On February 15th, my debut album 'Sheear' (meaning 'Westward' in Manx Gaelic) was released. Album launch gigs took place in the Isle of Man and in Ireland, the latter gigs being joint gigs with the Scottish Gaelic supergroup Dàimh. For the Manx launch, which took place on the release date at the Peel Centenary Centre, I gathered the full line-up from...
Read MoreYesterday something very exciting landed on my doorstep: my new CDs! The release date (15th February) is creeping up quickly now, and I'm very much looking forward to my album launch gigs that'll be happening that month. The first gig marks the release date of the album and will take place at the Peel Centenary Centre on the Isle of Man...
Read MorePhewph! It has been a busy month. November began with a whirlwind of a week in which two fantastic Norwegian musicians (Erlend Apneseth and Margit Myhr) arrived on the Isle of Man for an intensive four days of rehearsals with myself and fellow Manx traditional musicians Tomas Callister (fiddle) and David Kilgallon (piano/fiddle). Before I continue, I’ll give you a bit...
Read MoreIn February 2013, myself and Manx fiddle player Tomas Callister travelled to Western Norway to begin a musical collaboration with traditional singer Margit Myhr and Hardanger fiddler Erlend Apneseth. Margit and Erlend will travel to the Island at the beginning of November to join forces with myself, Tom and multi-instrumentalist David Kilgallon for the second part of the project, which is...
Read MoreExcitingly, two songs from my upcoming album were broadcast on 'World on 3' last night (11th Oct). Mary Ann Kennedy chose to play 'Roish my row flaunys er ny chroo' (Before the heavens were created) and 'Graih foalsey' (False love) on her programme: the first public broadcast of any of my solo material! If you had peeped through the keyhole...
Read MoreOn Saturday 21st September, Manx filmmaker Will Sutton shot some music videos for me. We filmed two songs as live performances: 'Fin as Oshin' (Finn and Ossian) and 'The road to Clady'. Both songs feature on my upcoming album. 'Fin as Oshin' is a traditional Manx Gaelic song, quick-paced and fiery. The melody to 'The road to Clady' is a traditional one...
Read MoreThis month, I made the long (but exciting!) journey up to Watercolour Music in Ardgour, Scotland to record a solo album of traditional and contemporary Manx songs. The experience was fantastic: the peaceful, remote surroundings created a calm atmosphere with few distractions. This helped to fuel productivity and energy, particularly for live group performances in the studio. The songs on the album...
Read MoreIn August I will be recording my debut solo album in the West coast of Scotland with guitarist Dave Pearce, double bassist Vanessa McWilliam, flautist and sean nós singer Eoghan O’Ceannabháin and fiddle player Tomas Callister. The album will feature an eclectic mix of traditional and contemporary songs from the Isle of Man in addition to an original composition written...
Read MoreThe Manx Heritage Foundation has just released two exciting new CDs – one full of Manx song and the other with tracks from five up-and-coming young bands. Sollys – which means ‘light’ – gathers together 30 songs in Manx Gaelic. Mainly unaccompanied, they show the range of material currently being sung – old words to new tunes, new words to new...
Read MoreOn Friday 17th May, I performed with my trio at Battersea Mess and Music Hall as part of the Wandsworth Arts Festival in South London. I performed alongside other artists in an evening billed as ‘a platform for contemporary activity, staging new art, performance and multi- disciplinary collaborations.’There was live participatory art from students at Central Saint Martins College of...
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