Ian Worpole casts his eye over the latest CD offerings in the world of trad/folk music.
Lots of great CDs this month, and by way of a preamble, I’ve been thinking lately about how the great fiddlers, accordion players and, well, all those instrumentalists who make up the sound that we know and love are often great teachers as well. This phenomenon, I believe, has become an integral part of the dissemination of traditional Irish music.
From music workshops such as the famous East Durham Arts Week, where I got my start playing the tunes on my newly open-tuned guitar at a Ged Foley workshop while my fiddling pals were soaking up Kevin Burke’s wisdom next door, to private lessons and sessions led by one of these players, it’s a fantastic way to spread the musical word, interact with fans and help the bank balance a little. With that in mind, first up today is a new release from Brian Conway, the Bronx-born, Sligo-styled fiddler who was named Irish Echo’s trad artist of the year