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Tuesday, May 27, 2008

A marathon of music this week

Hey there,

I gave myself a bit of a break from this last week, unplanned, sorry - life got in the way! Strangely enough not in the way of listening to music though, hmh funny that, though I'm a bit vague on some details. (Was I really at the Crane Lane on Sunday? Several witnesses insist...) The Irish Chamber Orchestra on Saturday night were pure pleasure (nice to finally meet you there Vinny!) in the last concert of this season - I can't understand why they don't always sell out - if we can't fill a 400-odd seat theatre every time those guys come to town, well, maybe we don't deserve em.

Sorry I think the sudden cloud and drizzle has me a little down this week. Hang on while I ratchet up the enthusiasm for the tips bit.


Wednesday 28th

7.30pm Cyprus Avenue Peter von Poehl's pretty electro pop will reward drifting into if you're around, just a fiver... http://www.myspace.com/petervonpoehl

9pm Counihans' (next to the Crane Lane) Arundo are a band combining Andean and Irish music who seem to have been playing here a while. Gas idea I'm not convinced but maybe because all I could track down on the net was a phone video with desperate sound - it's a free gig so see what you think yourself.


Thursday 29th

6.15 Glucksman Gallery Singer and violinist Lucia Comnes will surely draw a huge crowd out to see her, especially fans of the wonderful Polskadots, a band she was a founding member of before she returned to her native US. She's now touring with bassist Sean Stillinger and percussionist Aharon Wheels Bolsta. Definitely free gig of the week!

8pm St. Anne's church (the bells one) Shandon The Mount's Bay Singers might be rather good, they describe themselves as "An accomplished and enthusiastic choir" who do a range of stuff - when you consider they say they include 8-part a cappella pieces, well that would suggest they're pretty capable.
Incidentally if YOU or someone you know is interested in joining a choir the Cork Chamber Choir is looking for 1 soprano, 2 tenors and 1 bass. You can contact us through our myspace or drop me a mail and I'll put you in touch with Ann Marie http://www.myspace.com/corkchamberchoir
9pm Roundy Room Brazilian trumpeter Tonynho dos Santos and his new band the Fireangels will have the place feeling very summery.

10pm Nancy Spains Pianinst Emiliano Petronilli (of Swing Street) and drummer Davide Sotgiu are hosting a weekly blues jam session - people are welcome to join in, sounds nice.



Friday 30th


7pm Sirius Arts Centre
right through to Monday

Put a trip to Cobh into you plans this weekend and enjoy some of the Cobh Maritime Song Festival in surely the most perfect venue in the country for such a thing. Check out the whole programme at www.cobhmaritimesongfestival.com and look look amn't I good to you........This is the Cork-Cobh timetable http://www.irishrail.ie/your_journey/printed_timetable_pdfs/2008/Mallow%20Cobh%2008.pdf



Saturday 31st

1.15pm, Cork School of Music A lovely opportunity to hear some great trad from fiddle-player Edel Sullivan and guitarist Eileen Healy AND support a Kenyan orphanage with your €10 entrance - talk about fair trade.

Sunday 1st

10pm Charlie's Eoin (Reggie) O'Regan's band is a very safe bet.


Monday 2nd


9am-3pm Cork City I've had a great time lhelping to line up musicians who will be busking along the length of the Cork City Marathon circuit courtesy of Cork City Council. Trad players, jazzers, rockers, gypsy musicians, old-time and world music groups will be out to try and lift the runners spirits and keep onlookers entertained please come and enjot the atmosphere. My map of the action is here if you want to try and catch something specific - http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?ie=UTF8&hl=en&msa=0&msid=109036976011531848577.00044de7144fe1d8907c9&t=k&z=13 - how about the brilliant Lazik outside Hardwood Café? maybe the Critters at Bishop Lucey Park? Trad on Horgan's Quay or by the Lough? Or jazz at County Hall? We've 20 groups in all...

9pm The Whisky Saxophonist/clarinettist Clinio Cocuzza is hosting a regular session on Mondays now. http://www.myspace.com/cliniococuzza


Thursday 5th

9pm The Roundy The Polskadots have old friend Lucia Comnes as guest, a very special occasion and definitely one for the diary lads

9pm Triskel Jazz harmonica player Ray Preston is clearly a master and well respected by the looks of one enthusiastic expert (http://www.jazzeddie.f2s.com/jazz_harmonica.htm)
this gig with his quaret should be meaty - hear him here http://harmonica.co.uk/music/Ray_Preston_Making_Whoopee.wma


Saturday 7th

8pm Cork Opera House
I'm well ticked off I'll be away for Rufus Wainwright, though he might be sold out already... www.rufuswainwright.com



Have a great one...

x N

Tuesday, May 13, 2008

me and the broken ukele

I haven't heard a whole lot of live music lately between a wedding and a lovely weekend spent housesitting, when I set about learning my first trad tune off Kirsten on the only instrument to hand which happened to be a slackplastic string ( ;-) ) ukelele, probably bought on my hosts' honeymoon, which I tuned in fourths (kind of) for easier transferral to my bass ... until the bridge snapped clean off the body. Oh God, Aideen - Eoin, I'm so sorry I haven't even mentioned that... next time I call out I'll bring some wood glue. Hope Belfast was great.

Edward Beckett was a pleasure last week in a flute concert with pianist Martin Jones but I had to skedaddle off for this months STeTLab which played host to the rather brilliant Eaten By Children video/music hope we get him back over the water again soon. Definitely Ping Pong material if you ask me...

Not much else to report - a good thing though I want clean ears for Friedlander tomorrow. And since I have a committee meeting directly before it and the wild and debauched Midsummer festival direct before that - well, this'll be brief again I need a good night's sleep.



Wednesday 14th

Sorry about the late warning but I just found out about...
1pm School of Music Michael Cleaver (who gave that fantastic minimalist clarinet concert a few weeks back) playing 19th century-composer Anton Eberl's recently re-discovered sonata and another treat of Brahms. I know A bit more though than last time - he's a founding member of Crash and a seasoned and excellent musician who has been studying at the School of Music so when he's finished there I don't suppose we'll have the same opportunities to hear him so grab this if you can. And it's free!


8pm The Bodega Cork Midsummer Festival are inviting the whole town over to the Bodega to celebrate the launch of the festival programme. No need to worry that you didn't wear fancy enough stuff - the code is casual and seasonal get down and enjoy a slice of the fun while taking your first peek at what is rumoured to be a BUMPER edition of fun this June... " It will feature new up and coming act ROUGE and then we will have a summer/salsa Club – which will suit the weather we are having!"

9pm The Whisky No doubt Jess Klein will be worth checking out too... on any other night...




Thursday 15th

1.10pm Crawford - it's all about lunchtime concerts in summer - I know sandwiches in the park is great, but when you want a real lift there's nothing like a 40 minute music fix if you ask me. This one Dr Dana Borsan from Bucharest playing Beethoven Chopin and Schumann in the sunny lecture theatre of the gallery. One of the nicest little venues for music it's so comfy and intimate and the sound's lovely.

7.30 Honan Chapel, UCC join me for the once-off chance to hear the internationally renowned Rimsky-Korsakov String Quartet who will play a selection of russian and russian-themed music as part of a high-level official delegation to promote educational and cultural links between St Petersburg and Cork. Damn exciting stuff...

9pm Roundy Room Suzanne Joubert (from the Declan Sinnott hothouse)and fiddler Edel O'Sullivan should be a nice place to head to afterwards...



Friday 16th

8pm Henry's Cellar Bar, Edinburgh. I will just off the plane and hopefully on time to see my mate sam and the rest of Employee of the Month live for the first time (I think? No, they rocked supporting Caribou in Club one didn't they? or was that his other project North Atlantic Oscillation? )and have a catch up in the lovely city. A trip to Forest Cafe is definitely on the cards.

9pm Cyprus Ave Those fancy, funky rascals the Neon Flea Circus have been playing loads recently by all accounts and headline their own gig just 7 quid for a heap of fun songs, put pour dancing slacks on and get on down...



Jaysus, it's half eleven, sorry lads ye'll have to find out the rest from elsewhere I want to sleep....




--
What's going on?
http://corklivemusic.blogspot.com

Friday, May 9, 2008

Very briefly

Hi there,

Sorry I'm very late this week getting music news out. This is a flying visit too so no idle chatter.

Erik Friedlander next week has now sold out as expected, hope everyone who planned to go was in time.

Briefly, these are the gigs that stood out over the next few days:



Friday 9th

Charlies 9pm - Rumbleshack Rockabilly Trio (what a fantastic name!) http://www.myspace.com/rumbleshackrnr


Saturday 10th

Vertigo Restaurant (Top floor of Cork's County Hall)
10am and through the day - It's not music but I thought many would be interested in the chance to meet and listen to readings by internationally acclaimed authors Pauline McLynn, Brian Keenan, Dermot Bolger and many more thanks to Bealtaine Festival, especially in this unusual setting with panoramic views over the city. Admission is free and all are welcome. To reserve a place contact Sinead Collins 086-2206306 (I'd say you'd be safe enough to turn up though...)

Cyprus Avenue 9pm A Hawk and a Hacksaw from Budapest I have read about before and they sound fantastic - I'm gutted I'll be away and missing it http://www.myspace.com/ahawkandahacksaw


Tuesday 13th

School of Music 1pm The wonderful Polskadots http://www.myspace.com/thepolskadots

Cyprus Avenue 9pm Take-no-prisoners US hip-hop poet Saul Williams has a huge Irish following and with good reason. If you haven't and you think you might like to, do. His latest album, 'The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of Niggy Tardust' was produced by Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails.


Wednesday 14th


Triskel, 9pm Erik Friedlander



Enjoy!


--
What's going on?
http://corklivemusic.blogspot.com