PUTNEY — Next Stage Arts Project and Twilight Music present an evening of traditional and contemporary Celtic music featuring high energy bagpipes/fiddle/guitar trio Cantrip and folksinger/multi-instrumentalist Lindsay Straw at Next Stage on Saturday, April 21, at 7:30 p.m.
The concert celebrates Cantrip's 20th anniversary, with the band performing a mix of brand new music, as well as their entire 2001 album, Silver.
From the strong base of its Celtic roots, Cantrip branches out into the music of other European cultures. Weaving together songs and tunes, Dan Houghton, Jon Bews, and Eric McDonald take an audience on a cultural journey, putting their own spin on each style.
Known for their innovative arrangements, un-produced sound, and dry wit, Cantrip has toured throughout Scotland and the U.S., expanding the boundaries of Celtic music along the way.
Cantrip sprang from a local music session in Edinburgh, Scotland two decades ago. The band name is an Old Scots word meaning a charm, magic spell, or piece of mischief, and aptly describes the unexpected twists and turns in the trio's musical arrangements as well as the compelling potency of their musicianship, according to a news release.
Dan Houghton (bagpipes, flute, whistles, guitar, vocals) was born in Ghana, but was transported to Scotland shortly thereafter, where he was surrounded by the indigenous music. He has won the Scottish Lowland and Border Pipers' Society Open Borderpipes and New Composition events, as well as the Maitre de Cornemuse at St. Chartier.
Jon Bews (fiddle, vocals) came to Scots music from a classical education by way of Goth rock. He has performed and recorded with such diverse artists as Malinky, James Yorkston, Mikel Urdangarin, Ranarim, Deaf Mutes, and Samling.
As a U.S. native, Eric McDonald (guitar, mandolin, bouzouki, vocals) found his way to traditional music through the rich local music scene in Boston, and studies with guitarist/mandolinist John McGann and cellist Eugene Friesen at Berklee College of Music.
Ballads have been a source of inspiration for Lindsay Straw since her childhood in Montana, but she truly grew into the art while studying at the Berklee College of Music in Boston. There she began to tie together the threads of the traditions she was most passionate about - English, Scottish, Irish, and American songcraft. Accompanying herself on guitar and bouzouki, Lindsay has toured the U.S., Ireland, and England.