The Shady Groves

Happy May Day to you all! Here I present to you a musical garland to celebrate this sacred month, so full of life and tradition. Loreena McKennitt- "The Mummers' Dance" This piece is, quite frankly, one of my favorite songs of all time... I have loved "The Mummers' Dance" since at least 1999, when I was about 10 or 11 years old. When I first really encountered it, I had recently discovered the Redwall series by Brian Jacques, and at the time, this song called up the wild love of adventure and rich reverence for nature that the woodland creatures of these stories possessed. Today, it means even more... I have since learned that the song borrows many lyrics from the traditional English "May Day Carol": We’ve been rambling all the night And some time of this day. Now returning back again, We bring a garland gay... A garland gay we bring you here, And at your door we stand. It is a sprout well budded out, The work of Our Lord’s hand. For me, thes

Éirinn go Brách! Celtic music, including the traditional music of Ireland, is one of the greatest musical influences of my life, and it is a delight to be able highlight some of the Celtic currents that continue to flow through my playlists... Here I present to you a mix of contemporary Celtic folk as well as the kinds of very traditional Irish pieces without which Saint Patrick's Day would feel incomplete to me! Mary Black- “Colcannon” "Heartwarming" is the word that comes to mind when I think of this song... With its beautiful harmonies and the bright piercing voice of the inimitable Mary Black, "Colcannon" expresses nostalgia for home and the love of family, especially a mother's love in preparing favorite foods. Whalebone- "The Otter’s Holt" I have recently become infatuated with this downtempo interpretation of the traditional Irish reel "The Otter's Holt," which is usually performed at a breakneck pace... I love getting to savo

2024 is one of those exceptional years when Saint Valentine's Day coincides with Ash Wednesday, an alignment that has invited me to explore the meaning of love more universally, that is, to reflect on the nature of both human and divine love on February 14 this year. In keeping with such meditations, my musical highlights for this month pay tribute to earthly romance as well as to the mystical imagery of the relationship between God and humankind as being like that of a spousal relationship, the Lover and the Beloved. Let us begin the journey with earthly love… Earthly Love Pauline Scanlon-   Red Colour Sun “And I Love You So” https://youtu.be/fqLXVzh9ED0?si=59rU5KCmZKkXe2ut and “Valentine”  https://youtu.be/ng8GFqkNIAc?si=MnmRrrWBvl7LquRu Irish singer Pauline Scanlon's breathy vocals bring a warm, modern sensibility to traditional songs as well as to beloved covers from popular music, including "And I Love You So" by Don Maclean and "Valentine" by Willie Ne

Merry Christmas to you all! It is a joy to be able to nestle into my burrow here in this Pensacola winter and reflect on which selections of my favorite Christmas music to share with you. Over the years, I have encountered seasonal music that miraculously combines the qualities of joy, beauty, peacefulness, and celebration simultaneously. These are some highlights that come to mind… Simon and Garfunkel- “Star Carol” : https://youtu.be/OTrp5QmjO5s?si=fj2IzBjA0ANKqwUl This tender little folk carol as performed by the duo Simon and Garfunkel was one of the first recorded Christmas songs I ever remember hearing as a very young child… Its innocent beauty has stayed with me ever since! Eric Tingstad and Nancy Rumbel - The Gift : https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLA7SPe9JExqip7gsw5XyeQbiRbzcNbIO9&si=OflBGiZyzRYhGRGH While old enough to be a classic, this album is a new friend to me! Its timeless use of acoustic guitar and woodwind instrumentation and gentle contemporary freedom in inter

"The October winds lament around the castle of Dromore ..." and echo in my imagination, continuing to inspire my musical projects and festival offerings in this busy and rewarding Autumn! As you may know, the modern celebration of Halloween descended both from traditions associated with the Celtic festival of Samhain as well as customs from the Christian feast of All Hallows Eve (the Even of All Saints). The following eloquent quote from  Tlachtga: Celtic Fire Festival by John Gilroy describes well the nature of the earlier feast: “The idea that Samhain is a juncture between the two halves of the year saw it acquiring the unique status of being suspended in time - it did not belong to the old year not the new. It could be said that time stood still on this night and the implications of this were immense. During this night the natural order of life was thrown into chaos and the earthly world of the living became hopelessly entangled with the world of the dead. But the world

Fascinating and diverse currents of life experiences and musical flavors have surfaced in the past month! I am eager to share my discoveries and remembrances with you once again... First, a song in honor of August:  This piece creates an intoxicatingly sensuous texture through the use of deeper voices : "August" by the Irish choir Anúna...   When music has taken me to darkly beautiful places... Folk / Folk Rock Maddy Prior- "John Barleycorn" https://youtu.be/DPcmwM04Gy4 I have arranged this timeless English harvest song for my online mountain dulcimer workshops, and it often reappears in my private online lessons! It tells a symbolic story of death and rebirth through the life cycle of the barleycorn, celebrating harvest time and sharing similar themes and motifs with the hymn “Now the Green Blade Rises.” This particular arrangement by Maddy Prior breaks all the rules and has the time of its life doing so! Both hypnotic and playful... Kate Rusby- Life in a Paper B