The Magic Lute Book/CD French Tablature

Turlogh O’Carolan was the John Dowland of Ireland.Blinded by Smallpox at the age of 18, he left the trade he was learning and began to learn the harp. People who were blind generally were musicians at that time. The problem is that most of the harpers were born blind, which put Turlough O’Carolan at a huge disadvantage. While playing at a patrons house, he was taken aside. You will never catch up with these other harpers he was told, so you must do something to distinguish yourself, perhaps write some music. That night he sat down and wrote “Sheebeg Sheemore.” He is now probably the most beloved Irish composer. Like John Dowland, he had many patrons, he wrote pieces with those people’s names in the title, and he drank. When you play “Carolan’s Farewell to Music” you will be amazed at how his music seems to be written for the lute. In addition there are many wonderful arrangements from the ancient Skene Manscript. Most selections have one or more variations. If you perform, if you play the lute, this is a volume you must have. The CD contains all the music in this volume and is performed by Allan Alexander on a seven course lute made by Jacob Van Lennep.

This is a terrific collection for performance or playing for your own pleasure. Over 50 Minutes of Music. Every Piece in this Volume is a Gem.

Hear the Music

http://www.soundclick.com/bands/default.cfm?bandID=309575&content=music