrell.

Candlemas [Latha Fheill Bride] in Scotland

Fiddle Club member Patrick Wamsley writes:

While February 2nd is popularly known as "Groundhog Day" in the United States, the tradition of weather-forecasting animals originates in Europe. Because today was cloudy, Pennsylvania's Punxsutawney Phil "predicted" an early spring.

In Gaelic-speaking areas of Scotland, February 2nd was associated with the adder, the only poisonous snake in northern Europe.


Here's a Gaelic poem about Candlemas Day [Latha Fheill Bride]

Carmina Gadelica, Alexander Carmichael

Moch maduinn Bhride, Thig an nimhir as an toll;
Cha bhoin mise ris an nimhir, Cha bhoin an nimhir rium.
Thig an nathair as an toll, la donn Bride
Ged robh tri traighean dh' an t-sneachd air leachd an lair.

[Translation]
Early on Bride's morn, the serpent will come from the hollow
I will not molest the serpent, nor will the serpent molest me
The serpent will come from the hollow on the brown day of Bride
Though there should be three feet of snow on the ground

Also see
http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/celt/cg1/cg1074.htm