RSS feedPosts Tagged ‘ana moura’
Interview with Celtic Connections’ Donald Shaw
Posted on February 7th, 2012 in Songlines Blog by Sophie Atkinson.
Well it’s all over. Celtic Connections has – until next year of course – come to an end, and I imagine there were a few sore heads in Glasgow yesterday as a result.
From the almighty opening with banjo virtuoso Béla Fleck and Le Vent du Nord’s tenth Anniversary celebration, to ABC’s headline gigs – Admiral Fallow, Treacherous Orchestra and King Creosote & Jon Hopkins to name just a few; from ‘Deadly Duos’ featured at the City’s Piping Centre, to the impromptu pick-up bands in the festival club and the infamous ‘sessions’ spontaneously taking place everywhere you looked, there was something for everyone under this impressive and eclectic musical umbrella.
Since its incarnation in the mid 90s, CC has garnered a reputation as a stellar festival that represents music across the spectrum, but the festival saw a change in direction when Donald Shaw – Scottish musician, composer, producer, and one of the founding members of the group Capercaillie – came onboard as artistic director in 2006.
“Despite my initial hesitations about the role, I was keen to look for a way to develop the festival from the point it had reached when I came on board,” Shaw tells me during a quick chat in the Concert Hall, during which he candidly admits that he initially turned the role down as he didn’t think he had the background or experience to pull it off.
But how wrong he was, and develop it he certainly did, bringing with him a new element to the festival, namely a host of world music acts, a genre previously ignored by the festival. The 2012 edition of CC saw artists from Pakistan, Portugal, Sweden, Senegal, Armenia and the Australian outback, in addition to the more the more traditionally ‘Celtic’ and traditional folk acts such as Lau, Breabach, Kathryn Tickell, Martin Simpson, Dick Gaughan and June Tabor.
But what is his response to those who criticise the new direction, claiming that these new world acts bear too tenuous a relationship to the umbrella under which the festival’s line-up initially sat?
“The folk musicians that I have approached from countries around the world have always jumped at the chance of coming to Glasgow, meeting other artists from other parts of the world and finding a common voice,” Shaw tells me. “They all have something in common: namely that they are writing new songs while drawing on old traditions and I think it’s for this very reason that none of the world music artists that I’ve booked have thought it at all strange to be invited to play a Celtic festival.”
And more than just introducing these acts to the festival’s audience, Shaw has been eager to encourage ‘cross-fertilisation’ of genres – underpinning the ‘connection’ aspect of the festival’s asuspicious title. This year saw the radical young Irish fiddle trio Fidil perform with Senegalese griot singer and kora player Solo Cissokho, and fadista Ana Moura sing along with N’Diale (a new collaboration between Breton fiddler Molard and Malian vocalist Diarra).
Long may these magical musical experiments continue…
But for those of you that can’t wait until next year for more of the same, CC will be staging a first-of-its-kind, two-day music festival on the Isle of Skye as a finale to the Year of Scotland’s Islands. Taking place on March 23 and 24, the Big Top will feature Rosanne Cash, The Civil Wars, the Michael McGoldrick Band, Aoife O’Donovan of Crooked Still fame, Highland favourites Dàimh and Mànran, who recently won the MG Alba Scots Trad Music Award for Album of the Year.
Celtic Connections 2012
Posted on January 20th, 2012 in Songlines Blog by Songlines Intern.
Scotland’s annual folk, roots, indie and world music festival kicked off in Glasgow yesterday. Over 2,100 musicians are visiting 20 venues across the city for the 300 concerts, ceilidhs, art exhibitions, workshops and free events. As well as a traditional music revival, there’ll be the Senegalese supergroup Orchestra Baobab, Malian guitarist Vieux Farka Toure, Fado star Ana Moura and Faiz Ali Faiz from Pakistan.
The workshop programme means that festival-goers can have a go at almost any instrument they like, whether it’s the accordion, fiddle, ukulele, djembe or Irish pipes. You can even take your baby along to a Gaelic lullaby workshop if you like. If you’re a bit more advanced and would like to explore arrangement ideas and techniques that form traditional music, there’ll be a Traditional Strings Weekend Masterclass at the Fiddle Village, starting Jan 28.
The festival lasts until February 5 and will host some of our favourite artists. Grammy-winning Carolina Chocolate Drops will show off their recently expanded African-American string-band at the O2 ABC Glasgow tonight, and will be joined onstage by the Punch Brothers.
To get some kora action, head down to St Andrew’s in the Square on 26 Jan, where Senegalese griot singer and kora player Solo Cissokho will reunite with young Irish fiddle trio Fidel. Malian singer Fatoumata Diawara will also team up with the Michael McGoldrick Quartet to forge yet even more links between African and Celtic music for this event.
To kick off February, Isla St Clair has been added to the line-up for The Singing Land at the Old Fruitmarket on the 1st. She’s won several awards during her career, as well as being voted Best Female Folk Singer by the NME. Malian guitarist Vieux Farka Toure will be supported by Bwani Junction at The Arches on Feburary 5, who’ll be using a bit of reggae, Afro-beat and indie-pop in their music as usual. On the same night, Floating Palace will be at O2 ABC Glasgow, which will bring together KT Tunstall, Martin and Eliza Carthy and Howe Gelb for a musical collaboration.
There’s so much to choose from! Let us know which acts you’re looking forward to.
Lucas Santtana at Favela Chic
Posted on November 6th, 2011 in Songlines Blog by Alexandra Petropoulos.
The sultry melodies expected of bossa nova and electronic riffs sound like an unlikely combination and treacherous territory, but this is exactly where Brazilian Lucas Santtana thrives.
Celebrating the release of his new album, Sem Nostalgia, Lucas Santtana performed at the intimate Brazilian bar Favela Chic on Tuesday after a hit performance supporting fado singer Ana Moura at the Barbican on Halloween.
I wasn’t quite sure what to expect of a live performance by an artist whose studio album relies so much on its electronic elements, but I was thrilled to discover that I was wrong to doubt. Spending as much time on a MIDI pad controller as on the guitar, he gave a spectacular performance that sounded exactly like his album but had the intimacy of the small venue and live audience. It was an outstanding performance to accompany his outstanding album.
Lucas Santtana is a Top of the World in our current issue and his track ‘Super Violão Mashup’ is available on our covermount CD.
WOMAD Saturday Roundup
Posted on August 2nd, 2011 in Songlines Blog by Sophie Atkinson.
Technically, we kicked off Saturday with Ballaké Sissoko and Vincent Segal who – with their unique sounds of the kora and cello combined – soothed crowds late Friday night/Saturday morning at the Charlie Gillett stage. Then it was off to the Siam Tent for a taste of the awesome Pakistani qawwali singer, Faiz Ali Faiz. And finally, before heading back to our infamous motorhome, we stopped by the Charlie Gillett stage once more for some late night blues courtesy of Australian singer, guitar and banjo player, CW Stoneking – whose set was peppered with bizarre anecdotes and even more bizarre accents…
Faiz Ali Faiz in the psychedelic Siam Tent
We arose fresh-faced (ahem) on Saturday morning to glorious sunshine and headed straight over to the Siam Tent where Alejandro and The Magic Tombolinos kicked off proceedings with their Gypsy and klemzer influenced jazz, punk and tango sounds.
Other highlights included Songlines favourites AnDa Union, psychedelic cumbia band Bomba Estereo, Susheela Raman and Vieux Farka Touré. Later in the day, Brassroots rocked the Charlie Gillett stage with their brass band covers of ‘Karma Police’ and ‘Sweet Dreams’ and we heard incredible sets from fado singer Ana Moura and French/Malian singer Fatoumata Diawara. We attempted to see Rod and Gab, but unfortunately for us their over-whelming popularity got in the way. The experimental Argentinean Axel Krygier played a cracking set on the Radio 3 stage set in the picturesque woodlands and Cameroonian Roland Tchakounte wowed the audience, once again at the Charlie Gillett stage.
Vieux Farka Touré on the Open Air stage
Looking back at this list, I honestly can’t believe that we – and more importantly, WOMAD – managed to cram so much amazing music into one day. We went to bed with our ears ringing (damn those subwoofers!) and our heads spinning, but excited beyond all belief that there was still a full day of musical mayhem to be had.
