This Friday night, the Big Green is going to get a little greener -- kelly green, to be exact -- with the arrival of Mary Black and the band Solas who are on a tour from their Native Ireland. Both Mary Black and Solas are world-renowned music performers, recognized as some of the best Irish music performers on the music scene today.
Mary Black's history as a performer is far reaching. An accomplished singer, Ms. Black has been performing since she was 14 to a varied audience ranging from the Queen of England to local pubs in Dublin. What has made Ms. Black so appealing to such a large audience must be the fact that her musical talents span from traditional Irish folk tunes to contemporary pieces that fuse Jazz and rock music making her a creative force in the music field.
At the same time other Irish groups such as U2 were taking their passion to the rock scene, Ms Black was bringing traditional Irish music to the forefront of the contemporary world music scene. Her efforts were met with wild enthusiasm.
Since her first music release in 1983, Ms Black has been awarded six times the Best Female Artist in the Irish Recorded Music Awards. In fact Ms. Black has surpassed her fellow Irishmen, U2, as the number-one selling artist in Ireland. The hunger for contemporary Irish music has not been limited to Ireland. Ms. Black has built a strong cult audience in America that has brought her prominence in many music circles in America.
Her increasing regard in America has in fact brought her to the States to produce some of her more recent albums. She has produced 11 albums to date that reflect not only the development of Ms. Black as an artist but also the growing appreciation for Irish contemporary folk music.
As a singer, Ms Black's voice reigns supreme. Her haunting interpretation of many of her works transform the lyrics from being basic to sublime. On her album "the collection" Ms. Black shines.
Her song "The Moon and St. Christopher" is a soothing piece, almost like a lullaby to a child. It entrances the listener with the delicate melding of Ms. Black's voice and the sweet notes of an accordion and saxophone.
Another song that has won Mary Black numerous fans is her work entitled "No Frontiers" which sounds strangely, yet delightfully, like an American country music piece with an Irish accent.
Beyond the album the collection, Ms. Black's prior works are equally excellent in quality and worth getting a listen of tonight in her performance in at the Hopkins Center.
Mary Black isn't the only talent worth catching at tonight's performance. The IrishAmerican band Solas will also be performing.
Hailed by the Boston Globe as "The first truly great Irish band to arise from America," Solas is a band that walks between two worlds and compromises nothing.
While many bands have ridden the popularity wave of the revitalized Irish music wave at the price of originality, Solas has pushed the boundaries of Irish music creating a vibrant sound that will have your feet tapping in Hanover tonight.
Solas has often been compared to the Chieftains and Altan, two world renowned contemporary Irish bands. What separates Solas from these two fine bands is the fact that Solas's roots span two continents.
Three of the band members, multi-instrumentalist Seamus Egan, fiddler Winifred Horgan and accordion-concertina player John Williams are Irish-Americans, while singer Karen Casey and guitarist John Doyle are Irish transplants to New York City.
The band was formed not on the streets of Dublin but in New York City where the five bandmates melded their different styles from both Ireland and the U.S. What was born from that fusion could best be described as "Generation X energy and creativity meets the traditions of the ancient Bards of Ireland." Combing these gifts has given Solas amazing success on the music scene for a band that has only been together for a little over two years.
Their latest album, "Sunny Spells and Scattered Showers" has been celebrated as a brilliant record that infuses Irish music with a vigor of youth that has been lacking lately. The album has received press in a variety of venues ranging from the New York Times to People magazine, garnering praise along the way.
