Artist Category: Fiddle | Page 6

Väsen

Väsen-Duo, Mikael Marin and Olov Johansson have, after 37 years of interaction and touring, refined their sound and their stage presence to the extent that today they are unique in their kind. With their playful and perfect interplay, they seem to defy the laws of physics in what appears to be a telepathic communication.

The music is intense and full of humour. They create their very own musical language which in its appeal is as modern as it is ancient. With the foundation firmly rooted in the traditional music of Uppland, they have always looked curiously at new musical goals.

Olov & Micke have played together since 1983 when they met at Oktoberstämman in Uppsala and discovered that they had a large common repertoire and a similar way of playing. It turned out that Micke had learned from Ivar Tallroth in Uppsala and Olov had learned from Curt Tallroth in Harbo. They had been introduced to the rich Bohlin / Tallroth tradition by the two brothers. Olov & Micke started playing intensively together and released their first recording, “Det rister i Örat,” in 1985. They have played an incredible amount together over the years in Väsen. Now they go on adventures among old fine musicians, stories and trad tunes and at the same time they continue to break new ground. They perform on a variety of stringed instruments, including a silverbasharpa, oktavharpa, three-rowed Nyckelharpa, violoncello da spalla and a blue electric viola.

SVER

SVER play epic Nordic folk music with relentless energy and seductive spark taking you on a fantastic musical journey guaranteed to excite you. Ranging from the very dreamy to a swinging, pounding and sweaty madness – you are invited to the party, greeted by a welcoming primal force that pulls you into the dance. Since the group’s inception, SVER has gone from strength to strength, playing extensively throughout Europe and the US, gaining a reputation as one of the most acclaimed live acts in the Nordic folk scene.

SVER’s latest album “Reverie” (2018) – their fourth release – arrives as they celebrate 10 years together as a quintet. Listen to these musicians as they gel and swing together in a way that’s seldom encountered and you will understand why they have won a reputation as red hot performers whose shows are sizzling affairs. the long-awaited follow up to the critically acclaimed albums ”Fryd” (2015), “Fruen” (2010), and “SVER” (2007).

SVER has often been described as “sounding electric without electricity”, and their flexible musicianship has also made them an attractive backing band for some of Scandinavia’s leading singers in different genres. That has lead to playing on TV-shows, big festivals and positions in the radio charts with the music ranging from folk to reggae/dancehall and rap. Their imaginative soundscapes, grooves, and melodies will take you on a journey over the Norwegian fjords and mountains, into the lively pubs and back out into the deep forest of their musicality.

SVER consists of Olav Luksengård Mjelva (fiddle and Hardanger fiddle), Anders Hall (fiddle and viola), Leif Ingvar Ranøien (diatonic accordion), Adam Johansson (guitar) and Jens Linell (Drums and percussion). Olav and Leif Ingvar have played together since 2002. Vidar Berge joined the group in 2007 on guitar and together they released the self-titled album “SVER”. In the spring of 2008, Anders and Jens completed the band, and they released “Fruen” in 2010. Vidar quit the band later that year and Adam joined the group.

Corner House

Originally hailing from Boston, MA, Corner House takes their name from the place where the four young band members found musical family in one another – their shared home in Brighton, as students at Berklee College of Music. Emerging from varied genre backgrounds, the quartet’s unique strength is their desire to learn from one another, not only in musical skill and style, but in life experience; such that every challenge overcome by one band member becomes part of the group’s shared musical and personal DNA. On their debut full length album How Beautiful It’s Been the band reveals the sublime result of that growth mindset, with a singular sound that incorporates old time, Scottish, progressive bluegrass and folk.

Originally made up of songwriter and guitarist Ethan Hawkins, Scottish fiddle player Louise Bichan, and bluegrass mandolinist Ethan Setiawan, Corner House are students of a wide variety of musical traditions. In the autumn of 2017, the group debuted at FreshGrass Festival in North Adams, MA, before recording a self-titled EP and touring Scotland the following year. Returning from overseas, the three found the illustrious cellist, Casey Murray, living just down the street and invited her to join the fold, unveiling the new line-up on a second EP, Smart Folks, released in 2019. For their debut full length record, which focuses more on lyric based arrangements, they enlisted harp virtuoso Maeve Gilchrist, a past mentor to all four band members, to produce. “We all really admired her musicality, arranging and writing, and Ethan and Maeve bonded over poetry, and songwriting”, explains Bichan.

How Beautiful It’s Been features five songs and four instrumentals, which serve as soundscape meditations between each lyrical offering. Several of the instrumentals, such as “2 Rights Make A Chicken”, showcase the Celtic influence in the band, with gorgeous cello and fiddle melodies calling Alisdair Fraser and Natalie Haas recordings to mind. In this context, however, they are also accompanied by rhythmic and arpeggiated mandolin and guitar, emerging into improvised solos before returning to the melodic backbone of the tune.

In many ways, Corner House is the band we all wish we could be a part of. Mutually inspired, learning from one another, and open to any and all ideas, the group is a beautiful representation of their generation; not only tolerating, but embracing diversity in every aspect of their music making. If we listen closely enough, we may be able to learn just as much from them as they have from one another.

Rakish

Rooted in tradition with an ear toward the future, contemporary folk duo Rakish embodies earnest musical exploration and demonstrates an infectious playfulness on stage. In their sound together, it is evident the two friends share an unbridled love for the traditional sounds of Celtic and American music, and the tight ensemble of a group with years of collaboration under their belt. Strings Magazine says: “Explorative and versatile, the duo draws evident inspiration from not just the deep and wide history of Scottish and Irish Celtic composition, but also the precision-focused structures of classical chamber music and a whole array of improvisational styles.”

Known for her toneful and award-winning fiddle playing in the Celtic music world, Maura Shawn Scanlin grew up in the Appalachian Mountains of North Carolina. Maura is a 2-time U.S. National Scottish Fiddle Champion and a winner of the Glenfiddich Fiddle Competition in Scotland. Her clawhammer banjo playing and songwriting, also featured in the duo, hold the regional music of her homeland close. Maura finds her niche combining influences from a widespread musical journey with the sounds she grew up around.

Steeped in the Irish music communities of Washington D.C. and Baltimore, MD where he was raised, acclaimed guitarist Conor Hearn developed a keen interest in literary theory and poetry, a unique well of material from which he draws unending musical inspiration. His settings of modernist poems, like James Joyce’s Chamber Music, epitomize the duo’s approach: the dexterous alchemy of the old and the new into something wholly Rakish. A keenly sought-after collaborative guitarist, Conor performs with many of the most renowned names in Celtic music today. His guitar style combines bass and rhythm for a uniquely powerful and precise sound.

Rakish, embracing the unconventional connotation of their namesake, create and perform music with verve. Recent highlights of their travels include performances at the Library of Congress, Celtic Colours International Music Festival, Prince Edward Island’s Festival of Small Halls, the Corvallis Celtic Festival, and Official Showcases at Folk Alliance International. They have taught at esteemed fiddle camps across the country including Alasdair Fraser’s Sierra Fiddle Camp, Folk College, Katie McNally’s Boston States Fiddle Camp, and Hanneke Cassel’s Pure Dead Brilliant Fiddle Weekend.

On Now, O Now, the duo’s sophomore release (out October 11, 2024) it is clear Rakish cannot be pigeonholed into one genre and is most comfortable occupying the in-between. Together they journey through Celtic and Americana styles, deftly showcasing how to bring forth something new from the deep well of tradition. They are touring their new album across the country throughout the fall of 2024 and into 2025.

Sumaia Jackson

With driving groove and a smooth, open sound, fiddler and tunestress Sumaia Jackson is a quintessential modern West Coast fiddler. Jackson weaves together Celtic, Old-Time, Swing, and Bluegrass traditions with an easy virtuosity and melodic elegance.

Born and raised in Santa Cruz, California, Jackson studied classical violin, surrounding herself with many innovative and inimitable coastal string players. During her teenage years, Jackson’s musical path widened as she sought out roots music communities in Scottish, Appalachian, Jazz, and Bluegrass traditions, and spent years soaking up tunes and styles at vibrant fiddle camps. She still attends camps and workshops in the roles of student, teacher, helper, coach, or organizer. On a full scholarship, she holds a Bachelor’s degree from Berklee College of Music in the American Roots Music department.

Now living in the Bay Area, Jackson tours North America, Europe, and the UK with Jayme Stone’s Folklife and Laura Cortese & the Dance Cards—playing at the Kennedy Center, Library of Congress, Celtic Connections, Planet Bluegrass, and the Edmonton Folk Festival, and much more. She is also a member of the Real Vocal String Quartet (recipients of a 2017 Gerbode Special Grant in the Arts) and plays duo with award-winning Canadian fiddler, Adrianna Ciccone.

Josie Toney

Josie Toney has been a fixture of the folk music community since a young age, growing up in the contra dance community of Olympia, Washington. Starting violin lessons at the age of 5, she quickly gravitated towards the fiddle tunes her father began teaching her as soon as she could hold the fiddle off of the floor. At 15 she helped form The Retrospectacles, along with fiddler Andrew Foster, pianist Scotty Leach, and Bassist Ethan Jodzeiwicz, who went on to energize contra dance communities around the country.

Between 2013 and 2017 Josie resided in Denver, Colorado, where she formed the Josie Toney Fiddle Studio, teaching private lessons to over 25 students in the Denver area, and performed with various bands around the front range, including the Cowboy Dave Band, Swing Je-Taime, Turkeyfoot, Colin Hotz and Co, and the Lunch Ladies.

In Fall of 2017 Josie moved to Boston, MA to continue her studies at the Berklee School of Music.

The CowCatchers

The CowCatchers are a string band trio featuring Jess Fox on fiddle, Tim FitzPatrick on guitar, and Tim Rowell on Banjo.

Christine Delphine Hedden

Christine Delphine Hedden is an artist who draws upon many wells: traditional, classical and contemporary. She is a composer, a fiddle player and violist, a percussive dancer, an improviser and a storyteller in word and song. Her debut solo album, “When the Aster Blooms” is a diverse storybook of original tunes and songs, inspired by her native New England folk music and her love of Irish traditional music.

Becky Tracy & Keith Murphy

Becky Tracy (fiddle) and Keith Murphy (guitar, mandolin, piano and foot percussion)

Becky and Keith are dynamic performers of traditional music from Newfoundland, Quebec, Ireland, France and beyond. Tracy’s fiddling pulses through tasteful arrangements of dance tunes and resonates with beauty on traditional slow airs. Keith’s gentle and expressive singing in English and French is balanced by the drive and power of his guitar playing and foot percussion. Combined, they produce a range and richness of sound that is striking for a duo. Their playing is seamless, the result of years of playing together and touring across the U.S., Canada and in Europe. Their repertoire also includes Keith’s original compositions (many of which are included in the Black Isle Music tune collection). He is a prolific tunesmith with a writing style strongly based on traditional dance music.

Keith and Becky were two thirds of the popular Vermont trio, Nightingale and are veterans of several other bands including Childsplay and Assembly (Keith) and Wild Asparagus (Becky). They can be heard on recordings of all these bands and many others. Becky released her first solo recording, Evergreen, in 2001. Suffer No Loss (2014) is Keith’s most recent solo recording – a beautifully sparse collection of traditional songs from Newfoundland and New England.

Martin Hayes

Martin Hayes is regarded as one of the most significant talents to emerge in the world of Irish traditional music. His unique sound, his mastery of his chosen instrument – the violin – his acknowledgement of the past and his shaping of the future of the music, combine to create a formidable artistic intelligence.

He has drawn inspiration from many musical genres, but remains grounded in the music he grew up with in East County Clare. He has a unique ability to place the tradition within a wider contemporary context, creating a unique and insightful interpretation of Irish music.

Martin Hayes’ soulful interpretations of traditional Irish music are recognized the world over for their exquisite musicality and irresistible rhythm. He has toured and recorded with guitarist Dennis Cahill for over twenty years, and has collaborated with extraordinary musicians in the classical, folk and contemporary music worlds such as Bill Frisell, Ricky Skaggs, Jordi Savall, Brooklyn Rider and the Irish Chamber Orchestra, RTE Concert Orchestra as well as many of the greatest traditional Irish musicians over the past thirty years. Martin has contributed music, both original and traditional arrangements to modern dance, theatre, film and television. He has performed on stage with Sting and Paul Simon and recently recorded with Yo Yo Ma’s Silk Road Project. He is the artistic director of Masters of Tradition, an annual festival in Bantry, Co. Cork and a co- curator for the Marble Sessions at the Kilkenny Arts Festival.