One of our favourite singers Ríoghnach Connolly has joined forces with Aizle to record The Wexford Carol as a Christmas single. It’s their take on one of the oldest Christmas carols, as part of a new collaboration. If you aren’t usually a fan of Christmas records, this release, which eschews the common softening of the edges the music – and there is not a bell is sight – is one for you. Watch the video featuring the creation of Beth Field’s beautiful illustration, filmed by Iain Dunbar.
Ríoghnach Connolly, vocalist, flautist, lyricist and musical activist, hails from Armagh, was forged in the Armagh Pipers Club (we recently previewed the Club’s 25th William Kennedy Piping Festival) and has for many years lived in Manchester. She records and tours with bands Honeyfeet, The Breath and Afro Celt Sound System – her contribution is at the centre of their new album Flight which Neil McFadyen reviewed here.
Aizle blend jazz and classical influences with Scottish and Irish tunes, bringing deep knowledge and respect for the tradition. The band features Ciaran Clifford on whistles; Graham Mackenzie on fiddle; Jim Molyneux on piano; Joseph Bardwell on guitar; and Stewart Wilson on double bass. In January 2016, they released their debut EP, which we described in our review – you can read it here – as a “refreshing, high-quality take on traditional tunes new and old”. Since then they have played across the UK and Europe, including Celtic Connections 2018.
Connolly and the band met through Manchester’s vibrant music scene where they have performed in various lineups in both jazz and folk venues. Now living across England, Scotland and Ireland, they came together to collaborate on some traditional songs.
Joe Bardwell, the guitarist with Aizle, said: “We’ve played with Ríoghnach for years in various projects, so when the idea of doing some work with a singer was mentioned, we knew who we wanted to call.”
“Ríoghnach has been playing all over the place with her projects, but we managed to get two days in the studio in May. I had performed The Wexford Carol at a gig with her a few years earlier, so we played it to the rest of the band and it clicked immediately. Everyone was coming up with fresh takes on the arrangement” said Bardwell.
The Wexford Carol is a traditional Irish Christmas carol originating from Enniscorthy, Country Wexford, thought to date back to the 12th century. Author and composer William Grattan Flood transcribed the carol from a local singer and had it published in the Oxford Book of Carols in 1928.
“I learnt the song at the Armagh Pipers club so have been singing it as long as I can remember. I’m delighted the lads have made it their own! There was a lot of love in the room” Ríoghnach said.
The combination of that voice and those musicians is the stocking filler to get for yourself right now– at less than the price of a bag of chips. Hopefully, the New Year will bring more products of their delightfully successful collaboration.
You can buy Ríoghnach Connolly & Aizle’s The Wexford Carol here:
https://www.aizlemusic.com/store/the-wexford-carol