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Guest
soiolsts
Mercedes Peon (voice & tambourine)
Hevia (midi bagpipes)
Jose Manuel Tejedor (Asturian
bagpipes)
Joxan Goikoetxea (accordion)
KepaJunkera (trikifixa)
Mikei Laboa (vocal)
Oreka TX (txalaparta)
"This
is top-flight concert music,
magical in its shadings,
its emotional complexity
and in its multicultural
interweavings." -
Bill Compton, Sacramento
News & Review
This
live concert CD from the Celtic
supergroup Skyedance --
featuring Scottish fiddle master Alasdair
Fraser, piper Eric Rigler,
flutist Chris Norman,
pianist Paul Machlis,
bassist Mick Linden & percussionist Peter
Maund -- captures stunning
performances, integrating songs
and tunes from illustrious
Spanish musicians with Skyedance's
hallmark Celtic fusion instrumentals.
Guests include the ebullient
Basque accordionist Kepa
Junkera, Latin Grammy nominee
midi-bagpiper Hevia,
Galician singer Mercedes
Peón (who was recently
nominated for a BBC World Music
award) and more. Skyedance's
first release, Way
out to Hope Street,
was an Indie finalist for Best
Celtic Album; their second
CD, Labyrinth,
made the Tower Top Ten picks
for Ambient/ Instrumental releases
in 2000.
1 |
Harris
Dance Performed
by Skyedance with
José Manuel
Tejedor
Ruileadh Cailleach
. Dawn Rant (Fraser) .
Harris Dance
The
great Asturian piper
José Manuel Tejedor
joins us to open with
some Highland tunes from
the early days of Fraser/Machlis,
combined with a reel
from my Dawn Dance album.
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2 |
Dizzy (Mick
Linden) Performed
by Skyedance with Kepa
Junkera
Written
by Mick in honour of
his meeting with the
joltingly memorable Basque
beverage called txakoli.
This piece seemed perfectly
suited to the high energy
and incredibly exciting
playing of Basque accordionist
Kepa Junkera on the trikitixa.
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3 |
Marabilla (Mercedes Peón) Performed
by Mercedes Peón
with Alasdair Fraser,
violin and Paul Machlis,
keyboards
What
a pleasure to meet and
play with this powerful,
beautiful and artistic
woman! Mercedes is doing
a stellar job of moving
Galician traditions into
the 21st century while
giving due credence to
the rich and colourful
history of her culture.
The arrangement of this
song is based on the
recording by Mercedes
Peón and Xosé Lois
Romero on the album Isué.
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4 |
Dinky's
Medley Performed
by Skyedance
Dinky's . Muilean Dubh . Twisted Bridge . Molly Rankin (J.M.
Rankin)
A
fine, rollicking bunch
of tunes from the band.
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5 |
Cries
and Shrieks of Woe Performed
by Chris Norman, wooden
flute
Cries and Shrieks of Woe . Three Highland Dances
These
tunes are from an important
collection of tunes published
in 1784 by the Reverend
Patrick McDonald of Skye
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6 |
A
Stór Mo Chroí Performed
by Eric Rigler, uillean
bagpipes
Translates
as "Jewel of My Heart".
The melody is very old. |
7 |
Stoney
Run (Chris
Norman) Performed
by Skyedance with Oreka
TX
Many
thanks to Igor Otxoa
and Harkaiz Martínez
of Oreka TX for unleashing
so beautifully the ancient
Basque sound of the txalaparta
on this modern Celtic
number! Chris Norman
wrote this piece in honour
of a beautiful stream
that meanders through
Baltimore. |
8 |
The
Spark (Alasdair
Fraser) Performed
by Skyedance with Hevia
and Joxan Goikoetxea
Written
in memory of Donnie "Crotal" Campbell
of Skye. Many thanks
to the groundbreaking
Asturian piper Hevia
and to our wonderfully
expressive Basque friend
Joxan Goikoetxea for
lending their talents
to this crazy romp. |
9 |
Way
Out to Hope Street (Alasdair
Fraser) Performed
by Skyedance with Joxan
Goikoetxea and Oreka
TX
The
title cut from the band's
first album. This tune
is dedicated to Glasgow's
Celtic Connections festival,
which happens around
the area of Hope Street,
and where we see every
January a wonderful coming
together of cultures. |
10 |
Theme
for Scotland (Alasdair
Fraser) Performed
by Alasdair Fraser,
violin; Eric Rigler,
uillean bagpipes; Paul
Machlis, keyboard
I
wrote this tune as a
tribute to the people
who have worked hard
to establish Scotland
as a country where the
voice of the individual
can be heard. The formation
of the Scottish Parliament
in May 1999 was a great
step in that direction. |
11 |
Donostia (Paul
Machlis) Performed
by Skyedance with José Manuel
Tejedor
Paul
Machlis wrote this piece
in honour of the beautiful
Basque city of San Sebastian
(Donostia). It opens
with the unusual sound
of the Asturian pipes
of Jose Manuel Tejedor
in duet with the uillean
pipes of Eric Rigler. |
12 |
Txoria
Txori (The Bird) (Music" Mikel
Laboa; Lyircs J.A.
Artze) Performed
by Skyedance with Mikel
Laboa and Joxan Goikoetxea.
Perhaps
Mikel Laboa can be described
as the poet laureate
of the Basque country.
We owe Mikel a great
debt of gratitude for
taking the time to come
back to the stage and
sing this song of freedom
once more. And thanks
to the audience in the
beautiful Teatro Gayarre
in Pamplona for singing
along! |
13 |
The
Other Side of Sorrow (Alasdair
Fraser) Performed
by Alasdair Fraser,
violin and voice; Paul
Machlis, keyboard
Sorley
Maclean, who died in
1997, was one of Gaeldom's
great poets. His poetry
often reflects a reverence
for nature and a strong-willed
acceptance that nature
can seem, if not cruel,
then sometimes indifferent
to humanity. His epic
poem "The Cuillin", has
been described as a celebration
of the awful strength
of those Skye mountains,
and the affinity of the
Gael with such places. |
14 |
Galen's
Medley (Alasdair
Fraser) Independence
Trail (Fraser) .
Galen's Arrival (Fraser) Performed
by Skyedance with Kepa
Junkera and Oreka TX
Thanks
to Kepa Junkera and Oreka
TX for helping us dance
through these tunes,
which I wrote for my
son Galen 10 years ago. |
15 |
Tail
Toddle Finale Sleepy
Maggie . Tail Toddle
. Fairy Dance . Maggie's
Pancakes (Stuart Morrison) .
The Bulgarian Bandit (Murray
Blair) . Cape Breton
Symphony's Welcome to
Shetland (Willie Hunter,
Jr.) Performed by
Skyedance with Kepa,
Joxan, Mercedes, José Manuel
and Hevia. |
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All
compositions arranged
by Skyedance.
All compositions administered by Culburnie Music (BMI) |
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