Seumas Gagne, Harp and Gaelic Song |

News

18 Jul 2024 - Camping Cèilidh 2024 Cancelled

Dear friends,

It is with a very heavy heart that I write to you all at this time to let you know that I have to cancel Camping Cèilidh 2024.

The manager of Deception Pass State Park contacted me last week to inform me that our event was now classified as a “special activity“ which requires me to get a permit and a $1 million insurance policy. The permit was easy, and I was able to find an insurance company that would issue the policy, but the price was very high. In fact it would bankrupt the event and leave me in debt.

I know that just like me, Christine, Christian, Suzanne, Alicia, and Corrina, your hearts are all a little bit broken. This however is not the end of Camping Cèilidh! I will work out a budget that accounts for this additional cost so that I have a good chance of being able to produce Camping Cèilidh 2025.

Enjoy your summers, and we will meet again next year!

Seumas

Upcoming Events

7 Dec

2:00pm

2024

Guest at Vancouver Gaelic Choir Concert

I’ve been invited to contribute to the Vancouver and District Gaelic Choir’s holiday concert. We always have a good time together. Come on along!

presented by:

Vancouver and District Gaelic Choir

All Saints Anglican Church

Burnaby, BC

18 Jan

2:00pm

2025

Pender Harbour Music Society Concert

I'll be joined by my longtime music collaborator, Christine Traxler, and a cellist to be named later for an afternoon of sharing the riches of Gaelic music.

presented by:

Pender Harbour Music Society

Pender Harbour Music School

Madeira Park, BC

Discography

Baile Ard

Seumas' first solo CD containing a mix of traditional and original songs in Scottish Gaelic as well as traditional dance tunes. Additional musicians featured on this recording include Christine Traxler on fiddle, Colin Isler on cello, Tom Fallat on percussion.

Purchase on:

iTunes, Amazon Music

Prophecy and Blessing

Seumas was a founding member of Wicked Celts, who were active in the mid 1990s in Seattle. Christine Traxler has continued to collaborate with Seumas on many projects including his first solo CD, Baile Ard.

Current Workshops

Workshop and festival organizers! This is a list of my current topic-oriented workshops. I can also provide group instruction in level-based repertoire and style development in my area of expertise, Scottish Gaelic music.

All levels

Beginning Scottish Gaelic

Harp needed: No

Using the innovative Language Hunters teaching method, participants will be shocked and how much useful, conversational Gaelic they can acquire in just 90 minutes.

Four Great Gaelic Songs for Every Harper

Harp needed: No

In this workshop, participants will learn the melodies, suggested chords, and the words of the refrain to four great Scottish Gaelic songs. Prior attendance at Introduction to Scottish Gaelic For Singing Harpers would be very helpful.

Secrets of Classical Harp Technique

Harp needed: Yes

In the folk harp world we often hear pedal harpists talking about technique, but what does that really mean? In this workshop I teach just the basics of classical harp technique tailored for the folk harper. You'll learn about tone, hand and arm position, how to use a metronome to take your playing to the next level, no matter what level you are at now.

Spilling the Tea on the Sìth

Harp needed: No

In this workshop I share an in depth look at several pieces of literature and other original sources to examine what the intact Gaelic traditional knowledge system tells us about the Other People. It isn't all capes and wings, I'll give away that much!

Intermediate

Common Figures in Dance Tunes

Harp needed: Yes

In this workshop I teach a series of exercises that I developed to help harpers get some of the common melodic figures from Scottish and Irish dance tunes into their fingers. We'll progress slowly from a snail's pace toward performance tempo and see how far we get!

Rocking the Background

Harp needed: Yes

Guitar players can create tremendous energy and flow with the rhythms they strum when they accompany singers and tune players. We can do the same thing with our harps, and in this workshop I'll show you how without ever looking at a note of written music.

Waulking Songs on the Harp

Harp needed: Yes

The Scottish Gaelic song literature boasts several unique song forms; waulking songs among them. In this workshop, participants will learn a few of the traditions around this ancient tradition of wool milling and learn the refrains and melodies of several songs to take back to their harps.

Advanced

Cape Breton Fiddle Tunes on the Harp

Harp needed: Yes

A great source of dance tunes that are playable on the harp is the literature of Cape Breton fiddlers. In this workshop, advanced players will learn several Cape Breton tunes of difference types that Seumas learned from the playing of Wendy MacIsaac.