CEOL AGUS CRAIC: Make the World a Little Brighter With a Donation to Help Others
By ERIN MULLAN
Ceol binn a bhaint as an saol! If the looming end of another year makes you feel the urge to do a little something to make the world a bit brighter, why not make a donation to one of the many organizations that help the hungry and homeless? As my old pal Danny Burns ably demonstrated, a helping or two of generosity and kindness go a long way.
Concert listings
……..A round of applause to all those who worked on the third annual Danny Burns Memorial Feed the Hungry benefit at the Wolf & Hound. Thanks a million for carrying on Danny's good work……..On December 17 and 18 the Vancouver Folk Players in conjunction with the Rogue will present "Now Christmas is Come" at St. James Hall .........Singer Tim O'Brien plays St. James January 7……..Local faves Cleia have a to-be-confirmed gig January 21 at St. James…….Feb 16 sees the terrific Irish-American Solas return to Capilano College Auditorium…..There’s a Cape Breton/Scottish double bill at St. James with Raylene Rankin & Archie Fisher on April 3……..April 10 is the date for a much-awaited Vancouver return of Martin Hayes & Dennis Cahill when the fab duo are slated to play St. James.........Look for Irish band Danú at the summer festivals. The expense of taking a large group on the road means these lads may not be here again, though a last Canadian tour is also in the works for the fall.........There’ll be dancing afoot in August, when Scotland’s finest Shooglenifty return to B.C.
Local motion:
Work off those holiday calories at the next Scottish ceilidh dance on January 7 and also January 28 at the Scottish Cultural Centre. Easy dances taught and called to live music. No partner required. Lesson 7 PM, dance 8-11 PM. Details: www.rscdsvancouver.org or (604) 436-3193………Also at the cultural centre are weekly Scottish Country Dance classes held on Monday nights, for all ages and skill levels. Info: (604) 737-7948.......The next Irish céilí January 15 at the Victoria Drive Community Hall. Wolf & Hound Band will provide the tunes and beginner and kids are always welcome. Details: (604) 709-4140.......For information on the Irish set dancing social group call (604) 934-8261 or (604) 731-9513, and for Irish dance lessons call (604) 253-5410……..The long-standing Tuesday night Irish traditional session at the Irish Heather has been cancelled, at least for now. Thursday nights continue as usual.......The Wolf and Hound has traditional sessions on Monday and Wednesday nights and a traditional French-Canadian session on the third Thursday of every month.
Music News: Vancouver-based Newfoundlander Mary Barry won female artist of the year at the 2004 Newfoundland & Labrador Music Industry Awards. A singer-songwriter who hails, from St. John’s, Mary is also gaining critical acclaim for her recent release These Days………Also on the awards front, Scottish Canadian singer-songwriter David Francey has won the prestigious U.S. Songwriting Award for the folk category for his song Saints and Sinners from his album Torn Screen Door……….. The BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards have nominated Irish trad supergroup Lúnasa’s disc The Kinnity Sessions for album of the year………….Amazon.com rates Libertango by Irish accordionist Sharon Shannon as one of its top 10 international albums of the year.
Recording News:
A host of talent from the Edinburgh music scene and beyond joined forces for the live disc Cold Blow These Winter Winds, a Celtic Celebration of Christmas on Green Linnet Records……….There’s plenty of great new albums to come in 2005 with discs due or studio time soon for scads of exciting artists, including Kate Rusby, Paul Brady and Shooglenifty…....See my musical recommendations for gift ideas for the Celtic music lovers on your list on this page. Have a safe and happy time over the holidays and we’ll see yez next year.
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