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Biddy on the Bench
Today’s featured performer isBiddy on the Bench! https://youtu.be/mi_y2cZ2qiw The 2020 Samhain Celtic New Year Festival is excited to welcome Biddy on the Bench! Website | Bandcamp The versatile combination of traditional acoustic instruments and vocal harmony lends itself equally to high-energy Irish rebel songs and shanties, lively session tunes, and mournful Gaelic ballads. Grounded primarily in the folk style of Irish music pioneered by bands such as “The Dubliners”, “Planxty”, and “The Bothy Band”, Portland’s own “Biddy on the Bench” breathes life and authenticity into old standbys of the genre and lesser-known tunes alike. The band approaches each song, each melody, with a passion for the music and sharing it with others.…
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Pipedance
The 2020 Samhain Celtic New Year Festival is excited to welcome Pipedance, featuring husband and wife duo Gary Burman and Nora Sherwood. Formed out of a true love for Irish music and dance, their sound is complemented by Nora’s percussive sean-nós step dancing making this duo is not only fun to listen to, but fun to watch, too.
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Dan and Fran
The 2020 Samhain Celtic New Year Festival is excited to welcome Dan Compton and Fran Slefer. They’re especially fond of the music of southwest Ireland — that region known as Sliabh Luachra — with its repertoire of slides, polkas, and danceable reels and jigs. But they’ll play a tune from anywhere if they like it, so you can expect to hear them borrow from the traditions of the Québec, Brittany, Britain Scandinavia, and other cold, damp places.
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Hanz Araki
The 2020 Samhain Celtic New Year Festival is excited to welcome flautist, whistle player, singer, and Juno Award winner Hanz Araki who has been lauded by publications and audiences alike and is considered one of the most talented Irish musicians in America today.
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Colleen Raney
The 2020 Samhain Celtic New Year Festival is excited to welcome vocalist Colleen Raney, who has been referred to as “among the best in her genre”. (Irish Music Magazine) and “one of America’s best traditional singers.” (Tradconnect)
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D’n’A
The 2020 Samhain Celtic New Year Festival is excited to welcome Celtic duo D'n'A, who play traditional music from Europe and North America. Doug Heydon plays guitar, banjo and bass, plus a touch of percussion (spoons, bones, mouth harp) and the French vielle à roue (hurdy-gurdy) and the Appalachian mountain dulcimer. Amey Herman focuses on fiddles: 4-string and 5-string, and the 9-stringed Norwegian Hardanger fiddle.
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Eliot Grasso
The 2020 Samhain Celtic New Year Festival is excited to welcome performer and scholar Eliot Grasso. His artistic and academic work as a performer, recording artist, composer, and researcher has earned awards from the traditional music community, the recording industry, and the academic establishment.
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Lumina’s Heart
The 2020 Samhain Celtic New Year Festival is excited to welcome Lumina's Heart, a duo specializing in music from the Celtic lands and original songs.
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The Kilt Lifters
The 2020 Samhain Celtic New Year Festival is excited to welcome The Kilt Lifters, bringing a wee bit o' the Emerald Isles on the Hawaiian Isles to our virtual event. The Kilt Lifters progressive Irish and Celtic rock band celebrates our island nations with their eclectic and electric Celtic rock sound.
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The Fire
The 2020 Samhain Celtic New Year Festival is excited to welcome The Fire, a high-energy traditional music band that combines world-class performances of blazing Scottish music with a distinctly Californian flare.
