Murder Ballades I attended eighth blackbirdâs performance of Bryce Dessnerâs Murder Ballades few weeks ago, on Good Friday, at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago. Matthew Duvall, eighth blackbirdâs percussionist, had mentioned the performance on our Facebook page, and … Continue reading →
The D.K. Wilgus article I mentioned in my first post this week divides the American versions of what it refers to as the âRose Connoleyâ ballad into two forms. Â The first is what Wilgus calls the âCome-all-yeâ form, which normally … Continue reading →
    Holly Hunter and Nicholas Cage in âRaising Arizonaâ  Watching this pitch-perfect clip from Joel and Ethan Coenâs âRaising Arizona,â reminded me of Patâs introduction to âTwo Sistersâ , where he mentions that he first heard Clannadâs version … Continue reading →
  [Notes: Thanks to Pat for the title. Iâm going to add some songs in here that are not murder ballads, but they fire some of the same synapses, and their relevance to the story I tell below should … Continue reading →
âDown in the Willow Gardenâ brings us a tune with slightly different roots, and an interesting story about branches. Â Itâs the first ballad weâve taken up with distinctively Irish origins. Â For our first post this week, weâll introduce the ballad … Continue reading →
