Four of Portland’s Best Celtic Groups Come Together for Benefit Concert: Don Roy Trio, Naia, Boghat, and The Press Gang (Press Release)

One Longfellow Square, 181 State Street, Portland, presents the first in a series of Benefit Concerts for OLS featuring the best of Portland’s Celtic talent: Don Roy Trio, Naia, Boghat and The Press Gang on Thursday, July 12 at 8 pm. This is an official satellite event hosted by Maine’s popular Saltwater Celtic Festival at Thomas Point Beach . . . → Read More: Four of Portland’s Best Celtic Groups Come Together for Benefit Concert: Don Roy Trio, Naia, Boghat, and The Press Gang (Press Release)

Kage Baker

Kage Baker (1952 - 2010) ran away to sea when she was five, getting a job as a steam whistle on a tramp steamer, and learned to read and write thanks to the tutelage of a kindly one-legged sea cook. He suggested she try her hand at writing science fiction, so she produced her first . . . → Read More: Kage Baker

Old Hag Tunes

She looks like the wizened old crone in that painting Jilly did for Geordie when he got into this kick of learning fiddle tunes with the word ‘hag’ in the title: ‘the Hag in the Kiln,’ ‘Old Hag You Have Killed Me,’ ‘The Hag With the Money,’ and god knows how many more. Just like . . . → Read More: Old Hag Tunes

Gjallarhorn: Nordic Music for Your Consideration

We usually think of folk rock as being either of British or American in origin, say The Byrds or The Animals, both of which used folk sources in their music.

There’s also a lot of magic in the Finnish/Swedish music of Gjallarhorn. The didgeridoo, the percussion, the absolutely outstanding vocals, the lyrics. This is . . . → Read More: Gjallarhorn: Nordic Music for Your Consideration

Värttinä

Värttinä (Finnish for spindle) is a Finnish folk music band which was started as a project by Sari and Mari Kaasinen back in 1983 in the village of Rääkkylä, in Karelia, the southeastern region of that country. In Ilmatar’s Inspirations: Nationalization, Globalization, and the Changing Soundscapes of Finnish Folk Music, our reviewer notes that author . . . → Read More: Värttinä