Happy St. Patrick’s Day! In case you missed “Sweetness and Light” on Saturday, here’s Philadelphia composer Romeo Cascarino’s arrangement of “Danny Boy.” It’s part of a recent release of that also includes “Pathways of Love,” eight songs on texts by Sara Teasdale, Eugene Field, Robert Frost, and others, now available as digital downloads. A composer of the name Romeo Cascarino might not be the first you would associate with this best-known of traditional Irish melodies, but a good, public domain folk tune belongs to the world – and Cascarino brings something special to it. Sample it now on YouTube.
Tag: Irish Music
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Irish Music on The Lost Chord for St Patricks Day
This week on “The Lost Chord,” we anticipate St. Patrick’s Day, with two contrasting works with ties to the Emerald Isle.
John Kinsella was born in Dublin in 1932. He combined composition with a career in music administration until 1988, when he left his position as Head of Music at RTE, Ireland’s national broadcasting organization.
As a composer, he was influenced by contemporary trends in the European avant-garde, until 1977. Then, following the completion of his String Quartet No. 3, he wrote nothing for a period of 18 months. He emerged from this self-imposed silence a renewed artist, crafting wholly tonal works of great beauty and integrity. Since then, he has completed eleven symphonies, a second violin concerto, a cello concerto, a fourth string quartet, and various other works.
Kinsella’s Symphony No. 3 was composed in 1989-1990. The work falls into two substantial movements, framed by a brief Prologue and Epilogue, and separated by an Intermezzo, all of which return to material stated in the symphony’s opening bars. The movements are performed without break.
Although it is not a programmatic work, the composer dedicated the symphony, with gratitude, to his parents. He intended the piece as a personal expression of certain aspects of the joy of life. Hence, the subtitle, “Joie de vivre.”
More overtly folk-inflected is “Laments and Dances from the Irish,” after melodies by Irish harper Turlough O’Carolan (1670-1738). Philadelphia-born composer Arnold Black was afflicted with cerebral palsy from birth, resulting in limited mobility on his right side. Yet he managed to become a master of the violin. So successful was he on his instrument that following graduation from the Juilliard School, he was hired as assistant concertmaster of the Baltimore Symphony, and ultimately concertmaster of the National Symphony Orchestra in Washington, DC.
Black’s “Laments and Dances” was commissioned by the Newman and Oltman Guitar Duo. Michael Newman and Laura Oltman reside along the Delaware River in Warren County, NJ. Together or between them, they have taught or been guitarists-in-residence at the Mannes College of Music in New York City, Princeton University, The College of New Jersey, and Lafayette College in Easton, PA. They are also directors of the Raritan River Music Festival, held in historic venues in Central Jersey throughout the month of May. The duo is joined in this recording by the Turtle Island String Quartet.
Pour yourself a pint of stout and find your bliss. We laugh and weep along with the Irish, on “Airs from Erin,” on “The Lost Chord,” now in syndication on KWAX, the radio station of the University of Oregon!
Clip and save the start times for all three of my recorded shows:
PICTURE PERFECT, the movie music show – Friday at 8:00 PM EDT/5:00 PM PDT
SWEETNESS AND LIGHT, the light music program – Saturday at 11:00 AM EDT/8:00 AM PDT
THE LOST CHORD, unusual and neglected rep – Saturday at 7:00 PM EDT/4:00 PM PDT
Stream them, wherever you are, at the link!
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Paddy Moloney of The Chieftains Dies at 83
The Chieftains’ Paddy Moloney has died.
With Sean Potts and Michael Tubridy, Moloney cofounded The Chieftains in Dublin in November 1962. He was the primary composer and arranger of much of the groups’ music, including that for the films “The Grey Fox,” “Treasure Island” (1990), “Rob Roy,” “Gangs of New York,” and Stanley Kubrick’s “Barry Lyndon.” The group also performed on the soundtracks for Michael Kamen’s “Circle of Friends” and John Williams’ “Far and Away.”
In addition, Moloney did session work with Don Henley, Paul McCartney, Mick Jagger, Mike Oldfield, Sting, Stevie Wonder, and The Muppets.
He was 83 years-old.
Love Theme from “Barry Lyndon”
“O’Sullivan’s March”
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St Patrick’s Day Irish Music WWFM
On behalf of the O’Dalaigh clan, on me mother’s side, sincere wishes for a happy St. Patrick’s Day! If you be lookin’ for music on Irish themes, here be a few shamrocks to keep you shaking – webcasts of select installments of me WWFM shows, “Picture Perfect” and “The Lost Chord.” You need merely follow the the links and click on “listen.”
PICTURE PERFECT, “Presentiments of St. Patrick” (air date: 3/13/20)
Raise a pint (or two or three) to selections from the moving pictures, including “The Luck of the Irish” (Cyril J. Mockridge), “Angela’s Ashes” (John Williams), “Circle of Friends” (Michael Kamen), and “The Quiet Man” (Victor Young).
https://www.wwfm.org/post/picture-perfect-march-13-presentiments-st-patrick
THE LOST CHORD, “Airs of Erin” (air date: 3/14/21)
Laugh and weep along to John Kinsella’s Symphony No. 3, “Joie de vivre,” and Arnold Black’s “Laments and Dances from the Irish,” after melodies of Turlough O’Carolan.
https://www.wwfm.org/post/lost-chord-march-14-airs-erin#stream/0
THE LOST CHORD, “The Sharing of the Green” (air date: 3/15/20)
Enjoy a mulligan stew of works by Irish composers John Larchet, Philip Hammond, Howard Ferguson, and A.J. Potter, and works on Celtic themes by Percy Grainger, Sir Arnold Bax, and John Foulds.
https://www.wwfm.org/post/lost-chord-march-15-sharing-green
THE LOST CHORD, “Irish Ties Are Smiling” (air date: 3/17/19)
Irish-American composer Edward Joseph Collins (1886-1951) reflects on his heritage with “Variations on an Irish Tune,” “Variations on an Irish Folksong,” and the Irish Rhapsody “Hibernia.”
https://www.wwfm.org/post/lost-chord-march-17-irish-ties-are-smiling
And if you be feelin’ generous with that pot o’ gold there, make a donation to WWFM, if you please. If we receive 500 contributions, IN ANY AMOUNT, by March 21, we’ll be celebratin’ that great Irish composer, Johann Sebastian McBach, on his birthday, with just his music. No fundraising.
But first we be needin’ to reach that goal! Go raibh míle maith agat! A thousand times, thank you for your generous support of WWFM – The Classical Network and wwfm.org!
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Irish Music This Sunday on The Lost Chord
This Sunday night on “The Lost Chord,” we anticipate St. Patrick’s Day, with two contrasting works with ties to the Emerald Isle.
John Kinsella was born in Dublin in 1932. He combined composition with a career in music administration until 1988, when he left his position as Head of Music at RTE, Ireland’s national broadcasting organization.
As a composer, he was influenced by contemporary trends in the European avant-garde, until 1977. Then, following the completion of his String Quartet No. 3, he wrote nothing for a period of 18 months. He emerged from this self-imposed silence a renewed artist, crafting wholly tonal works of great beauty and integrity. Since then, he has completed eleven symphonies, a second violin concerto, a cello concerto, a fourth string quartet, and various other works.
Kinsella’s Symphony No. 3 was composed in 1989-1990. The work falls into two substantial movements, framed by a brief Prologue and Epilogue, and separated by an Intermezzo, all of which return to material stated in the symphony’s opening bars. The movements are performed without break.
Although it is not a programmatic work, the composer dedicated the symphony, with gratitude, to his parents. He intended the piece as a personal expression of certain aspects of the joy of life. Hence, the subtitle, “Joie de vivre.”
More overtly folk-inflected is “Laments and Dances from the Irish,” after melodies by Irish harper Turlough O’Carolan (1670-1738). Philadelphia-born composer Arnold Black was afflicted with cerebral palsy from birth, resulting in limited mobility on his right side. Yet he managed to become a master of the violin. So successful was he on his instrument that following graduation from the Juilliard School, he was hired as assistant concertmaster of the Baltimore Symphony, and ultimately concertmaster of the National Symphony Orchestra in Washington, DC.
Black’s “Laments and Dances” was commissioned by the Newman and Oltman Guitar Duo. Michael Newman and Laura Oltman reside along the Delaware River in Warren County, NJ. Together or between them, they have taught or been guitarists-in-residence at the Mannes College of Music in New York City, Princeton University, The College of New Jersey, and Lafayette College in Easton, PA. They are also directors of the Raritan River Music Festival, held in historic venues in Central Jersey throughout the month of May. The duo is joined in this recording by the Turtle Island String Quartet.
Pour yourself a pint of stout and find your bliss. We laugh and weep along with the Irish, on “Airs from Erin,” this Sunday night at 10:00 EDT, on WWFM – The Classical Network and wwfm.org.
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