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Rachel Hair - Live

Celtic Connections 2010: King Chiaullee with special guests Rachel Hair, Jamie Smith, Malcolm Stitt and Greg Joughin.

 

King Chiaullee (Manx Gaelic for ‘Music Heads’), however, was exactly what I expected and wanted. This is a young band to watch, and KZYX & Z listeners can expect to hear from this group. Their style ranges from straight traditional “Celtic” to a more Pan-European feel — all of it good. Tonight they rounded out their usual five-man line-up with a few of their very talented friends, such as harpist Rachel Hair, guitarist Malcolm Stitt of Deaf Shepherd, accordionist Jamie Smith from Mabon, and Manx singer Gregory Joughin of the Mollag Band. The result was a set designed to delight the crowd. Starting with “The Continental Stump,” one of their more recent songs, with the low whistle leading the way, the band set everyone into a good mood. Joughin’s voice developed throughout the evening, after starting out a bit thin. Two standouts during their performance were Rachel Hair’s too brief set with Malcolm Stitt and Russell Cowin and Jamie Smith playing fiddle tunes on his accordion. The finale, blending a powerful vocal from Joughin with a roaring instrumental from the full band, left the audience – including us – wanting more.

 By spailpín fánach at Oak and Thorn

Rachel Hair - The Lucky Smile

****Hair today, most definitely not gone tomorrow

 

The Lucky Smile is a sparkling recording centred around Rachel Hair's pristine, beautifully detailed harp-playing, the tune selections by turns lively and emotionally expressive. The collection showcases the possibilities of this Celtic instrument in a thoroughly modern setting; Hair's Starfish harp is surrounded on several tracks by acoustic guitar, double bass, drums and percussion, harmonium, Rhodes electric piano and fiddle, and it all works beautifully. This particular combination of instruments allows for some satisfyingly jazzy arrangements, particularly on the livelier sets 'Back Home', 'Tsunami Jack' and the 'Midge House Jigs'. Ullapool born and of Irish ancestry, Hair's playing successfully combines the heady rhythms of Scottish folk music with the more soulful melodies of the Irish tradition. Listening is a pleasure on a couple of exquisitely unadorned tracks, especially the emotion-rich air 'Blue Hills of Antrim', whilst the dazzling 2/3 pipe march 'The Lochaber Gathering' is delivered unaccompanied, bursting with rhythm and melody and rich in detail. Acclaimed Gaelic singer Joy Dunlop contributes her crystal clear, pure-sounding vocals to two of the album's ten tracks.

Hair's own compositions are superb, inspired by student life (she is one of a raft of successful graduates of Strathclyde University's Applied Music BA degree course), and by people, landscapes and places. 'I Lost my Harp in Barcelona' is a humorous reminder of the time her harp didn't arrive in time for a Spanish festival (fortunately Catalan musician Josep Maria Riballes was on hand to lend her his). Hair's consistently supple delivery is imbued with a lively sense of playfulness, and with this fine recording, she stamps her authority as one of the UK's finest contemporary Celtic harpists and tunesmiths.

 By Debbie Koritsas, Songlines

 

Talented Harpist Rachel gained numerous plaudits for her debut CD, 'Hubcaps and Potholes', and her second album - produced by Angus Lyon - looks set fair to build upon that success.

Recorded in partnership with acoustic guitarist Paul Tracey and double bassist Andy Sharkey, the trio also perform here with singer Joy Dunlop, fiddler Graham McGeoch, percussionist Paul Jennings and drummer Scott Mackay to present an exemplary and refined collection of Scottish and Irish influenced airs, reels and jigs.

'Tsunami Jack' is a lovely tune and evokes lightness and liberation while 'I lost my Harp in Barcelona' illustrates, via its intricate phrasing and reflective melody, why Rachel is so respected as a harpist and composer.

A joy from start to finish and destined to generate further acclaim for Rachel from her growing audience and within. .

from 'Musician' magazine

 

Harpist Rachel Hair builds on her promising solo debut release, Hubcaps & Potholes, with this more expansive and subtly jazz-inflected disc. It is built around a basic trio featuring her harp, Andy Sharkey's double bass and Paul Tracey's guitar, with additional contributions from drummer Scott Mackay, percussionist Paul Jennings, producer Angus Lyon's harmonium and Fender Rhodes, a solitary fiddle outing from Graham McGeoch and two Gaelic vocals from Joy Dunlop.

The harpist's decision to go with players who are also involved on the Scottish jazz scene pays rich dividends, adding a touch of improvisational fluidity and both harmonic and rhythmic subtly to the music without sacrificing its traditional folk appeal. Her own playing is excellent, and her choice of material mixes attractive original compositions with well-chosen tunes from both traditional and contemporary sources.

 by Kenny Mathieson, The List Magazine (issue 629)

 

Following on from her assured and highly acclaimed debut, Hubcaps and Potholes, harpist Rachel Hair has now demonstrated a true coming of age. With much original material and some influences from Ireland, the Traditional music of Scotland is evident in terms of material and style, as in the pipe marches The Lochaber Gathering.

Caution is sometimes needed when adding double bass and drums to harp, but the mix here is perfect, raising the already persuasive harp playing to another level. The full band sound is heard on Back Home, a joyous set of reels, and on her own Tsunami Jack, with its Grappelli-like fiddle. There's also space for solo harp, Blue Hills of Antrim, learnt from an early Altan recording, is beautiful. Add in a couple of songs with vocals from Joy Dunlop and you have a perfectly formed album.

Hair's style is original, confident and inspired. A hugely enjoyable album.

by Delyth Jenkins, Taplas Magazine

 

The second CD from this Glasgow-based harpist is as refreshing and enjoyable as her debut. With a firm core of harp, guitar and bass, The Lucky Smile includes a generous helping of percussion, keyboards and fiddle cameos from Angus Lyon and Graham McGeoch, and two Gaelic vocal tracks featuring Joy Dunlop. About half of the material here is composed by Rachel, the rest coming from Scottish and Irish traditions and from other young composers.

There's something unique about Rachel's playing, on straight traditional pieces like The Blue Hills of Antrim and The Lochaber Gathering, or on her own composition such as Kilmartin Sky: it may not be as precise as some players, but it has a warmth and spirit which is particularly appealing. Even though this is a studio album, there's a closeness and intimacy which gives The Lucky Smile an almost live feel.

To the details: I love the uplifting change into Karen Tweed's Back Home reel, the missed half-beats in Flora MacDonald's which add a twist to this traditional tune, and the touches of humour behind both the title track and the Mediterranean musical tantrum I Lost My Harp. On the one hand, Rachel can do totally traditional harp, solo or for the song Leis an Lurgainn, without getting an attack of the runs. On the other, this recording contains more than enough jazzy bits to keep her contemporaries happy: Tsunami Jack with its swing fiddle, strongcajon on Francie's Jig, and the guitar-bass backing from Paul Tracey and Andy Sharkey.

There's innovation here, but on a solid foundation: ten relatively long tracks, plenty of new tunes, without being self-indulgent. I like it, and I'm hoping to catch the trio live. CD details and gig schedule are at www.rachelhair.com, along with a couple of sample tracks: highly recommended.

by Alex Monaghan, The Irish Music Magazine

 

Rachel Hair has that uncanny knack of picking just the right tunes to take her audience on a spectacular acoustic musical tour.

For instance the highly syncopated opening track 'Back Home' which, given a great jazz feel propelled by her accompanying musicians Paul Tracey (Guitar), Angus Lyons (Keyboards), Andy Sharkey (Double Bass) and Scott Mackay on drums brings her into Deborah Henson-Conant territory.The following track 'Kilmartin Sky' ably demonstrates Hair's own compositional skills with a beautifully crafted slow air joined by the smile-inducing jig 'Francie's'. Joy Dunlop adds haunting Gaelic vocals on a couple of tracks with 'A Fhleasgaich Oig As Ceanalta' reminiscent of the soundtrack to the film 'The Wicker Man'.

 This is a very enjoyable recording that will capture the hearts of listeners with splashes of tasteful jazz colourings and is a must purchase for those who like their 'folk' with a bit of attitude.

by Pete Fyfe, www.folkandroots.co.uk

 

Rachel's impressive debut album, Hubcaps & Potholes, explored the harp as a solo instrument, in a collection that showcased the instrument's versatility, from its poised and delicate beauty, through to its enigmatic, expansive flourishes. For her second album, The Lucky Smile, Rachel showcases the harp, or clarsach as it is also known in her native Scotland, within a band setting, further considering the appeal and adaptability that this beautiful instrument can hold.

There are some very obvious musicians on the folk scene that Rachel could easily have called upon to provide accompaniment on The Lucky Smile, but it is testament to her musical inquisitiveness and ingenuity, that Rachel chose to seek some less obvious companions to work with on this project. Infiltrating the Scottish jazz scene, Rachel has commandeered some of Scotland's most lucid and innovative musicians -- Paul Tracey on guitar, Andy Sharkey on double bass, and Scott MacKay on drums. Added to this mix is Paul Jennings, one of Scotland's foremost percussionists, whose supple rhythms add to the energy of the whole ensemble. To the musically attuned, just the thought of this combination is enticing -- when you listen to The Lucky Smile, the reality is absolutely enthralling.

Many of the compositions here are Rachel's own work, alongside a few traditional tunes and compositions by fellow musicians. The albums begins with the ensemble in full swing on the set "Back Home," comprising two compositions by Gordon Gunn and Karen Tweed, sandwiching the traditional tune, "Flora Macdonald's." Andy Sharkey's languid double bass provides much depth, whilst Paul Tracey's guitar adds supple textures. Rachel's harp races away frivolously, leaving a trail of the most glorious, colourful notes, whilst the drums of Scott Mackay attempts to tame the rhythm.

Even when flying solo on the splendid slow air, "Blue Hills Of Antrim," Rachel delivers the most heartbreaking and spellbinding performance, harnessing the most subtle and expressive aspects of her harp, in an arrangement where the carefully measured silences contribute to the intensity just as much as each resolutely plucked string. With "I Lost My Harp In Barcelona," Rachel well and truly soaks up the Spanish ambience -- you can almost smell the paella and taste the sangria, with the cajon of Paul Jennings instilling an exotic rhythm.

A couple of tracks feature guest singer, Joy Dunlop, who contributes her crystalline Gaelic vocals, sounding all the more classy when delivered over Rachel's sublime, rippling harp. "A Fhleasgaich Oig As Ceanalta" is one of the most beautiful Gaelic love songs you will hear, sung by Joy with a palpable longing, whilst Rachel's harp accentuates the drama. The harmonium of Angus Lyon gives a rounded swell to underpin the arrangement, and Paul Jennings' percussion lends contemporary spirit.

Elsewhere, one can find slow reels, marches and jigs, all fleshed out by the jazz sensibilities of the accompanying musicians. It's this subtle fusion of genre flavours that makes The Lucky Smile so appealing. You don't need to be a fervent admirer of traditional music to 'get' this -- it's brimming with spirit and vitality, with a unique and undeniable appeal. It would be easy to lose yourself in each and every track on The Lucky Smile. It would be easy for me to wax lyrical about each and every note, describing the subtle nuances and the mesmeric arrangements... but I've probably said enough now. You really should buy yourself a copy of this album and get drunk on its intoxicating charms.

by Mike Wilson, www.folking.com

 

Scotland is producing a bumper crop of innovative harpists lately, and another one is Rachel Hair. Unbelievably---after all, we ARE talking harp here---she has a style all her own that is very, very tasty. The girl can play, and she is solid to the ground. She knows her music, all right. If you like harp, you'll love this! Welcome to the big leagues, Rachel!

by Bill Margeson, www.liveireland.com

 

Rachel Hair's new album "The Lucky Smile" is not a departure from her previous work, but something bigger. Whereas "Hubcaps & Potholes" was a solo Celtic harp CD, the follow-up features her trio of harp, guitar (Paul Tracey) and double bass (Andy Sharkey), both from a jazz music background, plus jazz fiddler Graham McGeoch, drummer Scott Mackay and percussionist Paul Jennings.

The tunes are a mix of traditional and original stuff, interpretated in a very contemporary way, embracing jazz, pop and rock music. The rather strict structure of traditional Scottish and Irish music makes soon way to improvising. The groove reminds you it is dance music though. There are also two traditional Gaelic songs, "A Fhleasgaich Oig as Ceanalta" (sung by Joy Dunlop and "Leis an Lurgainn".

 After all, this young lady from Ullapool in the Scottish Highlands should be able to straighten you out and put a smile on your face.

by Tom Keller, www.folkworld.eu

 

Rachel Hair - Hubcaps and Potholes

Time was when a debut recording by a harpist was a rare event. Not so now, but this solo CD is still something special. Rachel Hair plays a mix of Scottish and Irish music, with her own compositions in between. Based in Glasgow, Rachel has Antrim connections and was born and bred in Ullapool on Scotland's west coast.

 There's a high proportion of slower tunes on Hubcaps & Potholes, which suits the harp and also makes a pleasant change from the reels-only approach on some debut albums. Starting with the sprightly strathspey Braes of Castle Grant, more full of snap than a croc in a kindergarten, Rachel switches easily to the Shetland air Da Day Dawn in much smoother vein. The brooding Eilean Algas is an old Scottish melody which is new to me, and I'm grateful for the chance to hear it: a marvellously evocative piece on the harp.

Rachel's compositions grace about half the eleven tracks here. The title track is a complex medley of Rachel's own jig Hubcaps and Potholes, which sounds like one of those bizarre insurance claims but actually stacks up well against its neighbour The Noon Lasses in jig time before moving into the familiar reel. Marie's Tune is a charming little minuet, another Hair original, playfully paired with Art O'Keefe's Polka. Her big jig Starry-Eyed lads starts a trio of tunes finishing with The Rolling Waves. Other notable tracks include the Lady on the Island medley, the 7/8 challenge of 52nd Street, and the contemporary Asturian composition Cancro Cru.

 This is an enjoyable and diverting album, a cut above the average debut CD.More info is online at www.rachelhair.com: well worth checking out, not just because Rachel is the only harpist I know with a hit musical named after her.

by Alex Monaghan, www.folkworld.eu

 

Scottish-Irish musician Rachel Hair is a superb player of the clarsach, the traditional Scottish harp, and this debut album is hugely welcome. In fact, it would be difficult to find another Celtic music debut album of such consistent quality and beauty. The 19 tunes over 11 tracks consist of seven Scottish and Irish traditional tunes, six of Rachel's own compositions and six by others.

From the lively opening track "Castle Grant" to the joyful concluding "Charmed," Rachel's playing is fresh and appealing. She creates a clean and expansive sound while exploring every nuance of the instrument. "Da Day Dawn" holds your attention for almost nine minutes, moving from a lovely traditional Shetland tune welcoming in the New Year to Gordon Gunn's excellent "Gillian's Waltz." The latter features rich piano accompaniment from Douglas Millar as also heard on two other tracks. The title track introduces the first of Rachel's distinctively contemporary and original compositions, which also manage to sit well with the traditional tunes on the album.

One of the album's highlights is Rachel's "Marie's Tune," which is a plaintive number in memory of her Irish grandmother. It is a master stroke to follow this in the same track with the traditional Irish polka "Art O'Keefe's," which is such a celebration of life. "Cancro Cru" by the Asturian fiddler Anxo Pintos suits her playing well given the similar types of subtleties to her own compositions. Peter Webster plays flute on "Chandni Chowk," a typically varied track with both a reel and a jig together with Rachel's fine composition about a walk through a market in Old Delhi.

The CD is excellently packaged with attractive photographs and informative notes. Sit back at the end of a busy day and lose yourself in this gorgeous music!

by Andy Jurgis, www.rambles.net

 

Rachel Hair began to learn clarsach at age ten, and graduated with a first class degree from Strathclyde University, her final solo honours recital winning her a prize. With her family hailing from Scotland and Ireland, you begin to appreciate the album's sub-title, 'Scottish, Irish and original harp music'. Rachel's original tunes include the lively, cheerful 'Starry-Eyed Lads' and 'Charmed', and the very gentle 'Marie's Tune'. Rachel has clearly worked hard in arranging and producing the album herself, and she's certainly succeeded in her desire to 'show the harp's strength and strong rhythmic capabilities as a solo instrument'.

Seven of this album's eleven tracks feature solo harp, and allow Rachel to demonstrate the clarsach's expansive, voluptuous sound to beautiful and sensitive effect. The bright melodies are always countered by resonant bass notes. She interprets tunes written by other musicians beautifully including Gordon Gunn, Anxo Pintos, and Ishbel MacDonald. Of real note is 'Da Day Dawn/Gillians Waltz', just under nine minutes long, the latter tune featuring Douglas Millar's sensitive contribution on piano. 'Canco Cru', by Berrogüetto's Anxo Pintos, pays attention to rhythm and structure. Peter Webster contributes flute on 'Chandni Chowk'.

In case you're wondering, Rachel called her album 'Hubcaps & Potholes' after writing a tune to 'celebrate' bursting two of the tyres on her mum's car a week after passing her driving test – it's a breezy, jaunty sounding tune with more than a hint of menace in the bass notes – so perhaps it's very aptly named!

This highly accomplished album is a pleasure to listen to, and warmly recommended to those who enjoy hearing the harp beautifully played. I picked up a few clues as to where Rachel's musical career is heading from the letter accompanying her CD – she appears keen to explore the duo potential of harp and piano with pianists Douglas Millar and Michael Rose.

 Debbie Koritsas, The Living Tradition

 

An accomplished and enjoyable debut from one of Scotland's brightest young harpists. Her deft and sensitive playing displays a pleasing freshness and rhythmic vitality as well as notable technical prowess.

The album is mostly solo clarsach, with piano accompaniment on three sets and flute on another. The Ullapool-born musician is of mixed Scottish and Irish descent, and that is reflected in her choice of material here, with several of her own compositions and her interpretation of a tune from Asturias thrown in for good measure.

Kenny Mathieson, The Scotsman

 

Rachel Hair is only 23 but she has been playing the clarsach (a scottish harp smaller than the orchestral harp) for more than a decade, and she has a first class degree in music. The competent performances of this debut album are, then, no less than one would expect. But Hubcaps and Potholes is more than merely assured - the repertoire is attractive and, in its quiet way, this is an impassioned piece of work.

Hair comes from Ullapool, in the north-west Scottish Highlands, daughter of an Irish mother and a Scottish father. She draws on the riches of both musical inheritances, and adds something uniquely her own. The second track is a beautiful account of "Da Day Dawn", the gently welcoming tune played in Shetland at dawn on New Year's morn. The title track is next, beginning with one of her own compositions before slipping into "The Noon Lasses", a tune from County Fermanagh in Ireland. Another tune here was inspired by a visit to the Chandhi Chowk market in Old Delhi.

 Of the 11 tracks, seven are for the harp alone; pianist Douglas Millar joins Hair on three of them, and the flautist Peter Webster plays on one set. In a note she sent with her CD, Hair wrote that her aim 'was to show the harp's strength as a solo instrument, demonstrating its strong rhythmic capabilities, and to prove that it really can stand its own'.

 With Hubcaps and Potholes she has certainly achieved that.

Julian May, Songlines Magazine

 

Rachel, hailing from Ullapool in the inordinately beautiful north-west of Scotland, is a young and gifted exponent of the clarsach (Scottish harp) who’s just released this light, airy yet satisfyingly substantial CD of music that well shows the instrument’s strength as a solo instrument. For this reason, any accompaniment is kept to a very bare and very sensitive minimum (piano on three of the disc’s eleven tracks and flute on just one) – and yes, Rachel succeeds triumphantly in convincing me of the clarsach’s capabilities.

Rachel’s source material is drawn from the traditions of both Ireland and Scotland (mirroring those of her parents), yet she brings to these idioms a delicately expressive quality of her own which is most attractive yet hard to pinpoint more exactly; perhaps it’s something in the gentleness of her attack? Rachel also proudly showcases her own compositional abilities with a handful of her own tunes including the delightful, breezy jig Starry-eyed Lads and the CD’s title track which has already a firm favourite among harp players!>

All in all, this is an eminently tasteful, refreshing and subtly uplifting album, not in the least tedious or unduly esoteric. Even though the dominant mode is soft-focus, there’s grit in Rachel’s playing too. Yes, the disc’s a delight from start to finish, and beautifully recorded too by the way; although of course it helps if you’re not immune to instrumental charms of the tenderly plucked variety! I’ll not harp on, then – but equally, don’t let it pass you by.

 David Kidman, Net Rhythms / Folk Roundabout

 

Scotland is a ripe and fertile ground for the nurturing of young talent and Rachel Hair’s debut album must surely mark her out as one of Scotland’s finest young players of the clarsach. Her repertoire draws on music from Scotland and Ireland, as well as including some original music.

In opening herself to a diverse range of musical influences, she has developed a unique and fresh style. In pieces such as Castle Grant and the title track, there are lots of interesting and funky things going on, both rhythmically and harmonically. She also plays the slow tunes with tenderness and poise. In the haunting Shetland tune Da Day Dawn, her arrangement builds up to from a daring starkness to a lovely warm glow.

A word of praise also for Douglas Millar’s piano playing, which features on three tracks. He manages to enter almost imperceptibly, reinforcing the harp in an unassuming way, thus ensuring that the harp is always centre stage.

And the cheery Charmed is proof that the clarsach can be a chromatic instrument – if you happen to be as talented as Rachel Hair.

 Delyth Jenkins, Taplas Magazine