catceili

A mighty ceili band at the Catskills Irish Music Week. From l-r: Siobhan and Willie Kelly, Patrick Ourceau, Martin Hayes, Brendan Dolan, Randal Bays, Sean Cleland,
James Keane,Catherine McEvoy, Brian McNamara. (Hidden from view are Gearoid O'hAllmhurain, Martin Mulhaire and Tim Collins.)


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Randal Bays - news

 
July 2007
I taught fiddle classes and performed at the Catskills Irish Arts Week in East Durham, NY. What a great week of music and good times! I was delighted to meet many old friends from Ireland who I hadn't seen in years, and to make new musical friends from all over the U.S., Canada and Ireland. Highlights for me were the two appearances by Fingal, the incredible ceili band I played with (photo above), and some memorable late night sessions. And Louisa's espresso tent! Click here for photos.

 

Before heading out to East Durham, I spent a couple of days in western Massachusetts, taking my fiddle in for a once-over by the wonderful luthier who made it, Andrew Gaybaryan. Andrew works in the Stamell Strings violin shop in Amherst, Mass., and is a genuine wizard when it comes to violin making and setup. He knows how to get the sound, one of a rare few who have that gift. Daithi and I then played a concert at the home of Susan Ott and Terry Burch in Petersham, Mass. This was in conjunction with the Lá Gaeilge (Irish language day) presented by Ár dTeanga Féin school of Irish Language. Many old friends from Massachusetts were there, and we had a great evening.

 

June 2007

In early June, Sharon Goldwasser from Tucson, Arizona, came to Whidbey Island to study fiddle with me for a week. Sharon's trip was made possible by a grant from the Arizona State Arts Commission. Besides being an excellent fiddler, Sharon knows a lot about birds and birdsong, and taught me to recognize some of the birds here on the island. Sharon plays with the band "Round the House", based in Tucson.

 

The other big event in June was the recording of FINGAL's new live album, at a concert here on Whidbey Island. We had a big audience who seemed to have a great time, and I think we captured the spirit of the evening in the recording. We hope to have it available sometime in the next few months.

April 2007

Fingal performed at the North American Convention of Ceoltas Ceoltóirí Éireann in Atlanta, called "Ireland in Dixie". The Atlantans turned on the southern charm and did a wonderful job of organizing everything, so all we had to do was have a good time and play music, a job we know how to do.

 

March 2007

In March I was awarded an Artist Support Grant by Seattle's Jack Straw Foundation, the first grant I've ever received for my music. The grant is for a block of studio time at JSP's fabulous studio in Seattle, where I recorded my most recent CD, Katy Bar the Door. I'm planning to use the grant, starting this fall, to record an album that's primarily focused on my guitar work, including some original compositions.