Jill Rogoff: "a world in one voice"

Medieval woodcut; detail from Horae, published in Paris in 1506

Medieval woodcut; detail from Horae, published in Paris in 1506

Friends, Colleagues and Countrymen

Jill’s second, third, fourth and sixth solo albums, The Celtic Cradle, Across the Narrow Seas , The King’s Well and The Voice of the Wanderer respectively, are available either directly from her (see The Shop) or from CD Baby.

Also available is The Celtic Lullaby which features a track by Jill, and her liner notes about Celtic lullabies (see Articles by Jill, elsewhere on this site).

Keep up with the folk scene in Israel: read the current issue of the monthly newsletter published by IFS: FolkNotes.

Visit Judi & Lynn Lewis at the Tzora Folk Club. Also worth visiting is the Karmiel Folk Club.

Other musicians on the Israeli folk scene include, harpist/harper par excellence Sunita Staneslow, and singers Joanna Scudero, Rahel Jaskow and Sandy Cash.

If you have fond memories of the music of the sixties and seventies, you’ll love the programs of singer-guitarists Larry Fogel and Moni Arnon: they pay tribute variously to Simon and Garfunkel, James Taylor and Don McLean. Contact Larry and Moni to check out the possibility of hosting a house concert.

Ray Scudero is gone, but his music lives on.

Menachem & Yehudit Vinegrad run the annual, national folk events in Israel: Jacob's Ladder Folk Festival (the Spring Festival) and the newer Winter Weekend. This year’s dates: Spring Festival 16-17 May 2008 (with a new event: Pre-Festival Evening in the Nof Ginosar Events Garden May 15) and Winter Weekend 5-6 December 2008.

Visit the site of the Abu Ghosh Vocal Festival, where Jill has sung many times. The next festival will take place in May/June, 2008.

For more information about various concert series, visit the site of Yad Hashmona.

For high-quality sound production in the heart of Jerusalem, contact Mitch Clyman of Muso Productions .

The New Acropolis centre, Rehov Atzmon 7, 65259 Tel-Aviv, gives courses in philosophy and different cultures, among other things, all in a gentle atmosphere. For further details, tel.: 03-510-44-26 or 03-517-06-35 or visit their: web-site.

Visit the site of the English Speakers’ Club of Ashdod to find out about their activities.

The popular band Marcipán, based in Prague and led by the brilliant singer/violinist Jiří Hodina, plays traditional Czech and Moravian songs with affection, dash and daring, not hesitating either to use some instruments not usually associated with this repertoire or to bring in elements from other styles of music. They have two albums so far -- worth listening to many times over. I can’t recommend their music highly enough.

For music that makes you laugh, dance, sing along and occasionally bring a tear to your eye, listen to The Gladsmiths, which consists of Julianne Moscovitz, Susan Jennings and Don Jennings on vocals and the following (dazzling) array of instruments: mountain dulcimer, guitar, autoharp, mandolin, bouzoukis, banjo, fiddle, hammered dulcimer, Irish lap harp, bodhran, djembe, limberjacks and spoons.

If you like Irish harp music, try the concerts and recordings of Gráinne Hambly, one of the finest harpers you’ll ever hear.

Another singer/songwriter, who is also a therapeutic musician, is Rahel who is based in the USA.

For a jazzy look on life, look to Esther Haynes in the USA, who sings both in a duo with Phil Mathieu and with the group Hokum Jazz.

For virtuosity with humour, listen to the talented trio from the Welsh borders Hoover the Dog. That’s Paul Hutchinson on accordion, John Hymas on fiddle and Tony Harris on guitar and bouzouki.

If, like me, you love the inspiring sound of sea shanties sung heartily by a group of male voices, you’re bound to enjoy listening to the Baggyrinkle Swansea Shanteymen. They sing in three-part harmony, sometimes accompanied by the concertina.

Mary Smith sings songs from America, Ireland, Scotland and England with a real love for these gems from the past. She also co-runs (with Maria) the Richmond Folk Music Society, which produces a fine series of traditionally-oriented concerts every year.

For excellent translations into English of some of the finest European poetry from days gone by, visit the site generously posted by Mr Tony Kline, a gentleman with a wonderful feel for language. This includes ancient Roman poetry, the entire body of Petrarch’s sonnets, and more ‘modern’ classics as well.

Deb Filler is a stand-up comic with a difference: sometimes she also makes you cry! For a look at her internationally successful shows “Punch Me in the Stomach” and “Filler Up!”, it’s well worth taking a look at her web site.

For a detailed look at the folk scene in New Zealand, visit the New Zealand Folk Song home page.

For a look at the Jewish folk scene around the world, visit Tara Music Publications and All Jewish Music.

Out of left field, as the Americans say: I really enjoy the Inspector Lynley mysteries from the (ungrateful) BBC: they’ve now axed the series, even though it’s a runaway favourite around the world. Check it out, if you’re not already familiar with it: it stars my favourite actor, the talented and subtle Nathaniel Parker, and Sharon Small. You can find DVDs of the various episodes on amazon.com and other sites. Make sure you watch right from the very first episode, though, so that you can appreciate in full the development of the main characters and their relationship.
I also warmly recommend Nathaniel’s (umpteen) spoken word recordings of fiction (both adult and children’s): he’s one of the most versatile and expressive readers I’ve ever heard, using every conceivable colour in his voice. Available on-line from such sites as amazon.com, Waterstones, Barnes and Noble , Simply Audiobooks and audiobooks.com, if you can’t find them in the shops.

Medieval woodcut; detail from Dyalogus Creaturarum, published in Gouda in 1480

Medieval woodcut; detail from Dyalogus Creaturarum, published in Gouda in 1480

Let me introduce you to some friends and acquaintances who play in various Early Music ensembles.

The Esterházy Ensemble, whose members are Michael Brüssing (baryton), Mária Brüssing (viola) and András Bolyky (violoncello), specialises in rare music on the baryton. They are based in Vienna.

Ensemble Baroque consists of Martina Bley (Baroque flute), Elke Filthuth (Baroquefagott) and Jörg Jacobi (harpsichord and organ). They are based in Bremen, Germany.

Mediva, whose members include Clare Norburn (singer), Ariane Prussner (singer), Ann Allen and Sarah Humphrys (both shawms and recorders), Leah Stuttard (harp), Masa Kasahara (saz), Lester Bennet (percussion), Rebecca Austen-Brown (fiddle) and Arngeir Hauksson (oud, saz and gittern). They are based in London.

Vox Antiqua, whose members include Marilena Zlatanou (singer), Vegard Lund (medieval lute) and Steinar Amundsen (medieval lute and hurdy-gurdy). They are based in Norway.