TWFandBF

Been busy this week, so this post has been a bit delayed.

The Westport Folk and Bluegrass Festival was once again a huge success.  We have a very special feeling about the event.  We first attended the 4th annual (this weekend was the 12th) and we attended the festival on our very first night in Westport during our stay in 2010.  And, of course, we met the Duffys on that first night as well.  We became acquainted with the Mac Evillys (mentioned below), who have become a familiar presence to us and each year are a part of the warm welcome we feel when we return.  We also got a good sense of the character of Westport - so many pulling toward a common civic good - increasing the presence, variety, and richness of the arts experience as well as bringing visitors (revenue) to this beautiful town.

He needs no introduction...

Surprisingly, we found new things to do.  We hadn't been to the Sunday morning Gospel session at Trinity Church and were very pleased to attend this year, truly enjoying the gorgeous three-part harmonies of the Gold Heart Sisters.  We especially enjoyed their a cappella version of How Great Thou Art.  The acoustics in the church are amazing and the ladies got the full house to sing along with them in this sturdy old time hymn.  Quite moving.  From there we moved to an outdoor session at the Clew Bay Hotel featuring the Thunderbridge Bluegrass Band from the UK.  Lots of personality and energy, perfect to get the morning crowd going.  And from there to the endless sit-in session at Blousers up James Street.

Open sit-in gig at Blousers.  The multi-talented Tim Rogers (in the cap), a New Hampshire
native who's been in the neighboring town of Louisburgh for many years, serves as the glue
for this free-form session that can keep going for 6 - 8 hours. He's one of the four members
of the committee who plan the festival each year.

Click on this link to hear a version of a song done by the Rocky Top String Band
(pictured above) at their gig on Friday night.  To be honest, I liked their version
a whole lot better, done not as a tune to be skillfully played but as an urgent sermon to
save our immortal souls. Heed the word brother! A terrific feeling of earnestness and a
driving energy possible only from people who play simply for the joy of the music.
On the right, sister and brother, Sarah and Hubie Mac Evilly, anchor the group.
All Westport locals except for the fiddler, who comes from the States. 

A group we missed - The Invisible Jug Band - might have been another personal favorite - check out the video link.  So much going on....  Bring em back Uri!

Although I love the music, I don't really know a great deal about it.  It's infectious and fun, and the intertwining of rhythms, melody and harmony reminds my unsophisticated ear of the elements of good Dixieland jazz.  I have listened to some Bill Monroe and Ralph Stanley, and certainly liked the music in Oh Brother, Where Art Thou, especially the song, A Man of Constant Sorrow.  In one of those serendipitous moments that seem to come to us in Ireland, several years ago on our train trip from Dublin to Westport we were joined at our table by Richard and Carol Hawkins.  Richard is a wicked banjo player and one of the most well-regarded experts on bluegrass in Ireland, throughout Europe, and indeed internationally.  We spent a pleasant three hours getting to know one another and learning a fair amount about bluegrass and the groups we were to see that weekend.  Richard writes the The Bluegrass Ireland Blog, a site that serves as a clearinghouse for concert/gig information, connects bluegrass artists, and provides a forum for discussion of the history and development of bluegrass music.  At the Sunday afternoon concert at Maddens, I spent a fair amount of time with Richard (and Candee with Carol) and I learned a helluva whole lot more about the genre.  I'm happy to report that Richard has subsequently sent me a number of links and articles to help me increase my appreciation of this great music.  I certainly have my homework and it better be done before we meet again next year...  Thanks Richard.