Welcome once again to the Dreamers Newsletter. This will be the last one before Easter as we’ll be away for a few days, hope to be able to put one together in two weeks time.
I’m sure everyone is looking forward to Winter Wilson at the Victoria on Sunday night. Whilst they can be found on recordings or youtube, it is in live performance where these two really excel. Now in their 9th year as full-time musicians, Kip Winter and Dave Wilson bring a sense of intimacy to every venue, blending superb, often hard-hitting original songs, stunning harmonies and musicianship with sometimes hilarious humour and tales of life on the road. According to the reviews, Kip (vocals, accordion, guitar, flute) ”simply has a voice to die for”, whilst Dave (vocals, guitar and banjo) is now rightly recognized as being amongst the top tier of British songwriters.
After this Sunday, it’s
Singers nights for a few weeks, then “Our Atlantic Roots” in May, “Barron Brady” in June and others to look forward to beyond that.
Last week I mentioned Will Finn and Rosie Calvert, past visitors to Dreamers, from Newcastle. I now see that, if you’re reading this in time, they are on Live to Your Living Room tonight, Thursday 7th April at 8.00. Combining piano, steel pan and ukulele with close-knit harmony singing, they bring their own unique twist to traditional music. Tickets from Will Finn & Rosie Calvert | Live to Your Living Room
More from the North-East. On Friday 8th April, you can see the Northumbrian duo The Brothers Gillespie in a livestream of a performance at the Globe in Newcastle. New to me, they apparently sing songs of great lyrical power, animated by the sound of soaring sibling harmony. Their songs and performances have a rare, intimate energy that is both earthy and ethereal, romantic and radical. They’ve just released their third album The Merciful Road and are heading out on tour. Tickets from Apr 8 – The Brothers Gillespie – The Globe (theglobenewcastle.bar)
| In January this year the Spell Songs team recorded a live performance at the Birmingham Symphony Hall and this can be seen on line this Saturday, 9th April and for the following 48 hours. Tickets from Spell Songs: Online Only | B:Music (bmusic.co.uk). Spell Songs features the talents and collaborative genius of Karine Polwart, Julie Fowlis, Seckou Keita, Kris Drever, Rachel Newton, Beth Porter, Jim Molyneux and Jackie Morris, with music from both their first album (2019) and the recently released Spell Songs II: Let The Light In and a diverse array of instruments including the kora, electroharp, cello and Indian harmonium with uplifting vocals. And, finally for this week, “Singing with Nightingales”. Join folk singer Sam Lee and an array of special guests as they welcome the nightingales back to the UK. 2 two special broadcasts, available to tune into on YouTube – Homecoming, on 13th April, and Earth Day, on 22nd April. Each broadcast will weave songs and poems in with the song of the nightingales. For the Homecoming broadcast, you’re also invited to submit recordings if you like, with a selection being chosen to be played on the night. Singing With Nightingales -The Nest Collective. Its Free to view, with donations encouraged to the Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal. |
Lastly, there may be a slight delay with the next edition of Folk Life as, unfortunately, Eleanor & Sam have got Covid, not as badly as some apparently but not operating on all cylinders. We wish them well.
That’s all until after Easter so keep safe and enjoy the holiday.
Nigel