Tuesday, 19 August 2014

Music from the Fringe of Europe.

It’s been absolutely ages since I posted a YouTube clip, so I think I can permit myself the indulgence. This is one I discovered a few days ago.


The first part is an old Irish folk tune, played with remarkable aplomb for a German band. And by that I mean no disrespect to Germans or their bands, it’s just that I’ve never heard a Gaelic folk tune played this well except by Gaelic musicians who’ve been brought up with their native tradition.

The second part is a mediaeval English folk song which has many versions. This one has a gentle earthiness about it, and reminds me of the original version of the film The Wicker Man. Natural religion at its most dissolute, yet compellingly attractive. And that probably says more about me than it does about either the film or the music.

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