Author Archive

Thursday, May 7th, 2009

Milling Frolic at Johnstown. August 2008

Maxie MacNeil, Joe Peter MacLean (holding mic), Allan MacLeod

No Comments » - Posted in music, Gaelic, ethnomusicology by stephanie

Tuesday, May 5th, 2009

knowing, loving

I’ve sometimes been met with resistance when I offer analytical comments about favourite songs to fans of popular music. Some people will only discuss lyrics, not music, while others simply don’t like it when you try to explain songs in any intellectual way. To simply love it, or to intuitively understand it, is enough.
I’m of […]

1 Comment » - Posted in music, ethnomusicology by stephanie

Saturday, May 2nd, 2009

Ethnomusicology: Friendships in the Field

see it BIGGER
(Peter MacLean, right foreground, at the Johnstown Milling Frolic 2007)
While living on Cape Breton Island I would visit Peter, a Gaelic singer, a couple of times per week. He is a font of information on songs and stories, language and local history, but mainly he’s a wonderful person and great company. Outwardly the […]

No Comments » - Posted in music, Gaelic, ethnomusicology by stephanie

Friday, April 24th, 2009

where sampling started

I’ve always had a fondness for early organs and synths. Visits to my Uncle Ken were made even more magical when I got to play his Casio, with its multiple stops, rhythms and choruses. More recently, I spent a magical afternoon with Mark Mothersbaugh as he demoed his crazy keyboard collection.
Now a new documentary looks […]

No Comments » - Posted in music, technology, creativity, audio, film by stephanie

Tuesday, November 11th, 2008

Irish session- CBC concert on demand

Hey, those of you who missed me singing at an Irish session earlier this year can now hear it anytime on CBC’s Concerts on demand. Here’s what they say:
For the past ten years, Dora Keogh’s Irish Pub, on the Danforth in Toronto, has hosted arguably the premier traditional Irish music session in the city, if […]

No Comments » - Posted in music, Gaelic, audio by stephanie