The fiddle is a special instrument. Maybe it’s my own warped perception of it, but I always feel that it signifies something grandiose, fantastical, and cinematic when its being played. Even when I walked down streets of Europe and heard buskers playing it, there was such a powerful air around them unlike any other instrument. When I heard Wolf & Clover’s first piece on ‘Live at the Silvan Sessions’, that same sense of purpose and power just flew into me. The live album from the Irish folk-classical instrumental outfit have an aura of magnificence to them .
The group are primarily inspired and influenced byIrish (and other Celtic) traditions as well as the individual backgrounds of each member of the group. When they incorporate vocals, they stay true to An Ghaeilge (the Irish Language) and have recorded several tunes as such.
Remarkably, the entire album was recorded with a single stereo microphone at luthier Frank Schley’s shop in March of 2020, the onset of the global pandemic. Performing to a very small crowd of mostly family & friends, the group something special in the moment and performance, then choosing to release a section of cuts as a fully fledged project. And when you listen to it, you can feel that passion and heart with each twang.
Beginning with the pulsating fantasy that is ‘The Columbus Set’, Wolf & Clover immediately draw you into their distinctively Irish sounding session with a remarkable fiddle and flute serving as the more out of the ordinary elements. ‘The First Avenue Set’ starts similarly, but with a more harmonious almost hopelessly optimistic twinge to its melody. I can’t help but feel myself in the middle of The Hobbit when playing it through. ‘After the Battle of Aughrim/Eleanor Plunkett’ is far more sullen, melancholic, and meditative piece. It’s almost saddening, with its sombre tone feeling like the final moments of a battlefield soundtrack when the fallen soldiers are put to bed honourably.
‘Live at the Silvan Sessions’ is a beautifully composed instrumental piece that is doubly powerful for its in person recording. The feeling is immense without a word being said, a nigh undeniable cinematic orchestration. Be sure to check it out!
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