Brits 2014

Good to see several of those artists I have posted on my blog about over the years nominated at The Brits - legend Nile Rodgers (Le Chic), new artists Lorde, Haim, James Blake and with Emeli Sande presenting the Mastercard album award.

Nile talked in Edinburgh of disco being out of favour and good to see his talent recognised again. Rodgers wrote songs with David Bowie, Madonna, Diana Ross and more. Rodgers performed at the awards ceremony finale along with hip-hop artist Pharrell Williams.  They sang Good Times! And Happy! And Shiny Happy People!

King of style David Bowie won best male, strangely 30 years after his last Brit and with model Kate Moss reading his acceptance speech and even asking that Scotland not to go independent!  The British global success award went to Simon Cowell’s boyband One Direction while Sam Smith won the Critic’s choice award. 

Good to see rock and roll back in favour with the successes of young band Artic Monkeys. I was surprised to enjoy much of the show as there have been times it has all felt stuffy, predictable and with mostly over the top performances.  Yet sometimes I’m not entirely convinced….

Of the younger artists I really like the subtle timbre of Lorde’s voice and the 17-year-old singer-songwriter from New Zealand, won the best international female solo artist.

Celtic Connnections festival 2014

Nicola Benedetti and Phil Cunningham

#ccfest  Each cold January Celtic Connections brightens our dark evenings with warm, enriching ceilidh music, beautiful 

Gaelic song and exhilarating world music. It's a celebration of the folk song and traditions, dynamic collaborations 

of renowned Scottish musicianship alongside famous world artists - and more than that an introduction to new artists. 

Celtic is all about the live interaction with the audience and very much about the live bands. 

I have attended Celtic for many years now and the buzz at this festival is particularly infectious. The hub of Celtic is at the Glasgow Concert Hall which provides a fitting setting for the main concerts. Other venues range from the intimate Oran Mor to the atmospheric Old Fruitmarket in the Merchant city part of town - excellent for ceilidhs.

This year at Celtic 2014, its 21st year, I heard some wonderful musicians here for the first time  -  Lau, RM Hubbert, Mogwai, Imelda May, Nicola B, Del Amitri and from Greece Alkinoos Ioannidis. I also enjoyed artists I'd heard before - Dougie MacLean, Julie Fowlis, erry Douglas, Karine Polwart, Kris Drever, Capercaillie. I enjoyed several top concerts this year at Celtic and it certainly gets me through January!                          

Celtic sells out several big venues on the same night. When Celtic started back twenty one years ago in 1995 people wondered would they draw a crowd out at this quiet time of year in January to see folk concerts? It really is incredible how the festival has grown year on year to become the biggest folk festival gathering worldwide.

Julie Fowlis

Joy Kills Sorrow

Kris Drever

There was crossovers between folk and classical music at the festival with among others - Phil Cunningham and Aly Bain have been working with classical violinist Nicola Benedetti for her new Scottish themed album.  Also award-winning folk band Lau composed with the classical and experimental Elysian Quartet - 'The Bell That Never Rang'  for the New Music Biennial Glasgow 2014.

Julie Fowlis & Nicola Benedetti

Duncan Chisholm

The Big Dish

At Celtic's main event, the Transatlantic Sessions - and who are one of my all time favoruite bands - there are crossovers between Scottish traditional music and American country and bluegrass - it is a powerful combination!  When music making goes in new directions with challenging collaborations, that is often when the best music can develop.  

Capercaillie celebrated their 30 years together at the festival with a concert to mark the release of their album 'At the Heart of It All'.  The band are one of Scotland's most successful contemporary folk bands and are led by festival artistic director Donald Shaw and the beautiful voice of Karen Matheson.

Capercaillie 

Dougie MacLean Burns International concert Hydro

It is good to see and hear the confidence, creativity, pride and range in Scottish music these days.  It is a huge boost for Glasgow to host this international event each year.

I  particularly enjoyed -  Alkinoos Ioannidis, RM Hubbert, Del Amitri, Lau, and Julie Fowlis.  

There are often several wonderful concerts on the same night. One good thing is there is much encouragement given 

over the festival to new musicians – with the Late Sessions, Open mic and also Showcase Scotland.   

Lau at Glasgow City Halls

Aidan O'Rourke with Lau

Darrell Scott & Tim O'Brien

Jerry Douglas & Aly Bain Transatlantic Sessions

Shaw does a great job of pulling the festival together to offer diversity, breadth and quality. It’s clear he enjoys varied and interesting collaborations.  
The festival encourages playing live, ethnic traditions, vocal harmonies, unaccompanied singing, story telling songs and words with a message, real instruments and diverse collaborations. I look forward to next year's Celtic Connections festival!

Imelda May

Del Amitri

The Hydro

All Photographs are copyright Pauline Keightley and are made with permission of the artists, the festival, and the venues involved. Photos at Celtic Connections since 2008.

Rab Noakes -  with  Where Dead Voices Gather' - still relevant and even better than his younger days.... 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/rabnoakes 

The folk songs

Pete Seeger

The folk music world is more interested in the heritage and building on the past then on fashions or commercial motivations.

Folk songs are often about social commentary of the conditions or situations people found themselves in and in the human condition. Folk musicians write new songs in old folk styles.

American folk singer **Pete Seeger who died recently left a rich heritage of now classic folk songs - such as Turn Turn Turn, Where Have all the Flowers Gone.  His light delivery sometimes masked a clever commentary on the times. The song Little Boxes was his only chart hit (written by Malina Reynolds) and the song commentated on our decline towards cultural shallowness ' Little boxes all made out of ticky, tacky and they all look just the same'

Seeger was blacklisted in the McCarthy era and shunned by radio and tv. Like Woody Guthrie and his song 'this land is our land', Seeger sang about the rights of everyman. He was respected as a cult hero in the folk worlds by musicians such as Dylan or Springsteen and by folk musicians here in the UK. 'He was a folk commentator with a bitingly humanist touch.'  Quote Times.  Seeger was 95 and had lived through 17 presidents.  

Bob Dylan & Pete Seeger

My journey. I had my own journey into folk music in my early twenties when I dated a guitarist folk singer from Ayr. He played folk rhythms along with fiddles and banjos at Sandy Bells bar Edinburgh. It was a new world to me of live gig playing, melodic fiddle, harmony singing and foot tapping and hand clapping reels. It was wonderful.  

Before this I had mostly heard my music via vinyl Beatles LPs (also wonderful in a different way) radio, theatre music with a small orchestra, singing in school choirs, playing piano, my father singing Irish songs and some live gigs such as Jethro Tull and Cream.  My father used to ask me to accompany him on piano while he sang.  

I also developed a love of the classic masters through playing piano. I had lessons over several years from age 7 to 15 and I was very fortunate that my first teacher taught me firstly the joy of playing and to use the correct touch on the piano keys. I eventually studied and played Bach, Beethoven and Mozart Sonatas. At first I thought Mozart’s piano music had too many notes! but after some practice.... I realised he was rather a genius at expressing emotional melodies.   

My folk boyfriend introduced me to traditional music such a Dick Gaughan, who I saw live in Edinburgh, and to his record collection that included other great guitarists - John Martyn, Richard Thompson and more.  We went to folk festivals. I was taken in by the difference in the folk world to the other music worlds.

Folk songs care about the message and the story of the song and music is also considered a shared experience. 

Today there are folk singers here (and elsewhere) who continue this tradition of singing about the human condition – such as in Scotland Karine Polwart, Dick Gaughan, Rab Noakes,

 I don't believe in socialism or hand outs - but I believe in equality.

And the folk traditionalists are right,  the 'equality' raises us all up! - not by dragging us all down but by raising standards! 

Transatlantic Sessions at Celtic Connections 2014

This unique concert is enriching and heart warming.

There was more banter tonight with fun chat between songs and as always superb playing by the strong cast of musicians. It was clear how much fun they all have playing together and Jerry Douglas even said this was his favourite time of the year. I know too how much I enjoy the buzz during Celtic. My son usually comes to Transatlantic with me and he enjoys seeing guys like Douglas and Aly Bain playing – he’s now at Aberdeen University so I missed him tonight.

The stage was set with the Scottish musicians on the left and the American musicians on the right. Musical directors - Aly Bain, Jerry Douglas. Also, Phil Cunningham, Danny Thompson, Russ Barenberg, Bruce Molsky, Mike McGoldrick, John Doyle, John McCusker, James Mackintosh and Donald Shaw.

Bands don’t come much better than this one and it is always a joy to hear them play!  I always enjoy John Doyle and Danny Thompson on their dynamic rhythm section. One of the reasons for the success of the TS is the way they have the stage set as an informal jam session, with those not performing sitting on a couch at the side of the stage with their customary onstage ‘green room.’

Kris Drever

We were treated to some excellent singers at this concert – Gaelic singer Julie Fowlis sang a beautiful version of McCartney’s Blackbird, while Kris Drever, who’s had a brilliant year, sang the songs - You are The Call, Isle of France and Shining Star.  Kris and Julie joined in also with the band and clearly enjoyed every minute.

Tim O'Brien & Darrell Scott

There was also the top quality from American singers were – Shawn Colvin and Sarah Jarosz. Shawn Colvin had success in the 80s.

Plus two very talented American regulars at Transatlantic, who are from West Virginia and Kentucky respectively - Tim O’Brien and Darrell Scott who recently released a duo album, entitled Memories & Moments.  Brilliant guitarist Russ Barenberg played one of his lovely guitar melodies. There was the emotion of Aly’s fiddle and the highly individual drama of Jerry Douglas's resonator guitar - a highlight of the night is his solo performance at the start of the second half. (Douglas is an award winning American Dobro master)

Jerry Douglas

Transatlantic is the big event for the last weekend and now tours the UK after its two sold out shows at Celtic Connections.

I also attended a couple of Late Sessions at the Piping centre and saw some quality artists there too. I am now sad the fun weeks of the festival are over for another year.

Phil Cunningham, Aly Bain, Jerry Douglas

**SET LIST :  Band - Waitin for the federal; Kris Drever – You are the call, Isle of France; Sarah Jarosz – Runaway, Ring Them balls;  Band - The Hull; Julie Fowlis – Blackbird, 

Bruce Molsky - Blackest Crow; Band - Wee Michael; Tim O’Brien & Darrell Scott - One more Drink; Darrell Scott – Come into the room;  Shawn Colvin  - All Fall Down, Don’t worry me now.

Second half. Band - Irish Beauty Air; Sarah, Julie, John D, Jerry, Danny, Donald, John, Mike -

Build me up from bones;  Shady Grove - Sarah Jarosz, Tim O’Brien – Brother Wind; Russ Barenberg – Out Time; Julie Fowlis – Roghain air and The Choice;  Kris Drever – Shining Star: Shawn Colvin – These Four Walls, Diamond in the Rough.