For you Irish Music geeks…

Danú and Dervish are coming to UC-Davis on March 10th at the Mondavi Center. If you can make it, you’ve got to see these groups. The Mondavi Center has the scoop on tickets, etc.

My favorite bonus of the evening: 
A pre-show lecture by UC-Davis beer prof, Charlie Bamforth, and members of Danú discussing “Beer (Is it good for you?)” and Irish pub culture. Y’ain’t gonna find that at the Metropolitan Opera.

Tags: danu, Irish music

From the weekly Thursday night session at Murphy’s Pub in South Lake Tahoe.

Silver Spear – The Merry Blacksmith

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The Pumpkin’s Fancy. The instrument is a electronic Scottish Smallpipe

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Spootaskerry – Rakes of Mallow

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An odd little snippet of Red Wing

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Tags: Irish music, Music, session

Last night, Tony McManus entertained the combined metropoli of Minden and Gardnerville with an extraordinary solo guitar performance. Deftly weaving Scottish piping tunes, Irish tunes,  jazz and wry humor into the fabric of the music, he captivated the small but appreciative audience at the CVIC hall in Minden. For me, highlights of the evening’s performance were The Accursed Kerryman, a set of pipe tunes that I neglected to write down, and the encore performance of Tune for Frankie.

It’s always refreshing to hear a skilled musician prove that Celtic Music is not the New Age “air pudding” that so many people expect. Every time public radio or television features Celtic Woman, or Enya, or other purveyor of New Aged slime, it’s like having a bloated goat carcass thrown upon my musical doorstep.  As Tony said last night, “The Celts inhabit the most inhospitable land in western Europe, and they cling by their fingernails to the rocky outcroppings. They’re not about to write music that puts you to sleep.”   When I was at the CD table, I was talking to a friend about which albums were my favorite and why, and others overheard me. They started asking about the tunes on all the albums, and one woman asked me if any of the albums were “mellow.”  She explained that she was a massage therapist and wanted soothing music for her clients. “You did hear his playing tonight?” I asked. I explained that she’d be better off buying every one of his CDs and making a mix tape.

Miss Fish has seen some great soloists, such as Tony Rice, Pierre Bensusan, and Alex DeGrassi, and she remarked that she enjoyed Tony McManus’s playing more than any of them. Her favorite soloist, Radim Zenkl, now has to share the pedestal with Tony McManus.

I’ll admit that I’ve always been a McManus fanboy, ever since I attended a master class with Tony in Denver. I recall after he played “Sweetness of Mary” for the seven of us, there was long silence, eventually broken by a girl who said, “Whoa. Mary was a lucky woman.”  When I relayed that story to him last night, he looked thoughtful, then said, “Yes, that’s a good tune. I really should bring it back.”  I couldn’t agree more.

The proceeds benefited the Carson Valley Arts Council, who I really hope bring in more artists like Tony McManus.

In the immortal words of Rocky the Flying Squirrel…
And now, here’s something you’ll really enjoy, Tony McManus playing Hector the Hero:

Tags: guitar, Irish music, Music, tony mcmanus

There’s a new page here on the site detailing the Irish and Celtic music scene in Western Nevada and the Eastern Sierra. If you’re interested in Irish music in the area, check out the page. If you have suggestions or comments on the page, please leave a comment at the bottom of the Irish Music page.

Tags: Irish music, session

From the first session on November 20th at Studio on 4th in Reno. The tunes are Kesh Jig, Saddle the Pony, and Connachtman’s Rambles.

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Tags: Irish music, session, studio on 4th

A snippet of the session at the Auld Dubliner pub, tucked at the far end of Squaw Valley. The tunes are Harvest Home and Boys of Blue Hill.

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Tags: Auld Dubliner, Irish music, session

Every Thursday, there’s an Irish session at Murphy’s Pub in South Lake Tahoe. Some Guy in Nevada makes his YouTube debut. Unfortunately, I don’t know the tunes…but it appears that no-one else besides the piper knows them either. Here’s hoping the fellow who shot this vid posts more footage that shows us all playing something we all know!

The piper is playing an electronic chanter, which is basically a MIDI controller from hell. Although it looks like he’s blowing into it, he’s not.

Tags: bagpipe, Irish music, session