Elise Boeur & Adam Iredale-Gray - Fiddle Tunes

by Julie Cruickshank

published: 20 / 2 / 2023

Elise Boeur & Adam Iredale-Gray - Fiddle Tunes

Label: Aerialists
Format: CD

Thrilling album of fiddle, hardingfele and guitar tunes, both traditional and modern, from acclaimed Canadian folk duo Elise Boeur and Adam Iredale-Gray

Review

Elise Boeur and Adam Iredale-Gray have been stalwarts of the Canadian folk scene for over two decades, since they met through the thriving Irish traditional music scene of the country’s west coast. Their previous band Aerialists, in which electrified soundscapes enhanced fiddle melodies, earned them a JUNO nomination and a Canadian Folk Music Award. Gathering together their interpretations of both fiddle standards plus new workings of more modern tunes, the duo have put together a remarkable debut album, appropriately titled ‘Fiddle Tunes’. The album opens on an exuberant note, segueing traditional jigs ‘Winnie Hayes’/’Gan Ainm’/’The Monk’s’ and we are off into a whirlwind of Irish reels, Swedish polskas and Norwegian gangars. The joy the duo find in simply playing the music shines throughout the album. Second track ‘La Coccinelle’/’Osteroy’ features the underlying thrum of guest Robert Alan Mackie on upright bass, counterpointing the lively fiddle. The pace slows in next track ‘Evening Glory’, written by Toon Van Mierlo of Belgian band Naragonia, acoustic guitar to the fore. ‘Chinquapin Hunting’, an American old-time bluegrass number, is again heavy on bass, underscoring a densely-woven interpretation of what is a popular party tune. We then delve into the world of Swedish polskas as the next two tracks ‘Polska efter Jons Persson’ and ‘Froken Agnes’/’Polska efter Kusen’ showcase Elise’s time studying Scandinavian music at Norway’s Hogskolen i Telemark college of folk arts.These toe-tapping airs burst with exhilaration and beauty. Returning to Ireland, ‘Martin Wynne’s #2’/’Toss the Feathers’/’The Sally Gardens’ twists and tumbles, while Norway’s ‘Brureslatt Rull fra Jolster’ has an eerie echo of the plaintive wail and drone of bagpipes, though none are played. The brief, dense Norwegian Setesdal gangar ‘Nils og Jens og Gjeidaug’ is followed by the pure Irish fiddle playing which gathers together the wonderfully catchy trio of tunes ‘Rodney’sGlory’/’Scully Casey’s’/’Dave Collins’, while ‘London Ut’ is a haunting rendition of a tune by Icelandic jazz band ADHD. The album closes with ‘Frank Thornton’/’Cock and the Hen’/’Cottage in the Grove’, acoustic guitar-heavy with a final climactic frenzied burst of fiddle. ‘Fiddle Tunes’ describes perfectly the concept of this fabulous album; yet it is so much more, a complex exploration, illumination and interpretation of melodies from Europe and America, lovingly and expertly played by Elise Boeur and Adam Iredale-Gray.

Track Listing:-

1 Winnie Hayes / Gan Ainm / The Monk's
2 La Coccinelle / Osterøy
3 Evening Glory
4 Chinquapin Hunting
5 Polska efter Jöns Persson
6 Fröken Agnes / Polska efter Kusen
7 Martin Wynne's #2 / Toss The Feathers / The Sally Gardens
8 Brureslått Rull Fra Jølster
9 Nils Og Jens Og Gjeidaug
10 Rodney's Glory / Scully Casey's / Dave Collins
11 London Út
12 Frank Thornton / Cock And The Hen / Cottage In The Grove