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Harmonise the World

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Sep 302011

With Thanks to Linda Allan.

The lilting strains of “Harmonise the World” with its powerful musical message for today’s world, can be heard at the close of every gathering of the body of women singers called Sweet Adelines International.
Audience members in Deeside will be treated to an example of this international spirit this autumn, when the Jazz Group Conference-of-Swing from Dresden and Aberdeen Chorus of Sweet Adelines team up for two evenings of lively Jazz vocals and superb close harmony.

This all came about when Riki Gohrbrandt one of the German Jazz Group, found an outlet for her musical talent by singing with the Aberdeen Chorus in her spare time while working for a year as a Foreign Languages Assistant in Aberdeen.

She enjoyed the experience so much, and had become such firm friends with the singers, that she was determined to keep up her links with the Chorus and encourage her fellow singers in the Jazz Group to consider a trip to Scotland culminating in a joint concert with her musical friends from last year.

Several months and many reams of emails later, this plan has come to fruition.

The Aberdeen Chorus – fresh from their success at the Edinburgh Fringe and their Show in the Music Hall Aberdeen – is soon to play host to the group of 25 talented singers from Dresden, and provide accommodation with lots of sightseeing opportunities, culminating in two concerts in the Banchory area.

On Monday 3 October at 7:30pm the two groups will make music together in Peterculter Church. Both groups are particularly excited not only about the chance to hear each other, but also the chance to perform together as one and demonstrate to audiences what is so near to all singers’ hearts in the lyrics of “Why we sing” with its echoes of “Harmonise the World”.

On Tuesday 4 October at 7:30pm, Riki will sing with her group Conference-of-Swing at the Woodend Barn Banchory. 4 Quartets from the Aberdeen Chorus, Vocal Zone, Shindig, Chimaera and Singularity are also excited about sharing the stage then and this promises to be an entertaining and very harmonious event.

Tickets £8(£6) for the Peterculter Event from Peterculter Church, Riah Hair Design, Bridge St. Banchory, Kathy Davis 01330 823967, and at the door.

Tickets £10 (£8) (£5) for the Wooded Barn Event from The Woodend Barn Box Office 01330 825431, from the Website www.woodendbarn.co.uk, and at the door

Triumph At The Fringe – Now For The Music Hall

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Sep 082011

Aberdeen Chorus of Sweet Adelines, one of the most successful medal-winning Barbershop choruses in the UK, returned from Edinburgh recently – their third successive year there – hailing their show at the Fringe a triumph. Marketing and Publicity Officer Linda Allan tells us more.

Despite their many adventures on the way there, including thunder storms, mini flash floods on the motorway, a rescue by the A.A., cancelled trains and problems with the staging, all the intrepid lady pirates made it to the venue to the obvious delight of the enthusiastic audience, who gave a standing ovation claiming the show Adventure On The High Cs was “the best one yet”

Now Aberdonians will also get a chance to see these intrepid women display their pirattitude as Adventure On The High Cs will form part of their show in the Music Hall on Friday 16 September at 7:30pm.

Audiences will be treated to a very varied performance, with glimpses of Abba, flashing cutlasses, Gilbert and Sullivan, humorous ditties, and traditional Scottish airs, including a very special arrangement of The Northern Lights.

Sharing the stage this year will be the local successful trio of Fifth Dimension with their special blend of magic and humour which is sure to engage and astound the audience. Spectators will also be treated to enthralling performances by dancers from the very successful Sharon Gill School of Dance.

Tickets £12 (£10) are available from
Aberdeen Box Office on 01224 641122
www.boxofficeaberdeen.com

Free singing lessons

In addition to their Music Hall show the chorus is offering a free 4-week singing course to women. These lessons will take place on Mon 24 Oct, Mon 7 Nov, Mon 21 Nov, and Mon 28 Nov 2011 at 7:30pm in the Britannia Hotel, Bucksburn.

Participants will receive tuition on breathing and posture, vocal production and performing skills in a warm and friendly atmosphere. All course materials – music and learning CDs will be provided – there is no need to be able to read music – but you need to enjoy singing!

For more information contact us via the website www.aberdeenchorus.co.uk

The NEX Factor – Educational Support For Tanzania

Articles, Charity, Community, Events, Gigs and Concerts, Information No Responses »

May 062011

By Stephen Davy-Osborne.

Malaika Africa have launched a charity event of X-traordinary proportions, calling upon teenagers to put their vocal and musical skills to the test to help raise funds to build a school for children in Tanzania.

The NEX Factor (North East X Factor) will take place in June, following the format familiar to many, with auditions taking place in Elgin, Aberdeen and Dundee, from which three finalists from each set of auditions will go head to head at the AECC in August. Of these nine finalists, three will be chosen by the judging panel, with the final vote going to the audience on the night.

The lucky winner will walk away with an amazing prize of recording studio time, courtesy of Musical Vision, a professional photo shoot, courtesy of Paul Mackie photography and £1000 cash.

On the judging panel is Ross Milne from Forfar band The Trade, who will also be performing on the finals night. The Trade have very kindly given the charity a song to be used in a video that is being made out in Africa this summer before the event, which will be unveiled on the final night.

Yasmeen Ali of Malaika Africa is keen for as many local teens to get involved as possible:

“The idea behind this is that as we are building a school for the children in Africa, I would like the children of the North East to be involved in this build hence the above idea: children of the North East helping the children of Africa.”

All teens between the age of 13 and 19 are invited to apply for the auditions taking place in June, with the final taking place on August 13th at the Gordon Suite at the AECC in Aberdeen.

Application forms can be downloaded from the website, and for those not wishing to brave the spotlight, an online donation service is also available.

See: www.malaika-africa.co.uk

Award Winning Country Band Call The Shots

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Mar 252011

With thanks to Matt Duncan.

Music lovers thinking ‘bout moseyin’ on down to The Moorings this Saturday may want to keep one eye on the exit, the other out for trouble, their heads down, and their hands close to their holsters as liquor-swillin’, sharp-shootin’, crazed country cowboys The Malpaso Gang come a-calling.

Aberdeen’s newest country band, The Malpaso Gang, proud heirs to the long tradition of outstanding country music rooted in the fertile forelands of the Grampian Highlands have claimed the title of… “Best Indie Band” in the Aberdeen Fudge Music Awards.

They credit their success to a profound love for professional wrestling set to a soundtrack of Buck Owens, and their legions of adoring fans.

The band’s spokesperson, Nina Eggens, after downing her 8th shot of whiskey and shooting out all the bottles behind the bar, aiming from the hip, told Aberdeen Voice:

“We’re so proud. It’s all down to Hank Williams song, ‘Rambling Man’.”

It was the train whistle that apparently set off the fusillade, claiming the lives of the cheap liquor behind the bar leaving no survivors.

Bail for the Gang’s sharp-shooting lead singer has to date been unforthcoming, and it has been reported that the band’s decision to prioritise the raising of money to pay off their bar bill may be the cause of the delay.

The bar tab resulted from drinking which followed the brawl that erupted when, while claiming an unrelated award for stranded steel guitarist Son Henry, Matt Duncan made an insightful comment about a neighbouring city in an unfortunate moment of candour and honesty.

Bassist Dave Haxton, off to fetch another pint, could not be reached for comment.

All of which is appropriate, because as we all know, country music is all about true stories. And all this, they swear, is true.

The Malpaso Gang will be supported on the night by Edinburgh psychedelic-garage–punk band Acid Fascists, and local folk rock artist Foxhunting.

The Malpaso Gang
Acid Fascists
Foxhunting.

Sat 26th March @ The Moorings.

Central And Eastern European Fortnight In Aberdeen

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Mar 152011

By Kieran Donnan.

It is not unknown that in the Northeast there is now a considerable part of the population of Eastern and Central European descent.

The Shared Planet society have thus been inclined to host musical events, dance, music and cookery workshops, talks and possibly a photograph exhibition to bring the color of that culture to the Northeast for two weeks.

The series of events, organised by Shared Planet Society and supported by the Polish Soc, Lithuanian Soc, German Soc, Climate Change Project and Amnesty International, are more or less a warm effort to invoke cultural understanding and the idea of integration into our community.

Described as a sense experience, the events are intended to be colourful, musical, sumptuous and informative; a veritable tapestry of the Eastern European experience.

The collaboration of the diverse societies of Aberdeen University can be experienced at the communal club night, taking place on Friday the 18th of March in the Tunnels. The Eastern European Diversity Club Night offers a variety of music ranging from Balkan Beat, through Klezmer, traditional and modern Lithuanian vibes, Polish tunes to Estonian rock. Next to more interactive happenings at the Club Night and Polish and Romanian Cookery Workshops, the Fortnight offers six different talks informing different aspects of Central and Eastern European life, language, history and identity.

On the 23rd of March, there will be music workshops focusing on Balkan music and the tradition of Klezmer music and dance, which is essentially an ethnic Jewish tradition but undergoing revival in different forms such as jazz and modern folk music. The idea most prevalent in the Klezmer tradition is the expression of human emotions, from grief to joy, and it is ultimately a celebration of the joy of living.

Also on the 23rd, a Klezmer dance workshop will be followed by a concert, which marks one of the highlights of the Fortnight.

these are simply a demonstration of community feeling and warmth towards relatively new neighbours

The concert will be given by She’Koyokh, who describe themselves on their webpage as London’s “klezmer sensation”, performing Eastern European and Balkan folk music at international festivals and concert halls, performing lively and particularly vibrant music, one cannot resist dancing to.

A less raucous but nonetheless engaging element of the culture awareness week will be a series of talks by academics of various departments from the University of Aberdeen on the significance of understanding Central and Eastern cultural identity and history within the Northeast community.

One of the interests of the Shared Planet society is to nudge people into understanding the new element that exists within not only the Northeast, but the entire community in Scotland, an element that is rich in history, culture and taste.

These talks, along with the possibility of a photography exhibition titled “Scotland Through our Eyes” during the course of the fortnight, are simply a demonstration of community feeling and warmth towards relatively new neighbours. It will be a varied and sensual experience, aural, visual and for the sense of taste as well.

It is certainly worth picking one of these events to go to, even better to enjoy the whole experience.

For more info, click – http://www.abdn.ac.uk/motd/index.php?action=details&id=f39cbec1

Hogmanay Hootenanny

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Dec 262010

By Peter Coutts.

It’s that time of year when everyone is frantically trying to pin down exactly which social gathering they will attend this Hogmanay. Well, the answer to your New Year party prayers is here….

The Blue Lamp will be hosting its second Hogmanay Hootenanny, on December 31, funnily enough.

Following the success of last year’s festivities, the Lampie is once again home to this tasty event, featuring the cream of local talent firing at you traditional and not-so-traditional music from both sides of the Atlantic.

Local 6-piece bluegrassers Smokin’ Catfish have been surprising audiences in Aberdeen for over two years with their stunning harmonies and foot-stomping live performances. This traditional bluegrass line up with its inbuilt rock ‘n’ roll attitude will wear out your dancing shoes in an explosion of high-octane, string-pickin’ fun.

Catford, new to the Aberdeen scene, feature local multi-instrumentalists and singer/songwriters Steve Crawford and Davy Cattanach, augmented by the amazing Jonny Hardie, Davy’s former Old Blind Dogs bandmate. The boys have just released a new album, Chronicles, which should be on your January sales shopping list. Driven by Steve and Davy’s percussion and guitar and underpinned by Jonny’s luxuriant strings, Catford’s blend of exquisite songs, jaw-dropping harmonies and virtuoso musicianship will leave you mesmerised.

Also joining in will be local firecracker and host of SHMU FM’s Monday Session, Naomi Ballantyne, an exciting local fiddler who will bring a smile to your face, a twitch to your toes and a song to your heart. Naomi will be joined by members of Catford and Smokin’ Catfish for a rip-roaring transatlantic session.

So, this Hogmanay, give yourself a last-gasp 2010 gift and get down to the best venue in Aberdeen and hae a rare auld time in the friendly atmosphere. Slainte mhath.

HOGMANAY HOOTENANNY, The Blue Lamp 31 December 2010, featuring

Smokin’ Catfish (kickass bluegrass)

Catford (Davy Cattanach, Steve Crawford, Jonny Hardie)

with special guest Naomi Ballantyne

8.30pm (onstage 9.30) till LATE

A ‘Cracker’ Of A Ceilidh This Christmas

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Dec 172010

With thanks to Charlie Abel.

Local band Iron Broo are returning to the Culter Club this Saturday for a night of festive fun and dancing.

Their Christmas Ceilidh night has become a popular annual feature in their hectic gig schedule and is a rare opportunity to catch the band in action at a public event. Most of the band’s gigs are private functions, weddings and corporate events; only a small number are open to the public and are often sold out. So don’t miss your chance to hear them.

Tickets have been selling well for the Christmas Ceilidh but there are still some available.

The Iron Broo ceilidh band have exported their particular style of Aberdonian ceilidh music all round the globe. In recent years they have been to Ireland, Netherlands, Latvia, Norway, Spain and even darkest Englandshire. They have also appeared no less than seven times at T in the Park.

“We’ve sailed the seven seas, fought a hundred battles, shed a thousand tears and lifted the spirits of millions …” said the bouzouki man Fred – tongue firmly in cheek.

Their only commercially available CD which was recorded Live at the Moray Ceilidh Club in Elgin is available through out the world on iTunes and is advertised as a best seller by Amazon.

The Culter Club is a private club and has one of the largest dance halls in the Aberdeen area. It also hosts regular dances throughout the year for members and their friends. It is always a risk having a Ceilidh out of the centre of the town but as the Christmas Ceilidh has become a regular event at Culter, there is a real sense of community spirit and the audience span the ages. Many locals brave the snow to make it to the ceilidh every year; and the band have also offered to assist in towing out anyone who happens to get caught in the snow in the car park after the gig!

So forget the forecast, ‘Snow’ good bidin’ at hame, ‘Skate’ on doon and keep warm in style!

There will be the fantastic Iron Broo M&S Christmas Hamper raffle and a special guest Ballroom DJ during the break giving some instruction to some ballroom classics. Iron Broo will also call all the ceilidh dances so even if you have never been to a ceilidh before they promise to have you ‘jiggin’ awa furiously in nae time!’

There will be a bar available for various refreshments.

Christmas Ceilidh
Saturday 18^th December 2010
The Culter Club, Cairn Road, Peterculter. 01224 733578

Doors will be open from 7.30pm and dancing will start around 8pm.

Tickets £10 adults – £4 under 16 – Free to under 6.

Seating reservations available with advance bookings (call Charlie 07802 861390). Tickets also available on the door.

Ticket information is available on their website. (link to:http://www.ironbroo.co.uk/CeilidhGigsNews.html )

Motörhead Concert Review

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Dec 032010

By Pete Thomson.

Motorhead. I only know three of their songs, but I do have a big soft spot for Lemmy Kilmister. When he was kicked out of Hawkwind in 1975 for ‘doing the wrong drugs,’ he formed Motörhead and never looked back. It’s more than 20 years since they were in town and when I hear they’re due to play the relatively cosy Music Hall, I just have to get tickets.

Due to “unprecedented demand,” however, the gig is moved to the infamous AECC. The prospect of an evening in that miserable, miles-from-nowhere hellhole holds considerably less allure but neither Lemmy nor I are in the first flush of youth and I might never get another chance to see him. Not in this world, anyway.

Ms. Ashby and I battle through gale-force winds on the night, stumbling into the AECC minutes before the band comes on. As we enter the arena, a few faces from the golden age of Radars drift by. For a moment the years seem to melt away, but there’s no Rosie behind the bar and beneath the varying degrees of intoxication obvious in my erstwhile drinking buddies there’s a discomforting but undeniable air of decrepitude. None of us is getting any younger.

Motörhead shortly hit the boards to deafening acclaim and launch into being, well, Motörhead. With Lemmy growling famously away beneath his customised cowboy hat, Phil Campbell throws a few guitar heroics while, high over the stage, Mikkey Dee thrashes madly at his kit for all the world like Animal from The Muppets. Nothing new there, then: cacophonous, no-frills rock and roll that sends the moshers about their somewhat less than solemn business of going loopy. Let’s face it, though, your average Motörhead fan is happy as a pig amongst the proverbial as long as they hear Ace Of Spades at some point and everything else at 150 decibels. Fair play to that.

she’s unusually pale beneath the sonic onslaught

But I’m not your average fan. Apart from the light show being downright ordinary, the sound is terrible and it’s dawning on me pretty damn quick why I stopped listening to this kind of stuff 30-odd years ago.

Yes, I can see why their music has been called “a beacon of defiant celebration,” and I do love the punk ethic that underpins everything Motörhead stands for; it’s just that after three numbers, they haven’t got an awful lot left to offer.

Ms. Ashby observes that maybe Motörhead is ‘a male thing’. Here against her better judgement, she’s unusually pale beneath the sonic onslaught but correct. Between hordes of headbangers having a ball and the hundreds of vaguely disappointed punters shuffling around uneasily at the back, there are very few women. Seven songs in, it’s time to go. We leave them to it.

It’s all been a bit of a let down; but that’s the trouble with legends, at least those with whom we’re largely unacquainted. Go see any revered artist without the emotional resonance that comes from hearing them at our most pivotal moments and we’re reduced to little more than interested spectators. Sometimes that works but it can be a recipe for disaster.

I remember how not even the warm intimacy of the Music Hall could save country giant Willie Nelson from being well past his sell-by date. Without that cushion of sentimentality, I saw not the wonderful show I’d hoped for but a tired old man going through the motions. The old trouper’s voice was shot, the show cloyingly contrived. But the majority of the crowd couldn’t care less. They loved him. Like Lemmy, he soldiers on regardless. Somehow, that’s exactly how it should be. Who wants to live forever, anyway?

Catriona McKay and Chris Stout – At The Blue Lamp

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Nov 122010

With thanks to Interesting Music.

Interesting Music presents an interesting combination of musicians, each highly respected for their individual talent, at the Blue Lamp, Sunday, Nov 21st. ( see events calendar – click here )

Catriona McKay (Scottish harp) and Chris Stout (Shetland fiddle) play a dynamic and adventurous exploration of traditional Scottish music. Performing together for 15 years, they are connected to the traditions of their instruments while being highly aware of and enthralled by the possibilities they hold. They pursue a path to explore sounds that connect and challenge.

Their self-penned 2010 album White Nights is a modulation between past and present, between summer and winter, between reliability and risk. Music inspired by the heightened senses during the long light nights of summer in the north, and in contrast, music which celebrates reflections of winter landscapes and sounds.

Through colour and depth of tone, they abandon themselves on a journey to create one sound, yet they carve out space for one another to allow a musical dialogue. It is this unity along with communication that makes their music so compelling.

Catriona has just been short-listed for a Glenfiddich Award up against Biffy Clyro, Paulo Nutini and Isobel Campbell – an interesting line up to say the least!

http://www.mckaystoutmusic.co.uk

CATRIONA MCKAY AND CHRIS STOUT + SUPPORT
Sunday, 21 November 2010
The Blue Lamp, 121 Gallowgate, Aberdeen, AB25 1BU. Phone (01224) 647472
Doors 8pm
Tickets £10+bf in adv / £12 on door
Available from One-Up Records, Belmont Street, Aberdeen. Phone (01224) 642662 or http://www.ticketweb.co.uk

http://www.myspace.com/interestingmusic

Chronicles – Catford Launch New Album

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Nov 052010

With thanks to Anne Campbell.

Catford, a new band on the Aberdeen scene, are about to release a superb new album called “Chronicles”. The Album will be launched at The Blue Lamp on Monday 8th November, offering the first chance check out this exciting new act.

Multi-instrumentalists and singer/songwriters Steve Crawford and Davy Cattanach are joined by Jonny Hardie who is Davy’s former band mate in the popular traditional outfit – “The Old Blind Dogs”.

Steve and Davy have been writing and playing together for several years, originally with the Pictones, but laterally as an acoustic duo. Whilst working with Jonny on a recording project, Jonny asked if they would like to record some tracks at his studio. Naturally they jumped at the chance and with Jonny on board a few tracks quickly turned into an album with some fabulous string arrangements and accompaniment by Hardie.

Also performing on the album are well known local musicians Mhairi Sinclair and Nicky Cairney, and the legendary saxophonist Nigel Hitchcock. Nigel’s contribution to the track “Pressure” is one of the albums many highlights.

The result is an acoustic album with an emphasis on vocal harmonies, driven by Steve and Davy’s percussion and guitar along with Jonny’s luxuriant strings. Those of us who have been hearing these songs developed and played at various gigs and sessions can now hear them arranged and performed exquisitely and will finally be able to take them home.

“Chronicles” is released on the 8th of November at the Blue Lamp and will be available from local outlets. The band will be joined on stage by local guitarist Pete Coutts in addition to all who appeared on the album. See Events. (link)

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