First Baptist Church, Vineyard Haven
Irish traditional music lovers were treated on Saturday night to the duo of Laurence Nugent on whistle and flute, and Seamus Connolly on fiddle. It was a night of firsts, this being the first time that a KCT concert has been held at the Baptist church (it appears there is work going on at nearby Katherine Cornell Theater), also the first time that Nugent and Connolly had ever performed together as a duo, which you'd never have known from the listening, since the music was as tight as a drum.
There was also an interesting generational dimension - something that is not uncommon to this music - Seamus having played with Larry's father back in the day. Great chemistry, along with obvious mutual admiration and respect between the musicians, rounded it all out nicely.
It was a thrill (but made my fingers itch) to hear many tunes I've played myself in sessions. My only faux pas of the evening (that I'm aware of - but I'm usually the last to know) was while speaking to Larry at intermission. I avowed as how Brendan Bulger was one of the best fiddlers in Boston. Larry said, "Oh no, Seamus is the best fiddler in Boston, and he was Brendan's teacher." Ah! So it was that Seamus Connolly I had come to hear. I knew there was something about Seamus' playing style and his footwork that seemed familiar.
My only disappointment was the truly horrible lighting coming from directly behind the performers. Arghhh...
Otherwise, it was a brilliant evening altogether.
The gentlemen, themselves.
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