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This album package includes the accompanying "A Gaelic Christmas Songbook", so that you can make singing these songs a cherished part of your holiday season.
"A Gaelic Christmas Songbook" contains each track's lyrics, phonetic pronunciation, and sheet music of each song's melody. Audio files of each of their the correct pronunciations are included with your album as Bonus Tracks.
Internationally acclaimed for her lush harmonies and atmospheric arrangements, Mary McLaughlin re-introduces her classic album A Gaelic Christmas, a collection of Christmas carols and hymns all sung in the Irish Gaelic language.
The material spans several centuries and includes ancient traditional Irish carols such as The Wexford Carol as well as Gaelic versions of beloved Victorian carols including "Holy Night", "I Saw Three Ships", and "Silent Night". Some of the melodies will be very familiar while others will be less so; in some cases Mary has translated original texts, in others she has either written new words in Irish Gaelic or set ancient texts to music. Guest musicians, including many Gourd artists, enhance McLaughlin's rich multi-tracked vocals to create a unique and timeless holiday album.
While Irish traditional singing style (sean-nós) is strictly unaccompanied and has no harmony, and when a group sings together, it is in unison, many traditional Gaelic songs lend themselves beautifully to harmony, and by interpreting them in her modern lens, Mary McLaughlin's A Gaelic Christmas breathes new life into these beloved pieces.
"May the light of sound guide me,
May the sound of light surround me,
May sacred sound come through me
for the harmony of all."
- Prayer to Shamael, Angel of Sacred Song
credits
released November 21, 2023
This album is dedicated to my father, Frank McLaughlin, with gratitude for his encouragement when I wanted to learn the Irish language as a child - tá cúpla focal agat go foill!
Mary McLaughlin: Lead & Multi-tracked Vocals, Keyboard
Steve Coulter: Harp
Barry Phillips: Cellos
Steafan Hannigan: Percussion, Uillean Pipes, Bansuri
Robin Petrie: Hammer Dulcimer
Shelley Phillips: Oboes, English Horn
Danny Carnahan: Octave Mandolin
William Coulter: Guitar
Produced and arranged by Mary McLaughlin with assistance from Steve Coulter at Bear Creak Studios, Santa Crus, California, 2007.
Recorded, mixed, and mastered by Steve Coulter except for Track 13, recorded by Steve Coulter and Justin Mayer and Track 4, recorded by Steve Coulter with assistance from Justin Mayer. Percussion, pipes, and bansuri recorded by Steafan Hannigan in Canada.
Graphic design, hand-letting, and ornaments by Lisa Ekström.
Front cover painting by Rachel Arbuckle.
Photography by Paul Schraub.
Thank Yous
It takes many people to produce an album and I would like to offer special thanks to the following people whose contributions have helped make this work possible.
The Techies: The engineer and assistant producer/arranger, Steve Coulter, whose incredible atunement to Irish music along with his technical expertise provided the ideal conditions for this work to evolve and grow. Justin Mayer, who began the project with me and kept a friendly eye on it throughout.
The Musicians: Steve Coulter on harp, Barry Phillips on cellos, Shelley Phillips on oboe and English horn, Robin Petrie on hammer dulcimer, Steafan Hannigan on percussion, pipes and bansuri, Danny Carnahan on octave mandolin, and William Coulter on guitar. To all of you, I am truly awed by your musicianship and honored to consider myself one of your peers.
The Visual Artists: Rachel Arbuckle for the beautiful front cover painting. Paul Schraub for the photography. Safiya Bonaventura and Claire WIlliams for loaning me the candelabra. Janet Herman and Dennis Wells for editing, and Lisa Ekström for putting it all together into this elegant package.
The Researchers and Sources: The staff at Omagh Public Library, Northern Ireland. Nicholas Carolan at the Music Archives in Dublin. Ashley Davis, Galt Barber, Audrey Nickel, Nikki Ragsdale and Cormac De Barra for help with other research. Liam De Noraidh, Hugh Duggan and Douglas Hyde for their huge contributions to Irish culture by collecting ,tralsating and preserving the songs of our ancestors. Róisin Uí Chuill and The Estate of Seán Óg Ó Tuama for permission to use his composition "Suantraí Na Maighdine". Cló Chaisil for publishing the book Ceol na Nollag which has been a wonderful resource and reference book. Finally, Mother Fidelma who taught me "Holy Night" and the decide of overlapping harmony lines -- an influence that has lasted a lifetime!
Personal: My Dad, brother Tom and other family members for support and help in creating this album. Liam Ó Cuinneagáin, Éamonn Ó Donaill, Gearóidín Bhreathnach and Lilis Ó Laoire for all they have taught me about the Irish language and traditional song. Neal Hellman of Gourd Music for ongoing business advice, support and guidance.
Mary Mclaughlin is a singer / songwriter / teacher who is steeped in the Ulster Gaelic song tradition of her native Ireland
where she was born and raised. Her material ranges from traditional Irish songs to self- penned compositions inspired by Irish mythology and the visceral experience of coming into womanhood in Northern Ireland during the ‘Troubles'....more
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