Search - Kathryn Tickell :: The Gathering

All the energy and innovation that makes Tickell great!

09/04/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"While some may prefer the vocals and more languid tunes included in her subsequent album "The Northumbrian Collection", "The Gathering" is a great disc to get for an all-instrumental experience of the best in Northumbrian pipes, with Kathryn on pipes and fiddle, and excellent backup by Ian Carr on guitar and Neil Harland on bass. While her work is deeply rooted in Northumbrian tradition, and most of the pieces performed here are her own compositions, her ability to weave a tapestry including other traditions is formidable. This collection starts with "Raincheck", a souvenir of their tour in Turkey, replete with 3-against-two rhythm. "The Gathering" is a piece written by Kathryn to commemorate her participation in the Cork festival by that name where, according to the liner notes, "....the organisers....seem to spend all year dreaming up unlikely musical pairings. On arrival we...are told who we are expected to duet with..." One year she was paired with Brendan Power, a blues harmonica player from New Zealand, and the real virtuoso piece on this CD is the "Real Blues Reel" written by him for their impromptu duet, and played by the two of them on this disc. There's plenty of traditional Northumbrian music as well, in which Kathryn's love of family and land, and the inspiration she draws from each, shines through. This is a welcome, indeed "must-have", addition to the music library of anyone who harks to the call of the pipes, whether uillean, gaita, Breton, Scots smallpipes, or Great Highland War Pipes."