Review Centre: Folk Bands

"We recently hired Barbara e Champagne to perform at my parents' 45th wedding anniversary celebration, and the experience was nothing short of extraordinary. The event took place at a rented villa in Terracciola Toscana, and from the very start, the team showed a high level of professionalism and dedication. We had a small group of 12. They arrived an hour before the performance to set up and to ensure everything was perfectly aligned with our expectations. This attention to detail and their willingness to connect with us beforehand truly set the tone for a memorable evening. The music was simply beautiful. Carla's voice is stunningly natural and powerful, making the night truly unforgettable. Her performance, along with the talented musicians, brought a magical atmosphere to our celebration. It was evident that they love what they do, as their passion and enthusiasm shone through every note. Not only were they exceptional musicians, but they were also incredibly kind and friendly. Their warm and approachable demeanor added to the joy of the evening, making everyone feel welcomed and engaged. In summary, Barbara e Champagne exceeded all our expectations, creating a night filled with beautiful music and cherished memories. We highly recommend them for any special occasion."

Reply by Barbera & Champagne
Thank you very much for your review, Bridget! I am so sorry I did not reply earlier, please forgive me! So how is it going? Are you coming to Italy again soon? I hope everything is fine, please say hello to your awsome family and all the best by all of us! Carla, Dino, Guglielmo and Angelo.

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"I first witnessed The DooLallys years ago at a kind of impromptu kitchen session. I think deeply soulful is the best way to describe their mix of pipes, strings, and song - seamless switches between O'Carolanesque 18th Century rave style to sweet balladeering, along with true and loving versions of traditional Irish music tunes, all layered with a knowing hedge school poetic sensibility. "

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"Bob Ferguson concert, 11. Sept. 2019 Our association organizes, among other things, traditional concerts, especially regional music of Low German culture. Scottish and Celtic music corresponds to this program much. Bob Ferguson gave us with his music insights and impressions into the everyday life of Scottish life. In his ballads, he sang about love, wanderlust, the landscape and the sea. He entertained the audience wonderfully, walked through the rows of spectators and encouraged everyone to sing along. The audience felt transported to the Highlands and Lowlands of Scotland and had this beautiful landscape in mind. We thank him for this great concert and we look forward to seeing him again in autumn 2020. "

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"One of the hidden treasures of London is the range of talent that exists on the folk and acoustic scene that rarely get the acclaim they deserve. Three London based bands that excel at performing Eastern European/Balkan Music are Szapora, Mukka and Beskydy, each of whom are worth looking out for. Nine strong Beskydy perform songs and tunes from across Eastern Europe and beyond, in fact looking at the sources on their cd listing is almost like a tour around that part of Europe, from Macedonia to Hungary via Galicia and Bulgaria and taking a detour through Slovakia. The bands name itself comes from the range of mountains that run through the centre of former Czechoslovakia which according to the band has heavily influenced their musical choices whilst they turn their hand to music from a range of sources (excellantly). The first track is a Macedonian song, Jovano, Jovanke (click here to hear the song) and the range of Joanna Fosters vocal skills are further displayed in the three Slovakian songs that make up track 4, from the slow Janosik to the more up beat cheery Anicka Dusicka and A Ja Taka Dzivocka although Foster and the band manage to intertwine the tunes with sufficient skill so the songs merge as one. Again Track 9 is a duet with Accordian player, Peter Murphy, joining Foster on the Macedonian song Iz Dolu, along with some damned fine fiddling. The range of Beskydys musical skills are illustrated well by the instrumental tracks ranging from the delightful Slovakian Waltzes (Track 5) to the slightly more manic Tropanka from Bulgaria (track 10) and onto the ordered upbeat and furious synthesis between sax, fiddle and accordian that is Tantz, Tantz Yiddelekh (a wonderful Galician Jewish tune), yet again garunteed to result in limb movement, a delightful fusion of fiddles and saxaphone, furiously creating a wonderful atmosphere one that demands a physical response. One very minor complaint is the sleeve of the CD, it would be nice (or do I just lead a very shallow empty life) to have some information/lyrics or even translations of the songs, something about the origins of the tracks. That said its more than possible for bands with large bank accounts to produce nice extensive sleeves but not so easy for bands whose talents lie in their music rather than some slick marketing agencies. It would be impossible to identify one part of this cd that could be said to stand out more than the rest. The band have produced an album that is thoroughly enjoyable from start to finish - the question that comes to the fore when listening to this is when is the follow up going to be available? "

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"Wonderful entertainer! Bob ‘reads’ the audience and keeps the mood, tempo and volume on point. He provided a wonderful afternoon of music and humour for mum’s 100th!"

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"Absolutely fantastic Ceilidh band. They had a break down en route to our wedding and still somehow managed to get there and start on time and pull off a marvellous show. Very accommodating with what tunes and dances we wanted and also with what we wanted to be played later that evening. All in all absolutely delighted."

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"Thank you again for such a fantastic performance last night. Everyone absolutely loved it."

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"I booked Blag back in November 2018 and everything was very straightforward. Adrian, David and Michael were all very friendly and very professional. They arrived in plenty of time and set up with minimum impact on the rest of the party. They played at my 60th birthday party and played a mixture of ceilidh music to dance to, and other music in between, while we recovered !! Michael is a very good caller and, although we only had one experienced ceilidh dancer in our group, he was able to teach us quite a few dances. I absolutely loved my party and several of my guests also commented on how good the band were, and how much they'd enjoyed the whole evening. The last dance we did was definitely my favourite - lots of couples dancing in a big circle, gradually getting faster and faster !! Thanks again Blag !"

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"Beautiful, authentic and soulful are words too small and inadequate to describe magic and atmosphere that these remarkably talented people create! Most highly recommended."

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"George Zebra made our wedding party a night to remember! Our guests keep telling us how great they were! They learned and played our first dance song well so we could perform our choreographed dance - it couldn't have been more perfect! Highly recommend the soloist for our ceremony and drinks too, the perfect backdrop we wanted :)"

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"Difficile non definirli incredibili e fantastici. Portano allegria e voglia di ballare: al nostro matrimonio hanno fatto furore, rubando la scena a tutti!"

Reply by Mariachi in Florence
Grazie! Non vediamo l'ora di rivederci per l'anniversario! :-)

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"Robert Mitchell was very sensitive to our wish for a softer sound in the church and used the border pipes. He was extremely professional, worked well with the organist and pianist, and provided a lovely Irish touch to my daughter's wedding. Afterwards, he played the bagpipes outside while everyone gathered to greet the new couple with bubbles as they hopped into their limo. In addition, he provided a transition to the reception by playing the bagpipes outside the entrance. We are thankful to Robert and heard many positive comments about him from our guests."

Reply by Bagpiper: Robert Mitchell
Thank you, John.

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"A huge thank you to the band for making my birthday party unforgettable. Their talent and charisma brought incredible energy to the room. I received numerous compliments from guests, and I couldn't be happier with the choice!"

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"Just a note to say thank you to the Brogues for a fantastic performance at our wedding. Everyone had such a great time so thanks for providing the entertainment!"

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review:

"A perfect performance. We booked Strello for a private garden party with around 50 guests. The musicians played brilliantly. Our guests were delighted. Strello’s performance helped make the party a complete success. I can wholeheartedly recommend Strello to anyone who enjoys their style of music. Once again, a big thank you to the band. Ein perfekter Auftritt. Wir hatten Strello für eine private Feier im Garten mit rund 50 Gästen gebucht. Die Musiker haben grossartig gespielt. Unsere Gäste waren begeistert. Mit ihrem Auftritt haben Strello zu einem rund um gelungenen Fest beigetragen. Wem ihre Musikrichtung gefällt, dem kann ich Strello vorbehaltlos empfehlen. Hier nochmals einen Dank an die Formation."

Rating: 10 / 10 Share this review: