The Recollective is an exciting new quartet that came into existence less than a year ago, but they all previously performed together as part of the Celtic Legends show, which has performed for over 1 million people worldwide. Their show in Pasadena will kick off The Recollective’s first US tour, and their initial recording will soon be released. They play a mixture of traditional and original material primarily from Ireland and Scotland. They combine songs and tunes from these traditions and weave them in with their own contemporary compositions to create an enchanting vibrant sound. The band consists of Calum Morrison, (Glascow, Scotland) on vocals, guitar, banjo, tenor guitar, bodhran and Highland Bagpipes, Karen Hickey, (County Mayo, Ireland) on fiddle, Michael Coult, (originally from Glossop, close to Manchester, England) on traditional Irish flute and whistles, and Kieran Leonard, (now living in London, originally from County Fermanagh) on drums, percussion, & bodhran. We are very excited to be introducing The Recollective to the United States. Come join the welcome party! All of the members have previously traveled and performed here individually, Karen with Full Set, Mike with Rhythm of the Dance, Kieran with Goitse, and Calum has spent 2 terms of residency working in Orlando, Florida.
Tickets are $20 for adults and $5 for children. Tickets can be purchased by calling the Caltech Ticket Office at (626) 395-4652 and also online at the “purchase tickets” link below. There is a service charge for phone and online sales, but you can also purchase them without a fee in person at the Ticket Office’s new location, on the first floor of the Spalding building at California Boulevard and Wilson Avenue (southeast corner) or at the door on the night of the show, starting at 7:30PM.
In May, the Topanga Banjo Fiddle Contest and Folk Festival named the Pasadena Folk Music Society as the Legend Award for 2017! See more here. We are extremely honored to be along with past winners of this award, a very impressive list! And we salute those who have helped our organization through the years. You can see a list of these folks if you click here and scroll to the bottom.
We are saddened to note that the great singer, songwriter, and raconteur, Rosalie Sorrels, passed away last weekend on June 11. She was a larger-than-life original who so vividly and colorfully talked about her family and travels in such a personal way. We were honored to present her three times at Caltech, the last show being in June, 2011. Her family wrote the following on her Facebook page:
“I am sorry to report that our mother did pass away last night. She was surrounded with love and music, and is free from all the pain. Our mother has sung this song at the wakes of many of her friends and family, now we share her song in her honor. We will be planning a memorial service in Boise to allow mom’s many friends to say goodbye, and we (the family) will let all know when this will be after we have had a chance to grieve the loss of our beloved mother. We are very fortunate to have so many friends through mom’s work, and it helps a lot! This is sad news, but we have prepared ourselves for this too. We love you all and thank you for the continued love and support throughout are lives. Keep on Rocking, It’s a Beautiful Boat.
Very Much Love Holly, Shelley, and Kevin”
We could add many more songs and stories that would illustrate her special qualities, but we’ll stop with 3, a live recording, with introduction, of Shelly’s Song, her description of her Grandmother’s Garden, followed by her song, The Bells of Ireland, and finally, a recording of her song, My Last Go Round. She is greatly missed!
Some festivals you might want to make note of:
Grand Performances (Downtown Los Angeles, California Plaza) June 2- Sept. 22. Very eclectic line-up, including diverse music, films, children’s shows, and theater. All shows are free
Levitt Pavilion Los Angeles in MacArthur Park– June 17- September 10 all shows free.
Arroyo Seco Weekend Festival June 24-25 in Pasadena
Levitt Pavillion Pasadena in Pasadena’s Memorial Park June 29- Sept 23. All shows are free
Long Beach Bayou Festival, June 24-25
Kate Wolf Festival Laytonville (Northern California) June 22-25
Culver City’s Boulevard Music Summer Festival Free Thursday night shows outside Culver City’s City Hall beginning July 6.
Twilight Concert Series Santa Monica Pier July 7- September 8 Free Thursday evening concerts- schedule not yet set
Summergrass San Diego (in Vista, CA) August 18-19
The Santa Barbara Acoustic Instrument Celebration August 25-27
Strawberry Music Festival Fall Festival in Tuolumne, August 31-September 4
Millpond Festival Bishop CA September 15-17
Hardly Strictly Bluegrass (San Francisco Golden Gate Park) October 6-8 Multiple stages, all venues are free. Extravaganza festival with a lot of big names and a lot of people. No 2017 schedule as yet
Stow House Old Time Fiddler’s Convention and Festival Goleta CA October 8