Louise Bichan is a USA-based Scottish musician and photographer who uses both mediums to tell stories old and new.
Growing up in the remote but culturally rich Orkney islands, a place where creativity abounds and playing music has been a part of the social fabric for centuries, gave Louise a solid grounding in music. She started playing fiddle at the age of 7 after witnessing the magic of live music: “I remember the butterflies in the tummy feeling when watching concerts at the Orkney Folk Fest as a kid, wanting to be a part of it all.” The sense of community and belonging it gave her was infectious; she pestered her parents to let her learn.
In the years since, she has honed her craft, first amongst the cream of Scottish folk at Glasgow’s renowned session scene and performances with talent like Orkney group Fara and award-winning singer-songwriter Rachel Sermanni, before a scholarship to Berklee College of Music, Boston, where she developed her style further.
Masterfully blending traditional and classical arrangements, her music is thoughtful, and complex, curious and playful. She composes in response to her roots and the world around her; weaving through stories of connection, to people, nature, the past and the possibility of the future.
Scottish Fish present a fresh take on traditional and contemporary Scottish and Cape Breton music. Their lively and unique arrangements are woven together from session music handed down from generations of the tradition’s finest players. They have performed at public and private venues and festivals across the United States and Europe including Boston Celtic Music Festival, Bellingham Celtic Festival, and Festival de Ortigueira. Their music and performances have earned them features on WGBH, KALW, and in American Girl and Folkworld Magazines; attracted the attention of programs such as America’s Got Talent; and secured an international audience of over three hundred thousand followers. In 2017, the group released their debut album, “Splash,” and followed it with “Tidings,” a 5-track holiday EP, in 2019. Their newest record, “Upscale,” produced by pianist and composer Neil Pearlman, was released in October, 2022, marking the band’s ten year anniversary.
Scottish Fish have been named as “one of the most energetic and creative acts to take root in the local Celtic music scene this century” by Boston Irish reporter Sean Smith, and Scottish Fiddler Hanneke Cassel has described their sound as “both incredibly musical, and just a little unusual.”
“Individually they are all creative and talented,” writes Cassel, “and together they spark each other, pushing each other even further to make amazing music.”
The USA has long been the meeting place and melting pot of the world’s music and culture. It’s no coincidence then, that two fiddle players George Jackson and Patrik Ahlberg, from New Zealand and Sweden respectively, felt the magnetism of America and found themselves living between two cities on American Interstate 65.
After meeting in Chicago teaching at a summer music school in 2016, George and Patrik met again in Nashville to begin working on arrangements of tunes for two fiddles. Bringing together sounds from the deep tradition of Swedish folk music, the celtic origins of antipodean immigration and a shared passion for the traditions of Appalachian America, George and Patrik play spirited and thoughtful dance music and combine their influences without restraint.
The word Kolonien derives from Latin “Colonia”, meaning the cultivator and breaker of new grounds. But in Sweden it’s a term for community gardening, often just outside the cities.
A Koloni is a few square meters of land where urban people can grow some vegetables or flowers and create a sanctuary from city life.
“This Koloni concept sums up what the band means to us very well. A sort of sacred space where we can let things grow, whether it’s music, conversations or ourselves. We’re trying to break new grounds musically and cultivating a new story to grow into.”
Original, Old-Time & a little bit of Scandinavian fiddle tunes with a contemporary groove.
Fiddler & Folksinger Emerald Rae brings the duo of strings and song to a new plateau with mesmerizing dexterity. Hailing from the historic fishing community of Gloucester, Massachusetts, Emerald Rae is both a small-town girl steeped in cherished folk traditions and a world-class artist breaking new ground with inventive fiddle effects.
A degree in Film Scoring from Berklee College of Music in Boston gave her the freedom to cast a wide creative net, while her grit and intensity was earned during her twenty-year career as a powerhouse fiddler and dancer. Rae embarked on her first journey into songwriting and multi-instrumentalism with If Only I Could Fly [May 2013], featuring her prowess on fiddle, vocals, guitar and the crwth [an ancient Welsh fiddle, pronounced “krooth”], and took to the road from the Canadian Maritimes to Shanghai. Single and video Blackbird [April 2017], a droning, groove-heavy version of the traditional Scottish Ballad, showcases her signature ornamented vocals and robust fiddling accompanied by a laid back djembe.
Zeroing in on the synergy of voice and fiddle, the self-produced self-titled album Emerald Rae [May 2018] offers a rare scope of vision and reveals her depth as an artist. Rae’s extraordinary chops transform the fiddle into anything from bagpipes to flamenco or electric guitar, slap bass or ukulele. Her direct and intimate voice, alternately high and honeyed then gutsy and soulful, encompasses both wind and sea, animal and etheric. Though intended as a minimalist introspective album, Rae pulls of an impressive level of variety. This collection of homespun vignettes will take you on a journey and leave you spellbound.
Emily Haviland Baker is a locally-grown, up-and-coming performer & music therapist in the Greater-Boston area. She was raised in Essex County in Massachusetts, and was born into a family of musicians. With her parents being a classical pianist and a classical trumpet-player, and her Aunt being a professional violinist in New York City, Emily chose to play the violin at the age of five. She started with the Suzuki method and moved onto a more vigorous path of studying viola at New England Conservatory Preparatory School from 2002 – 2006. There she studied with Gillian Rogel in her final year, and was in Benjamin Zander’s Youth Philharmonic Orchestra for her last two. (Some of her other accomplishments during this time: In 2005, Emily received first chair in Massachusetts All-States Orchestra, and also went on a 3 week-long tour of Brazil and Venezuela in 2005 with NEC’s YPO.) Emily studied classical viola for one final year in from 2006-2007 with New England Conservatory’s James Buswell.
After a life-evaluation at the age of 18, Emily decided to step away from music and two years later, entered the corporate-world in an administrative role. Her final two and-a-half years were served as the Administrative Assistant to the SVP of Product at Sperry, a men’s & women’s footwear brand. Another life evaluation was due after year five in her corporate-gig, which is when Emily decided to return to music, newly inspired by the folk and bluegrass scene. After receiving a scholarship to Berklee College of Music and shortly after becoming a full-time student again, she realized that not only was performing in her future, but so was serving her community, and that would be through the channel of music therapy.
The Bakers are:
Emily Baker on fiddle & vocals
Ben Baker on cello
Daymark is an international trio performing traditional Irish music infused with infectious energy, raw power, and Northern swagger. Fusing the talents of Will Woodson (flute, uilleann pipes), Dan Foster (fiddle) and Eric McDonald (guitar, vocals) the group presents a classic blend of wind and string as driving flute meets virtuosic fiddle, underpinned by well-considered and expertly delivered guitar.
Each member of the trio had carved their individual musical pathways and style from diligent listening and study, extensive travels, and numerous performances in Ireland, Scotland, England, America, and Canada before meeting at the Northern Roots Festival in Vermont during the winter of 2016. Over a long night of music, they discovered a natural and complementary fit of individual styles, as a well as a mutual interest in the same corners of the Irish tradition. Sharing a love for the music of generations past, in Daymark’s sound one can hear the echoes of Irish-American dance halls from the 1920s and 30s, alongside the lonesome tones of Donegal country fiddlers and the rollicking smoky pubs of Northern England’s immigrant neighborhoods. Taken together, these influences merge into a music that’s very much part of the present; it’s a sound that’s urgent and wild, held together by camaraderie that’s quite audible. This is the foundation of their music. What emerges is intimate enough feel at home down at the local pub, big enough to fill a festival stage or a concert hall.
“Strikingly beautiful, distinctive and exhilarating, with expressive vocals that will find a way into hearts and minds” (No Depression), Ari & Mia reference the styles of Southern and Northeastern fiddle music and the early American songbook to create a realm where their own compositions cross paths with older traditions.
Their stylish and sophisticated music honors the sounds of Appalachian cottages, rural dance floors, and urban concert halls. Combine this with their innovative approach to songwriting and the result is a captivating sound.
“Ari & Mia are not creating a new music; they are taking it to another level and exploring areas that have not been attempted in decades. Their all-acoustic, pure and honest approach has significance. Treading the edges of traditional folk in a more faithful manner, they share the lyrical wizardry of 70’s bands Steeleye Span, Tir-na-Nog, and the Incredible String Band, with searing harmony as good as The Beach Boys. The sisters sing in unison like two violins,” continues No Depression on the review of “Out of Stone.” Their two previous albums, “Land on Shore” and “Unruly Heart,” ranked high on the national folk radio charts. They’ve just released a brand new record, Sew the City.
Dig up Québec’s deep, dark roots, add electrifying energy and beguiling modesty = mind-blowing trad-folk groove.
Taking their name from a traditional song, Les Poules à Colin were raised behind the scenes at folk festivals, learning their craft at kitchen parties amongst some of Quebec’s finest trad musicians – which included their parents – in a region famous for its living heritage.
Despite their young age, Les Poules à Colin have been playing together for over nine years and it shows in their sparkling complicity. The group has a strong stage presence and demonstrates a contagious pleasure in each and every performance, drawing the audience to them. The group has already performed in major cities and small towns in Canada, the US, Europe, the UK and Australia, and Africa, amassing a wealth of impressive experience in a short time.
The group’s sound is a seamless blend of their strong folk upbringing and North American influences that range from old-time to jazz, with some provocative and moody effects. Fiddle, guitar, lapsteel, banjo, mandolin, piano, bass and foot percussion form a rich and varied backdrop for their inventive arrangements. Les Poules à Colin reveal a unique and modern perspective on traditional Québec culture.
