boys of the lough
Originally written on 20.01.2002.
First an art gallery. Then a concert of Celtic traditional music. How much culture can a kid take. Last night, I went to a concert by the band Boys of the Lough. As I mentioned before, they play a selection of Scottish and Irish traditional music. Sort of along the lines of bands like the Chieftans. They’ve got the full lineup – mandolin, fiddle, pipe, accordian, guitar, and cello and they masterfully blend these instruments through reel, jig, and walking song (though my undiscerning ears can’t make out the difference). Traditional music isn’t really my thing, but they were super talented and I enjoyed hearing about the history behind some of the selections. At times, they seemed a bit too professional and calculated, like the music definitely belonged at a crowded concert hall instead of a country dance. There were some definite high points, though. At a couple of points during the concert, the boys brought on an older female vocalist who sang both a cappella as well as accompanied by the band. She was singing songs that she had been singing her whole life and was visibly moved to sing them once again in front of the eager audience. Earlier that evening, I was watching this show called “Pop Idols” on television. The premise of the show is that teenaged crooners compete against each other on national TV for a spot at a big time record contract. This week they were singing big band standards, and for the most part, they sucked. Watching this older woman made me think about the persistence of traditional music. There she was, singing songs that were hundreds of years old. The pop kids might have their 15 minutes on the television, singing their little hearts out in cheesy, radio ready voices, but will their songs fill concert halls in 300 years?