Alasdair Fraser and Natalie Haas. Words fail…
Been listening to a lot of Scottish music, due to my recent infatuation with “Outlander.” Dug up an old favorite, which I used to listen to incessantly when I was clerking at Paulina Springs Books back in the mid-’90s.
Alasdair Fraser is the master of the Scottish fiddle style. Surely he must be a descendant of Jamie Fraser, right? Oh how I love his album “The Dawn Dance”:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uWqh45Zgmwg
Of late, Fraser has teamed with cellist Natalie Haas, which is glorious. Here they are with Chris Thile (Nickel Creek) on A Prairie Home Companion.
Ah, that Celtic sound… melancholy, yet sprightly, too; calming and stirring at the same time. I could listen to this all day long.
Paul McNamee says
Coincidence 😉
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tartan_Day
JimC says
Hah! You’re right. And I was just having a conversation with my daughter Ceili about whether we should or should not have left the “dh” off of her name…
We decided that Ceilidh would be a bit much. Not sure we were right. What sayest thou, McNamee?
Paul McNamee says
I agree. The ‘dh’ just confuses when folks try to Anglicize.
For instance, my name is “MAK-NUH-MEE” but lots of people get hung up on McNamee and try “MAK-NAYM” or “MAK-NAYM-EE.”
But if I went back to MacConnMidhe it probably wouldn’t help, either 😉
JimC says
MacConnMidhe. I’m rollin’ with it.
Paul McNamee says
Indulgent reply;
Mac – son of
Con(n) – hound
Midhe – Meath
Son of the Hound of Meath.
Rather a warrior name considering we were supposed to have been poets/bards.
Funny how that gene still comes down to me.
Also, when you have 2 hard consonant parts of a word, there can be an implicit soft sound between them. So CONN-MEE becomes CONN-ah-MEE.
MAK-CONN-ah-MEE.
Say it a few times fast and it “blurs” down to MAK-NUH-MEE.
JimC says
Indulgent nuthin — edumicational.
Annie Pick says
To McNamee & Cornelius ~ I could listen to you two talk all day, with perhaps a wee drink in my hand as well.
😉
JimC says
Well, have a wee dram in any case…