Ellery Klein & Ryan Lacey: Kick into the Beat

Kick Into the Beat: modern Irish dance music, volume 2.


Loads of irish music is, or was originally, written for dancing. Today, there is a whole Irish dance music scene, with its own competitions, awards, magazines, and festivals. People doing a range of Irish dance styles often take part in less formal sessions and gigs around the world, too. There are also the immensely popular stage shows, Riverdance and Lord of the Dance.

With these things in mind, fiddle player Ellery Klein and percussionist Ryan Lacey have come out with Kick to the Beat, their second collection of material designed for Irish dancers, a selection of mainly original tunes in the proper style and beat for competition Irish dance. While the dancers among you will be delighted with new music with which to practice and prepare programs, in the main it’s just as good a listen for those who don’t dance at all. If you enjoy the music as a player, this crisp and clear recording, which focuses on fiddle and percussion with just a touch of backing from bass and guitar, could be a creative practice and learning situation for you as well --and especially so if you play for dancers. For listening, the performance set Step Into Christmas, is a lot of fun, with among other things, a Jingle Bell Polka. The Bloomin’ Hornpipes set and The Starry Slip Jigs are also especially nice for listening -- but watch out. Klein and Lacey, who met when they were both in the band Gaelic Storm (think the steerage band in the movie Titanic) may have you trying out dance steps yourself.


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Music Road: now playing: Athena Tergis

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