Celtic Cousins tour – Dremmwel play Scotland in May 2019
Arran is very fortunate to be the first stop on the Scottish Tour of the innovative Breton folk band ‘Dremmwel’, with a concert planned for 11th May at Corrie and Sannox Village Hall (7.30pm, BYOB). The name means ‘horizon’ and the band’s six albums since 1996 create fresh and varied takes on basic Breton dance music. If you have ever travelled with Brittany Ferries from England or Ireland overnight, you’ll have been woken by Dremmwel tunes in your cabin. Theirs is also the only music on sale aboard the fleet.
Dremmwel toured in Scotland previously in 1997 and 2002 and have graced festivals in Wales, Belgium, Germany, Austria and the USA over the years. Their most recent CD (Hirbad), meaning ‘Long Stay’, is inspired by the ‘global jukebox’ concept for traditional music, closely associated with the legendary American archivist, Alan Lomax. “The Global Jukebox is dedicated to our remote ancestors, to our parents, grandparents and teachers, and is a gift offered to present and future generations—a gift of sound, movement, and growing knowledge. It honours the expressive traditions of all peoples, and the cultural diversity that enriches us as individuals, and is crucial to our common survival as a species.”
Dremmwel is celebrating 30 years of the group’s development, this time through collaborations with musicians from Corsica, Paraguay, the Basque lands and Scotland. Each add new spice to self-penned tunes from the core Dremmwel players who are steeped in the Breton Fest Noz (‘night dance’) traditions of their native Finistere.
This appearance will appeal to people with an interest in pipes, Celtic harp, dancing, and indeed anyone keen to hear energetic Celtic music played by consummate professionals.
The four core Dremmwel musicians playing on this tour are:
Dominique Le Guichaoua, diatonic accordions, binou (Breton pipes), vocals and mouth organ
René Marchand, bombard, whistles and veuze (another kind of Breton pipes)
Daniel Cadiou, guitars, and
Marin l’Hopiteau on harp and fiddle.
Corrie will be the launching pad for this welcome return of Dremmwel to Scotland, before they move on to Tobermory, Portree, Plockton, Evanton and Edinburgh. As an additional treat they will be joined on the tour by Corsican singer Marco Campana, who contributed his haunting polyphonic vocals, characteristic of Corsica’s Orezza Valley, to the recent Dremmwel album. Scottish contributors to ‘Hirbad’ may also take the stage!
Tickets available at £10 from www.arranevents.com or at the door.
Local contact:
Malcolm Kerr, 07850 125611, tuathair@aol.com
