Finnish fiddle powerhouse and founding member of the band Frigg, Esko Järvelä shares his journey from growing up in one of the most musical families in Finland to touring the world with Frigg, Baltic Crossing and Tsuumi Sound System. 

More info and links at www.tradcafe.org/blog-1/2024/4/3/episode-69-esko-jrvel

In this special crossover episode, Cameron DeWhitt, the host of Old-Time music podcast Get Up In The Cool trades off the host and guest roles with Neil in between taking breaks to play tunes together. Listen to Cameron share some of their journey with the Old-Time clawhammer banjo while interviewing Neil about his background growing up in a family band playing Scottish and Cape Breton music. As always, more details and info can be found at tradcafe.org

Check out Get Up In The Cool wherever you get your podcasts and follow up with Cameron's projects at camerondewhitt.com

Fiddler, organizer, teacher and co-founder of Tune Supply-- you never know what Caitlin Warbelow will be up to next! In this episode Caitlin shares her unique musical journey growing up in Alaska before moving to New York. She talks about her relationship to music as a means of survival and shares some of the stories behind joining the broadway production of Come From Away and starting up the website Tune Supply to help traditional musicians during the pandemic lockdowns. 

In a special edition of TradCafe Neil sits down with Sam Sadigursky and Nathan Koci to talk about their recent triple album release The Solomon Diaries and how their musical lives have let up to this collaboration. Featuring some clips from the new project as well as the usual live music collaborations. Check out the Solomon Diaries at bandcamp: https://samsadigursky.bandcamp.com/album/the-solomon-diaries-vol-i

One of the top mandolinists working today, Maddie Witler joins Neil for a conversation about music making, creativity and her experiences working in the bands Della Mae and The Lonely Heart String Band.

maddiewitler.com

della

Iconic New England fiddler Becky Tracy shares her journey through fiddling and folk dancing including her years as a core member of two of the most important bands in New England traditional music, Nightingale and Wild Asparagus. More info and links at tradcafe.org

blackislemusic.com rachelbellmusic.com wildasparagus.com

Mandolinist Joe K. Walsh joins Neil to share thoughts and stories on community, identity and artistry in the bluegrass and new acoustic music worlds. 

Opening music: Seneca Square Dance

Closing music: Verona (by Bill Frisell)

Alasdair White kicks off the new season with a wide ranging conversation about growing up on the Isle of Lewis, touring the world with the Battlefield Band, developing his unique fiddle style and more!

Opening Tunes: Keep the Country Bonnie Lassie, The White Houses of Shieldaig, Oran an Teine (Song of the Fire), Doctor MacPhail's Reel

Closing Tunes: Trip to Jordan Jig and Trip to Jordan Reel by Alasdair White

Alasdair's website: www.alasdairwhite.com

More info and links at www.tradcafe.org

The one and only Natalie MacMaster shares insights from her remarkable journey. From first learning how to open up to an audience to touring the world to raising a musical family, listen in as she shares why music is still such a central part of her life.

More info: www.natalieanddonnell.com

Brilliant Scottish multi-instrumentalist Anna Massie sits down with Neil in the middle of Celtic Connections to share her story growing up with traditional music in Scotland. Along the way she shares some of her strongest musical influences and tells the story of how she started playing with Blazin' Fiddles.

This episode features a legendary innovator in the world of contradance music. Mark Hellenberg is known for pushing the envelope with the role of percussion in this traditional music and dance scene and over the years he has worked with many of the top bands driving dance halls around the US. In this conversation he chats with Neil about his journey, variety of musical tastes and his perspective on experimenting without destroying the core traditional feel. 

Tunes in this episode: Sweet Sue (opening) and Irishman's Heart to the Ladies (closing)