     HARALD HAUGAARD Den Femste Søster Westpark 0511 www.westparkmusic.de  Harald Haugaard might still be best remembered as half of Haugaard & Høirup, but for the last few years heâs been forging his own career. This … Continue reading →
    ARNE ANDERDAL Godsruta: Tradisjonmusik frĂĽ Hallingdal og Hemsedal Etnisk Musikklubb 81 www.etniskmusikklubb.no  Norwegian Arne Anderdal has played the Hardanger fiddle (like a normal fiddle but with four sympathetic drone strings) and investigated the music of … Continue reading →
 In the last post on Led Zeppelinâs âGallows Pole,â we looked at how a centuries-old English tale about a fair maiden who loses a golden ball evolved into two different stories â one with a fairy tale ending in which … Continue reading →
     DAPPERâS DELIGHT Indoors Karnatic Lab 025 www.karnaticlab.com/  Dapperâs Delight, the Dutch-based duo of Anglo concertina and recorder (the recorders are specially made and based on 16th century models) specialize in music that sounds far … Continue reading →
    SPIRO Kaleidophonica RealWorld 188 www.realworldrecords.com www.spiromusic.com  Spiro is a quartet of highly imaginative musicians centered around the English town of Bristol. At first glance the combination of fiddle, piano accordion, mandolin and guitar would indicate … Continue reading →
    DENNIS STROUGHMATT La Belle Blondine Swallow 6223 www.swallowrecords.com www.creolefiddle.com  When you studied US history, you probably never learned about the French Creole settlers who founded the Illinois territory 300 years ago along the Mississippi and … Continue reading →
My chosen song this week has as its origins an English fairy tale about a girl who loses a nice toy and is punished for it. It is a tale that grew in at least two major branches. Along one … Continue reading →
     DAVID FRANCEY Late Edition Laker 1009 www.davidfrancey.com  After nine celebrated albums of carefully-crafted balladry, the novel fact that Scottish-Canadian songwriter David Francey released his first album in 1999 at age 45 has worn off, … Continue reading →
Glencoe, Scotland. On Monday I set the scene and told some of the backstory of the events leading up to the massacre. Today I tell the story of the massacre itself, I will also name the victims, the culprits and … Continue reading →
    RYAN McGIVER Troubled in Mind Ryan McGiver www.ryanmcgiver.com  Ryan McGiverâs debut album, Troubled in Mind, features mostly traditional music from his native Catskill Mountains. Ryan is a fine singer whose intimate style resembles Nick Drake … Continue reading →
