Issue 2 12/97

Belgian folk club looking for international contacts
Belgium/Europe. Ivo Van Hoovels, one of the organisers of Folk-Podium in Leuven, Belgium, would like to get international contacts to folk clubs to make booking easier and cheaper. He wrote: We at Folk-Podium (Leuven) organise club concerts of European folk music from September till May (autumn, winter, spring). We are interested in contacts with folk clubs in surrounding countries to join in on tours of professional folk artists.
For example, he would like to set up a tour for Vujicsics (Hungary) who play serbian/croatian music with their tambura orchestra.
In our opinion this is a very good idea, to make through the internet international folk club contacts, to get enough gigs to make a tour of a special artist possible. We can only support this. If you are interested in cooperating with the Folk Podium, please contact Ivo Van Hoovels.

For a better look
we have from now on also drawings by one of the best German folk music designers. We are happy to introduce you to the drawings of Leipzig artist Annegret Hänsel. Anne has layouted for a long time the now dissolved Folksblatt magazine, and has contributed her drawings for it. Also the drawings on this page are by her. As artist and layouter, she offers to create your posters, covers, graphics, layout, flyers and cartoons. If you are interested, please contact Anne at Tel. +49 341 9122554.

Scandal around Scottish musician Hamish McGregor
Scotland. As far as we know, there is a strange story around Scottish musician Hamish McGregor. It has also something to do with well-known Scottish concertina player Simon Thoumire. But all in all we like the story behind it all, and we still have high respect for both of the musicians. Find out more about this story in our CD review pages. But be careful: Maybe we are lying in that article? Who knows...

Hoeldis on German TV
Germany. On the 26th December between 1.35 p.m. and 2.35 p.m, the emission "Festival der Spielleute" on TV station Suedwest 3 will be present several German bands like Corvus Corax and Hoelderlin Express with interviews and concert recordings. A rare chance to see high quality German folk music on TV! Details and on what frequencies Suedwest 3 can be found on the Hoelderlin Express Homepage

European mainland correspondants of Irish Music mag
Ireland/Europe. From now on the Irish Music (paper) magazine has also European mainland correspondants, compiling a monthly news and scene part with important tour dates of Irish music from the European mainland. It is compiled by your lovely FolkWorld editors.
Irish Music is one of the best and most professional paper folk mags around, focusing - of course - on Irish music. It gets always better and bigger, appears 11 times a year and a subscription is recommended.
If you have news and tour dates of Irish music for mainland Europe, please send it in, so that we can include it in Irish Music. Thanks!

Happy 20th Birthday, No. 1
Germany. This autumn, the old stablished Irish scene pub Sonne (= sun) became 20 years old. Situated in the German town Herne in the Ruhr region, Northrhine-Westfalia, the Sonne always has some of the best of Celtic bands playing in the cosy back room of the pub. Last year's concerts included The Pure Irish Drops, Cran, Ian Carr & Karen Tweed and Kathryn Tickell. You can find the Sonne in the Shamrockstraße 121, more infos at Tel. +49-2323-52673.

Happy 20th Birthday, No. 2
Germany. Also 20 years in existance is the enthuastic folk club in Iserlohn, Northrhine-Westfalia, Germany. Today it is one of the most regular held folk clubs: There are nearly every two weeks concerts - unknown as well as well-known bands in an international mixture. It might be the only folk club around who gets the finances for its mainly through organising book flee markets. The birthday party of Folkclub Iserlohn takes place on 6th and 7th of March; with a concert on the 6th of Andy Irvine supported by German Irish band Pete O'Killy & Friends. Come along to join us in the celebrations! The folk club is held in the Jugendzentrum Karnacksweg; for further infos phone Beate Mackenbruck at +49-2372-13869

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New Kathryn Tickell Trio
England. Kathryn Tickell, piper and fiddler from Northumberland, has formed a new trio: Ian Carr (guitar) and Neil Harland (bass) have left the trio, while now Kit Haigh (guitar) and Julian Sutton (diaton. accordion) join forces with cute Kathryn. This new trio can be seen in Germany in February.

Jamie McMenemy joins Belgian Irish band Orion
Belgium. Jamie, from Glasgow, regarded as one of Scotland's best traditional singers playing also bouzouki, mandolin and cittern, was a founder member of Battlefield Band. After 3 albums with them he went to live in Brittany and re-appeared with the Breton band Kornog. Jamie is now playing with the Belgian Celtic & Balkan band Orion. For their new recording they are also supported by Donal Lunny.

Successful Up To Now
England. In the highly regarded "Best Folk and Roots Music CDs of 1997" Critics' Polls Issue just published by 'Folk Roots' Magazine, Free Reed's blockbuster retrospective double CD of Robin and Barry Dransfield's epic career - entitled 'Up to Now' - was voted top British Folk compilation of 1997 (2nd in the re-issues of the year, highest placed strictly British album in that section).
This 39-track, 2 hour 47 minute release tells the story of the boys' whole musical career, from early 1970, to right 'up to now', and has been widely praised for its wealth of rare and unreleased tracks, 'lost' BBC Radio sessions, its massive Booklet with detailed discography and career notes, and mainly for waking up the world again to The Dransfields' wonderful music.
The CD was second to the Smithsonian's 6-CD set of US Folk Music in the 'world folk compilation' poll, and was the top UK Folk CD in this section.
Free Reed's Neil Wayne - who Folk Roots labelled 'a serious obsessive if ever there was one...'. - was widely congratulated for his 'labour of love' ('Folk on Tap') and this 'object lesson on how these things should be done' ("Q" Magazine), and he is now researching further in-depth CD retrospectives on other 'movers and shakers' of the British Folk Music Scene of the past 25 years - so save some space on your CD shelf for this continuing series of treasures.
News about The Dransfields' CD and Free Reed releases

Traditional Celtic Music & Dance in Nederland
Eltjo Toorn, Dutch musician of Celtic band Shannon, compiles a huge listing of Celtic concerts, festivals and sessions in the Netherlands. This listing is very comprehensive and always up to date. You can find the listings in the internet at the URL: http://huizen.dds.nl/~eltjot/concert.htm

The Editor's CD top ten 1997
FolkWorld. Especially for you to buy something nice to listen to under the Christmas tree, here our recommendations of our best albums of this year:

1. Eliza Carthy & the Kings of Calicutt (Topic Records), English trad rock
2. Danú (own label), excellent young trad Irish band
3. Helmut Debus "Möven Selt Up Wind" (Thein Records, Bremen); Northern German lyrical Platt singer/songwriter
4. Deaf Shepherd "Synergy" (Greentrax Recordings), for us the best young Scottish trad band
5. Na Lúa "os tempos son chegados" (Do Fol/Boa), modern Galician band
6. Ossian "The Carrying Stream" (Greentrax Recordings), the old established Scottish trad band back as good as ever
7. Mick West Band "right side o'the people..." (KRL/Lochshore Records), trad Scottish singer with folk jazz band
8. Niamh Parsons & The Loose Connections "Loosen Up" (Green Linnet), Irish singer with band, ranging from trad to fine folk rock
9. Chateau Neuf Spelemannslag "Tjuvgods" (Grappa Musikkforlag); 18-piece Norwegian Folk-Big Band, with five female singers!
10. Ian Carr & Karen Tweed "Fyace" (own label), tremendous English instrumental duo

Greentrax News 1997
Scotland. Greentrax recordings, one of the leading Scottish labels, looks back on a succesful year. It was recently presented with the "East Lothian Business Achievement Award of 1997"; this waward is made anually to an East Lothian business of any type "judged to have outstanding merit and is symbol of excellence, improvement and vision, marking the role played within its local community." Congrats from FolkWorld for this achievement!
Other good news is that now also Stephen Green, as second son of Ian and June Green, has joined the full-time members of Greentrax staff, especially also handling computer work. One of his merits seem to be that now finally Greentrax has also its own e-mail address: greentrax@aol.com.
From them we have another Top Ten Statistic for 1997: The best selling Greentrax releases of 1997 (from November '97):

1. Shooglenifty, A Whisky Kiss
2. Dick Gaughan, Sail on
3. Various, Music & Song of Greentrax
4. Shooglenifty, Venus in Tweeds
5. Mac Umba, Don't hold your breath
6. Peatbog Fairies, Mellowisity
7. Sileas, Play on Light
8. Deaf Shepherd, Ae Spark O Natures Fire
9. Gordan Duncan, Circular Breath
10. The Occasionals, Back in Step

All drawings on this page by German artist Annegret Haensel; for more info on the artist, look at the editorial page

In the German news you can find as additional news:

• Scottish Folk Festival German tour '98: good stuff, but is it a showcase of the present Scottish scene?
  
• Tastier! - German Irish Folk/GermanSinging/Pop/Hiphop/Jazz band Lecker Sachen win the rock & pop newcomer price for Northrhine-Westfalia, qualifying for the big national one

To the (older) FolkWorld News of Nr. 1
To the (newer) FolkWorld News of Nr. 3

To the content of FolkWorld online music magazines Nr. 2

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