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Herald Sun, Concert Preview >>
Triangle to be be alive with the sounds of Celtic music
Van Week
Triangle fans of Celtic music will be walking in tall cotton in the coming week, when the bands Solas and Dervish perform as part of ArtsCenter's Celtic Con cert Series. Both shows promise total Irish immer sion and an ex cuse to revive St. Patrick's Day.
Solas and Dervish will perform within five days of each other (Solas on Sunday, Dervish on Thursday).
Dervish has been a force in Celtic music since 1989.
The group was formed by Liam Kelly (flute and whistles), Shane Mitchell (accordion), Michael Holmes (bazouki), Brian McDonagh (mandola), and Martin Mc-Ginley, who is no longer with Dervish. The current lineup features Kelly, Mitchell, Holmes, McDonagh, Tom Morrow (fiddle), and Cathy Jordan (bodhran, bones, and vocals).
Dervish was touring fairly extensively by 1991, at which time the band released their debut album, "Harmony Hill" (1992). They released the outstanding album "Playing with Fire" in 1994, a disc that topped the Irish Folk Music Charts and roots-world charts as well.
The thing that has Dervish fans cranked is the band's musicianship, which is world class. In concert the band can lay down a ferocious groove, blasting through intricate jigs with a virtuosity that simply blows away their audience. In terms of their chops, Dervish is surely a match for groups such as Solas, Lunasa, and Flook, as well as forerunners Planxty and The Bothy Band.
Dervish has also ventured into markets one may not think are typically havens for Celtic music. In 1996 the band played a series of dates in Hong Kong and Malaysia and were received with enthusiasm. In 2006 Dervish accompanied the prime minister of Ireland and a good bit of the Irish government on a trade mission to China. Dervish was also the first Irish band to perform at the Rock in Rio music festival in Rio de Janiero, performing before an estimated crowd of 240,000 music fans.
Both Solas and Dervish have released live albums as well as studio projects. Solas celebrated a decade together with the 2006 CD "Reunion," recorded in Philadelphia. Dervish produced a double-CD, "Live in Palma," recorded at Palma de Majorca's Theatre Principal, in 1997.
Philip Van Vteck charts our world's music from his office in Gary. Reach him at vanvelck@nc.rr.com.
(excerpt)
03/23/07
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