Ron Korb

My friend, guitarist Brian Hughes, toured with the Chieftain’s in Japan as an opening act with Loreena McKennitt. He then went on to perform with the Chieftains in North America and Europe when they were promoting their album Santiago. In Japan they played about ten shows between Tokyo and Osaka, mainly at soft seat classical concert halls. The seating ranged from 1500 to 4000 capacity. They were booked through the agent Plankton who specializes in Celtic music. Although the audiences were enthusiastic Brian felt that Celtic music was still a niche market in Japan.

Celtic Music and Traditional Japanese Music: A Comparison

If you listen to many of the traditional Japanese folk melodies they have a bittersweet quality that is similar to traditional Celtic music. The Japanese minor pentatonic scale is different from the western one but some phrases especially when they go into the major could easily be bits of Irish or Scottish folk songs. If you look at the traditional transverse folk flute the shinobue, it is really not that different from the fife, or Irish flute in terms of fingering. The technique of sliding and taping with the whistle or the shinobue are also similar.

Where to Find Celtic Music in Japan

The major labels in Japan all have Celtic music under license and CDs are available as imports. A reputable distributor of Irish music in Japan is a company called Music Plant. I think they probably are affiliated with Plankton. JVC (Japan Victor Corporation) directly signed the group ANAM. They have recorded two albums for JVC and have toured Japan three times. A talented young musician from England, Tim Edey who played button accordion on my latest album Celtic Heartland just joined the group recently. There was a company in Tokyo called Trinity who was specializing in importing traditional Celtic CDs but I am not sure they are still in operation. Brian Cullen an Irishman from Wicklow now living in Nagoya has his own label for marketing his own material called Celtic Otter music and he has published collections of ballads.

There is a Celtic festival held annually in Tokyo at Ryutsu Center. They have music and dance performances, fashion shows, arts and crafts exhibitions and seminars and workshops.

There is an organization called CCE Japan that provides lessons for most Irish instruments as well as Set Dance and Gaelic. CCE Japan is the Japanese branch of Comhaltas Ceoltoiri Eireann, an association for promoting

Japanese Musicians Specializing in Irish Instruments

There are some quite accomplished Japanese Celtic musicians. Isao Moriyasu, who began as a classical recorder player, now specializes in Irish flutes. He lectures at Kunitachi Music College and has written a book on Irish music. He often performs with his wife Masako who plays Celtic harp, concertina and bodhran. Mayumi Nagaura who is a member of The Rising Pints, also has her own group called BIRD. She is a really good accordion, tin whistle and bodhran player. She has encouraged many other Japanese to learn Irish instruments.

Western Celtic Musicians in Japan

There are a few musicians who have formed groups with foreign and Japanese members. Examples include the Rising Pints and the now defunct Eye Wish as well as a group in Sendai called Callanish.

The Pub Circuit in Japan

There are many Irish pubs in Japan such as Dubliners, O’Carolan’s, The Pint, The Warrior Celt, Shamrock that regularly have music. Irish pubs all have regular sessions as well. Because rent is at a premium particularly in the major cities like Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya and Kyoto the venues are smaller than you would expect in America or Europe. Like many jazz clubs in this country the capacity ranges from as little as 50 to 200 comfortably. Brian Cullen reports that the Osaka Dubliners claims to have had 600 customers on a St. Patrick’s day a few years ago. I would say that must be the maximum and that is after a few pints. Westerners are usually surprised by the amount of the cover charges. Generally to see a band a 3000 yen cover charge is pretty typical. CD prices are still about 2500 yen as well.

While Celtic artists are not household names like major rock stars, the interest in Celtic music is likely to continue to grow in Japan for some time to come.

2005 Ron Korb – All Rights Reserved

Reprint Rights: Ezine and magazine publishers may reprint this article, as long as the following information is included:

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Ron Korb is a Toronto based, flutist and composer. His music blends jazz and world music (including Celtic and Japanese music) together to create a truly original sound. Ron plays a number of Irish flutes including the penny whistle and the low whistle. He has 2 Celtic Music CDs (Celtic Heartland and Celtic Quest). A number of Ron’s other CDs have Celtic music selections including Flute Traveller, Behind the Mask, and Ron Korb Live. Ron has also been a guest artist on a number of Celtic CDs, including Bruce Mitchell’s Celtic Destiny, Mychael and Jeff Danna’s Celtic Romance and a Celtic Tale.

Official Web Site for Ron Korb, Flutist and Composer,
Japanese Music, Jazz, Celtic Music: http://www.ronkorb.com

Ron Korb Fan Page http://www.ronkorb.com/fanpage.html

Ron Korb Music Catalogue http://www.ronkorb.com/mucat.html

Author: Ron Korb
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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Originally posted 2009-09-22 09:00:49. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

True Colours Pic: Linda Ravenscroft

Linda Ravenscroft is one of the world’s best known faerie artists. She is the author of the wonderful book ‘Enchanted’ and the artist behind the Mystic Faerie Tarot Deck. We’ve had the privilege of chatting briefly with her at one of the festivals and given the chance, would love to interview her for you on one of our shows. She is a fascinating lady whose personal motto is ‘Shine Brightly’!

She says:

“My inspiration comes from many sources. I rely mostly on my dreams and inner feelings as I have done since I was a child, along with my love of nature, instilled within me from an early age by my parents, and their wonderful tales of myths and legends which they would share with me at bedtime.

“Now as an adult with more experience of the world, I am influenced by artists from the past, such as Alphonse Mucha and William Morris, and the era in which they lived and worked, I also have a fascination for the supernatural and unexplained, all of these elements help to fire my imagination and enable me to create my images.

Linda Pic: Linda Ravenscroft

“It’s time to look at our beautiful world and take stock of our feelings and behaviour towards our fellow man, time to open our eyes to see what harm we are doing.” [Source]

3 Wishes Festival

Linda is starting to teach her art to the aspiring artists amongst us. She is developing a Crafting Kit to help us start in our art and will be demonstrating the kit and teaching us at the 3 Wishes Faerie Festival down in Cornwall. We’ll have more details about this amazing festival in a later post.

She says:

“I shall be doing my first tutorial at the 3 Wishes Festival at Colliford Lake in Cornwall – I shall be introducing my new Drawing Faeries Craft Kit (which is a work in progress) It is suitable for beginers and intermediates over 8 years – and I need guinea pigs to test it on!! LOL If you want to join in it will be at 12.30 – 2.00pm on Friday 18th June – spaces limited and there is no charge for the workshop it’s FREE!! YAY – I’m a little nervous so I need as much support as possible.
“Thank you.”

You can find out more about Linda on her website and the 3 Wishes Festival on the FairyFest website.

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You can also now download a Celtic Myth Podshow App from the iTunes store. This is the most convenient and reliable way to access the Celtic Myth Podshow on your iPhone or iPod Touch. You’re always connected to the latest episode, and our App users have access to exclusive bonus content, just touch and play! To find out more visit the iTunes Store or our Descripition Page.

If you come to the site and listen or listen from one of our players – have you considered subscribing? It’s easy and you automatically get the episodes on your computer when they come out. If you’re unsure about the whole RSS/Subscribing thing take a look at our Help page.

Originally posted 2010-06-13 07:15:20. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Pic by : Tom

Irish Bards The BARDS proper occupied a high position in Ireland. The Ollamhs had colleges at Clogher, Armagh, Lismore, and Tamar. On this, Walker’s Historical Memoirs, 1786, observes that “all the eminent schools, delectably situated, which were established by the Christian clergy in the fifth century, were erected on the ruins of those colleges.” They studied for twelve years to gain the barred cap and title of Ollamh or teacher. They were Ollamhain Re-dan, or Filidhe, poets. They acted as heralds, knowing the genealogy of their chiefs.

With white robe, harp in hand, they encouraged warriors in battle Their power of satire was dreaded; and their praise, desired.

There is a story of the Ard Ollamh, or Archdruid, sending to Italy after a book Of skins, containing various chosen compositions, as the Cuilmeun, &c. As heralds they were called Seanachies. As Bards they sang in a hundred different kinds of verse. One Ollamh Fodhla was the Solon of Ireland; Amergin, the singer, lived 500 B.C.; Torna Egeas, was last of the paean bards. Long after, they were patriots of the tribes–

With uncouth harps, in many-colour’d vest,
Their matted hair With boughs fantastic crown’d Continue Reading »

Originally posted 2009-02-18 10:01:15. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Extreme Sheep Herding

The Celts have always been renowned for their excellence, for taking their skills to exceptional levels and the modern Welsh shepherd has proven this still to be true in today’s modern ‘electrical’ age.

Watch the video above and have a giggle but also bear in mind that the links between modern Celts and the ancient warriors dancing along their chariots between racing horses may be stronger than we think!

Originally posted 2009-12-05 04:09:15. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Pic: Amazon

The Isle of Man is undergoing a Manx Gaelic revival. The number of Manx speakers has gone up tenfold in the last twenty years. The government-sponsored Manx Heritage Foundation (Undinys Eiraght Vannin) and the Manx Gaelic Advisory Council (Coonceil ny Gaelgey) regulate and standardise the official use of Manx and have combined to commission this definitive guide to the language: Practical Manx. The book covers the grammar, spelling and pronunciation of Manx Gaelic, rendered accessible to readers of all levels of competence. An accompanying website with voice recordings provides a unique opportunity to observe intonation patterns and other features.

I have to confess that I love grammar. I know a lot of people don’t, but I love the way languages are put together and work!

murmurs Jennifer as reported by the Liverpool Daily Post. Continue Reading »

Originally posted 2009-02-24 09:37:13. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Stonehenge Pic: Human Restore

Human Restore have done it again by providing us with a fascinating documentary – this time examinging some of the basic facts of the construction of Stonehenge. Stonehenge, located on the Salisbury Plain in Southern England, has long been associated with Druids, a group of wise men present in England more than 2000 years ago. Still today at Summer Solstice, the longest day of the year, Druid celebrations are held at Stonehenge. But were they the actual designers?

Excavations underneath the stones have revealed artifacts, like antler horns, carbon dated at 4000 years ago. Bodies found buried nearby are of the same age. This rules out the Druids, as well as the Romans who followed them. This even pre-dates immigrant settlers from Europe. That leaves a primative people known as Ancient Britons, who lived at the start of the bronze age. Great precision was used in assembling the 15,000 tons of rock into circles. Did they have the know-how?

The Welsh Bluestones

Examining the stones, the large ones come from just 20 miles away and could have been dragged there by the Ancient Britons. But what of the smaller Bluestones? Investigation shows that they are found 200 miles away in S.W. Wales. Did they have the ability to carry these stones over water for that distance? The recent discovery of an ancient boat made from a log carrying quarried stones, points to the answer. Several of these boats lashed together and covered with a platform could transport the Bluestones. Investigators using manpower and simple wooden scaffolding have shown they had the technology at the time to erect Stonehenge.

The big remaining question is why did they build it? People who study architecture say it was probably a place of worship. Towering over the people as it did, it inspired a sense of something larger than themselves. The closing segment investigated a mass grave of skeletons found in the area. Using tests on the enamel of the teeth, scientists are able to determine where these people grew up. It was in Wales, the location of the Bluestones.

Watch the Who Built Stonehenge? video on the Human Restore site.

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You can also now download a Celtic Myth Podshow App from the iTunes store. This is the most convenient and reliable way to access the Celtic Myth Podshow on your iPhone or iPod Touch. You’re always connected to the latest episode, and our App users have access to exclusive bonus content, just touch and play! To find out more visit the iTunes Store or our Descripition Page.
You can now also find an Android version of the App which works identically to the iPhone version. You can find it on Appbrain at http://www.appbrain.com/app/celtic-myth-show/tv.wizzard.android.celticmythpodshow841 or by using the QR code opposite.
If you come to the site and listen or listen from one of our players – have you considered subscribing? It’s easy and you automatically get the episodes on your computer when they come out. If you’re unsure about the whole RSS/Subscribing thing take a look at our Help page.

EVER wondered what it was like to live like a Roman-Celt or a Viking? Defend your village on the battlefield? Or have a go at horn–blowing, cooking on a camp fire, weaving and felt-making? Well you will soon get to experience all this and more when Martin Mere launches its newest attraction this month: Mere Tun, a traditional roundhouse village. The Liverpool Echo is running a competition for schools all over Merseyside and Lancashire. Five family passes are up for grabs to those who can answer a simple question. Can you name two materials used in the construction of a Round House?

Over the forthcoming weeks, school groups from all over Merseyside and Lancashire will invade Martin Mere in Fish Lane, Burscough, to take part in Living History Days for an outdoor interactive day. They will leave behind everything modern and experience life as a Viking or Roman-Celt and learn traditional skills as well as find out about the history of the mere. Continue Reading »

Originally posted 2008-04-15 12:52:02. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Pic: Novopress

BBC Alba, the new Gaelic television channel launching next month, is on the hunt for a long-running soap as part of its commitment to broadcasting original drama.A new Scottish Gaelic soap would be the first since Machair, which ran for six years and came to an end in 1998.

Alan Esslemont, BBC Alba’s head of content, said production of original drama formed part of the channel’s strategy and revealed discussions had taken place with a number of independent production companies in Scotland about potential ideas for a long-running series. Continue Reading »

Originally posted 2008-08-25 00:10:25. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Pic: Hansonsfotos

Stonehenge was built as a dance arena for prehistoric “samba-style” raves, according to a study of the acoustics of the 5,000-year-old stone circle. Using cutting-edge technology, Rupert Till, an expert in acoustics and music technology at Huddersfield University in northern England, discovered that Stonehenge’s megaliths reflect sound perfectly, making the stone circle an ideal setting for listening to repetitive trance rhythms.

Till and colleague Bruno Fazenda first carried out mathematical analysis of the archaeological site to make predictions of its acoustic effects. Their aim was to look at Stonehenge as it was thousands of years ago, rather than limit their work to the remaining acoustic properties of the semi-collapsed site.

“We visited a full-size concrete replica of Stonehenge at Maryhill in Washington state. The model was built as a war memorial and has all original stones intact, so it was possible to carry out some acoustic tests,

Till told Discovery News. Continue Reading »

Originally posted 2009-02-15 10:38:54. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Symposium Speakers Pic: University of Wales

The ‘Ancient Britain and the Atlantic Zone’ project, based at the University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh and Celtic Studies at Aberystwyth, held its third annual forum at the National Museum of Wales in Cardiff on Saturday 4 June. So reads the ground-breaking news from the University of Wales.

An audience of over a hundred heard experts presenting cutting-edge research in the fields of archaeology, genetics and linguistics. Project leader Professor John Koch began by setting out the implications of his ground-breaking work on the Tartessian inscriptions of the south-west Iberian Peninsula, dating back as far as the 8th century BC, which he argues to be the earliest attested Celtic language.

Our thoughts

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You can also now download a Celtic Myth Podshow App from the iTunes store. This is the most convenient and reliable way to access the Celtic Myth Podshow on your iPhone or iPod Touch. You’re always connected to the latest episode, and our App users have access to exclusive bonus content, just touch and play! To find out more visit the iTunes Store or our Descripition Page.
You can now also find an Android version of the App which works identically to the iPhone version. You can find it on Appbrain at http://www.appbrain.com/app/celtic-myth-show/tv.wizzard.android.celticmythpodshow841 or by using the QR code opposite.
If you come to the site and listen or listen from one of our players – have you considered subscribing? It’s easy and you automatically get the episodes on your computer when they come out. If you’re unsure about the whole RSS/Subscribing thing take a look at our Help page.