Deep in the heart of the Appalachian Mountains, West Virginia
nurtures its strong Scottish and Irish roots in many ways. As
musicians in Mountain Thyme, a band that has been performing
"Appalachian Celtic" music since 1983, we draw on this cultural and
musical heritage. That is one reason why our music seems to resonate
within the hearts of people in a special way.
We are now in the midst of renewed enthusiasm and appreciation for the music we love and perform for others. An important catalyst for this motivational spark is a state agency. The West Virginia Division of Culture and History has a longstanding tradition of providing support and encouragement to artists, artisans and performing musicians. Last year the Division issued a Request for Proposals to working artists within the state. Each of the members of Mountain Thyme applied for and was granted a Professional Development for Artists award in Spring 1999 from the West Virginia Division of Culture and History and the National Endowment for the Arts, with approval by the West Virginia Commission on the Arts.
These individual awards - interwoven as a Mountain Thyme collaboration - enabled us to travel together on a musical sojourn to the Celtic lands of Ireland and Scotland in August 1999. We attended traditional music festivals, played music and sang in informal sessions, attended ceilidhs, received coaching and impromptu lessons by local musicians, learned new tunes and songs, enhanced our technical skills, and learned more about the culture and history of traditional Celtic music. We experienced the thriving cities and the calm serenity of countryside surrounded with the aura of ancient Celtic history and tradition.
The first stage of the trip was the city of Dublin. We explored the
history of traditional music interactively at the amazing new facility
called Ceol. Highlighted in multi media presentations were numerous
musicians that we have met and/or seen in West Virginia venues such as
FOOTMAD concerts and Irish Week at the Augusta Heritage Workshop. One
video highlighted music in Pepper's Pub where Mountain Thyme performed
in 1989. We also experienced several informal sessions in musical
pubs while in Dublin.
We anticipated that the traditional music festivals that we
attended in rural County Clare, Ireland and Fife, Scotland would serve
as "hubs" for music development connections. That is exactly what
happened. From Dublin we drove west to County Clare to the Feakle
Music Festival which features the fiddling genius of native son,
Martin Hayes. Staying in a cottage just outside a small rural village,
we experienced some of the very best traditional Celtic music through
concerts, informal sessions, and workshops. From Feakle we drove back
to Dublin where we enjoyed another informal session in a musical
pub. We then took a ferry to Liverpool England, and traveled to
Edinburgh, Scotland by train. We experienced the street music of the
Fringe Festival and enjoyed rousing traditional music sessions in
pubs. We could not get tickets to the great Edinburgh Tattoo (a
showcase of Highland marching bands), but were able to view many of
the performers as they marched in the streets.
The train ride north to Auchtermuchty provided panoramic views. Once there, we experienced one of Scotland's finest festivals of traditional Scottish songs and tunes - learning, honing technical skills, and making new musical friendships hour by hour. We enjoyed a traditional music session in London the night before we flew back to West Virginia.
Being there, mixing with the musicians and local people, hearing the music all around us, and being part of the musical energy was magical, and transformed us in many ways. For one, we are more authenticated--we perform in many schools across the state, and now when we tell about Celtic music and its connection to our own West Virginia heritage, each of us is speaking and educating with enhanced, firsthand knowledge.
We found new tunes and songs and resources for future learning, improved technical skills, acquired a better grasp of the subtleties of Celtic music, and became more grounded in the music that we have been playing in West Virginia for many years. We have a deeper understanding of the roots of the traditional music of Scotland and Ireland and the vital role it played in uplifting people and giving them the strength to persevere through hard times.
Perhaps the most important connections we made were the
interpersonal ones. As a result of the friendships and acquaintances
we made in Ireland and Scotland, we are now a part of a network of
musicians who are seeking to exchange and share musical knowledge in
an on-going fashion. In Ireland we reunited with internationally
acclaimed Niamh Parsons who performed in a FOOTMAD (Friends of Old
Time Music and Dance) concert in Charleston West Virginia several
years ago. Niamh taught several singing workshops and provided us with
informal coaching for an immigration song we were learning. In
Scotland, we hosted an informal singing session with several singers
and musicians who performed in the festival. They were interested in
learning more old time music and, of course, we wanted to learn more
about the history and roots of our Appalachian/Celtic music. After an
enjoyable evening of music and fellowship, this musical connection
took on a life of its own.
As a result, we are hoping to create a musical "Friendship Force"
between musical communities in Ireland, Scotland and West Virginia so
that many more people can benefit from this invaluable connection
which is such an integral part of our state's heritage. In response to
our query, FOOTMAD has expressed interest in becoming a partner and
has established a special committee. Mountain Thyme, the FOOTMAD
committee and a representative of the Arts Section of the West
Virginia Division of Culture and History will be getting together
through the next year to talk about a potential program. In the
meantime, Mountain Thyme is maintaining email connections with our
musical friends in Scotland and Ireland.
We, the members of Mountain Thyme, are genuinely grateful and honored to have received funding support that enabled us to explore and experience new challenging and rewarding horizons for the music that is so important to our artistry and to our audiences. Our musical journey to Ireland and Scotland would not have taken place without the encouragement and financial assistance from the West Virginia Division of Culture and History.
We wholeheartedly support all efforts, such as the Individual Artist Development program, to provide resources and encouragement for West Virginia's musicians and artists. The importance of such investment in our state's culture and history cannot be overstated. We also encourage other states to consider developing and offering a similar program to support and encourage artists and musicians who are so important to each state's cultural and historical wealth.