Customer Reviews

Silver Apples of the Moon

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Ceoltoiri is a group of Irish musicians; Connie McKenna, Sue Richards and Karen Ashbrook. These three women, along with a number of guest musicians have put together a CD of music that is a combination of the traditional and new arrangements of mostly Irish/Gaelic jigs, reels and ballads. For any Irish music lover, this is a must-hear collection. Strong and haunting vocals, a variety of traditional instruments (celtic harp, hammered dulcimer, penny whistle, bodhran, and fiddle to name a few), and wonderful songssome of them familiar, some of them more unusual.

The vocal music is my favorite part of this album. My favorites include #1. Arise and Dress Yourself; this is an Irish Gaelic song, where a suitor begs his lover to wake and cut her hair. #6. Son of Wandering Aengus is the famous poem by William Butler Yeats that inspired the title for this album. #11 The Plain Girls Lament; a wonderful example of sean nos (old ways) style singing performed a capella by Connie McKenna. The instrumentals are well done and interspersed between the vocals to provide the listener with a good balance. My particular favorite is #10 Polska Set.

This is a great CD for when you want to really listen to the music. Ive found it hard to have as background music because Ill start paying attention to the lyrics, and the mood shifts from selection to selection. Perfect for anyone interested in Irish music, culture and tradition. The liner notes offer a brief paragraph on each song, explaining the origins of the lyrics and the music and what traditions, if any are behind each particular May you enjoy.

Happy Listening!

shanshad ^_^

I started listening to Celtic music over 20 years ago when I found the Chieftains. I now have over 60 C.D.'s of assorted Celtic ,including Nightnoise, Altan, Mary Black, etc........I have all three Ceoltoiri albums and its hard to choose a favorite ! Far Away and The Polska Set are excellent...The Death of Queen Jane wonderful too!

This is quite possibly my all time favorite album. A combination of vocal and instrumental pieces, the music is both soothing and uplifting.