Episode #39 - Celtic Latitudes

So what is Celtic music? Celtic music draws connections to the early cultures of the British Isles and Western Europe. The folk music revival of the 1960s with American artists like Bob Dylan was a huge impetus for the revival of Celtic music and culture. Artists, especially, throughout Britain, Ireland and France took cue and began rediscovering their own roots and unearthed exciting traditions spanning back to a time before the invasions of the Romans or Anglo-Saxons. Soon musicians everywhere were picking up the “illun pipes,” Bodhran, flutes and whistles, fiddles and the bouzouki and igniting the music of the ancients in a modern world. This playlist leads us on a journey throughout the Celtic diaspora. We’ll begin in the British Isles with tunes from Ireland, Wales and Scotland. After that we’ll jump down to Brittany and Galicia. Finally, we’ll cross the Atlantic to the Canadian Maritimes where the legacy of Celtic culture is alive and kicking in Cape Breton and Prince Edward Island. One artist, who I’ve come to discover as of late, who was a key player in the Celtic music renaissance of early 70s is Alan Stivell. Stivell is a musician and singer from Brittany, a Northwest province of France that has survived for centuries as a bastion of Celtic culture. He modernized traditional Breton music and singing in the Breton language. Many consider his music to be the precursor for Celtic Rock. Brittany Ian Morrison Reel - Alan Stivell The Black-Haired Maiden - Alan Stivell Ireland Samradh Samradh - The Gloaming Slip Jig / Jig Gan Ainm - Danu King of the Fairies - Horslips Whirl-Y-Reel 1 - Afro Celt Sound System Wales Chwedl Y Ddwy Ddraig -  Calan Ceffylau - Catrin Finch & Seckou Keita Scotland The Queen of Argyll - Silly Wizard An Dans Elegua - Salsa Celtica Brittany Les Transformations - Malicorne Galicia Dia de Campoo - Cahornega Cape Breton The Giant - Stan Rogers Big Sampie’s Reel - Maxim Cormier Prince Edward Island Huginn & Muninn - Ten Strings and a Goat Skin 4:44 - Vishtén Secret Victory - The East Pointers

Listen to a replay of the broadcast here Broadcast originally aired January 31, 2016