With Special Guests:

Carl Novotny: Guitar

Chris Hayes: Guitars & Bouzouki

Carl Scott: Guitars

Joe Trump: Percussion

Continuing their 4 seasonal releases in 1 year Hanz & Claire Kathryn release The Emigrant's Song, the third in their seasonal music cycle. While most of us think of Summer as a time for sun and hitting the beaches, for many of our fore fathers in Ireland it was a time of leaving their homes to gain employment in England and Scotland mining, picking fruit or harvesting potatoes and the like. A trail so well documented in the books of Donegal man, Patrick McGill. Here the plight of the emigrant and laborer is presented in a concert entitled The Emigrant Song, The Laborer's Lament. From the stories of those forced to leave Ireland, to the workers of England, Scotland and Wales, these songs evince the impact of Celtic music on the folk music of North America, where so many came to make new lives.

Audio Samples:

Craigie Hill:

New Rigged Ship:

Japanese Hornpipe:

Also available from Copperplate:
Hanz Araki & Katherine Claire: As I Roved Out.: Songs of Spring
Hanz Araki & Katherine Claire: Songs of Love & Murder
Hanz Araki & Katherine Claire: A Winter Solstice Celebration

Track Listing

1. The Exile's Jig
2. Johny Miner
3. Craigie Hill
4. Leaving Glasgow
5. Four Loomed Weaver
6. New Rigged Ship
7. My Johnny Was A Shoemaker
8. The Isle of France
9. The Steampacket
10. Grey Funnel Line
11. Covering Ground
12. New Holland Grove
13. Japanese Hornpipe
14. Farewell to Fiunary

Liner Notes for The Emigrant's Song/The Laborer's Lament

This collection explores the plight of the emigrant and laborer. Every one of us is a child of immigrants, and the laborer has been the backbone of civilization for centuries. While these songs will never lose their significance, they will hopefully someday lose their relevance. All tracks feature myself (Hanz Araki) playing flute, whistle, and vocals; Kathryn Claire on fiddle, guitar, and vocals; and Joe Trump on percussion.

Track 1:The Exile's Jig / The Scotsman Over the Border / Willie's Trip to TorontoI first heard the Exile's played by Sweeny's Men, and later played it with fiddler Dale Russ. My grandfather is a Scotsman, although he grew up over the border from Tennessee. Willie's Trip to Toronto was written by Cape Breton fiddler Jerry Holland. Cary Novotny on acoustic guitar.

Track 2: Johnny Miner (Ed Pickford)

From Dick Gaughan, one of the most influential singers in the genre, from the album Kist O' Gold. Featuring Chris Hayes on bouzouki.

Track 3: Craigie Hill

Truth be told, both Kathryn and I first heard this song sung by Dick Gaughan as well. Chris Hayes on lead guitar.

Track 4: Leaving Glasgow

This tune, which I learned from the playing of Cathal McConnell, was possibly the first non-Japanese tune I played on the shakuhachi.

Track 5: Four Loom Weaver / Scully Casey's

Thanks to the Silly Sisters June Tabor and Maddy Prior for this song. Featuring Chris Hayes on additional acoustic guitar.

Track 6: The New Rigged Ship / Fair Wind / The Holy Land

Three sea-faring reels, featuring Cal Scott on guitar.

Track 7: My Johnny Was A Shoemaker

Kathryn learned this song from bodhran player Vashon Bench. I played bodhran on this particular recording, though. I must credit Sarah Dee for her harmony part which I shamelessly stole.

Track 8: The Isle of France

I first heard this song many years ago on a mixed tape made for me by my friend Mike Cody. I was reminded of it by another of my all-time favorite singers, Susan McKeown. Featuring Chris Hayes on electric guitar.

Track 9: The Steampacket / The Floating Crowbar / The Sailor on the Rock

Percussionist/drummer Joe Trump plays a vast array of found objects and hardware; in this case, a suspension spring atop a Balinese bell laid over his snare. He demonstrated it for me and I desperately wanted to put a set of tunes around it. Having grown up around large diesel engines, I thought these tunes were a perfect fit. Cary Novonty on guitar.

Track 10: The Grey Funnel Line (Ciril Tawney)

I never grow tired of this song, no matter how many times I hear it.

Track 11: Covering Ground / The Rolling Waves

This first tune was written by Diarmaid Moynihan of the band Calico. Chris Hayes on guitar.

Track 12: New Holland Grove

Many thanks to Niamh Parsons for this song. Chris Hayes plays bouzouki here.

Also by Hanz & Claire Kathryn and available from Copperplate

A Winter Solstice Celebration

As I Roved Out, Songs of Spring

Press Reviews

R2 Magazine Sept/Oct ****

Hanz Araki and Kathryn Claire hail from around Portland, Oregon and play lrish music, which Kathryn picked up from her family and Hanz came across in Japan in the 80s.

This is their third (of four) CD's released in a year to reflect the seasonal cycle. This one represents summer — it was apparently the time of greatest emigration — and contains fourteen tracks of which eight are well-known songs and the rest are tune sets. So far so unpromising, but it's surprisingly good.

Hanz and Kathryn both have pleasant voices that work well together. Songs are mostly traditional apart from the well-worn 'Johnny Miner' and 'Grey Funnel Line' done in unaccompanied harmony. The instrumentation is simple and uncluttered, centred on Hanz's flutes and Kathryn's fiddle with stellar assistance from Joe Trump on inventive percussion, and various guitarists.

The tune sets enable Hanz to showcase his shakuhachi , a Japanese bamboo flute, on 'Leaving Glasgow', and Joe to throw everything into his percussion on 'The Steampacket'.

Making four albums in a year has, by necessity, restricted studio time and this has pushed them to create a live sound with a freshness that results in a rather enjoyable listen. Ian Croft

The Living Tradition

Flute, fiddle and song from an American duo who are releasing a CD for each season of the year. This one represents summer and is also themed around exile and emigration. The main attraction for me is the warm rich wooden flute of Hanz Araki, one of several young stateside exponents who are following Chris Norman's example and matching the Irish on their own instrument. The flute features prominently on the opening set of jigs, the showpiece hornpipe City Of Savannah and the slow air Leaving Glasgow . Araki is not quite as impressive on the reels, but together with Claire's fiddle the duo makes a fine job of The Steampacket, The Sailor On The Rock and the Shetland classic New Rigged Ship among others. Kathryn Claire's fiddle is a key ingredient of the arrangements throughout The Emigrant's Song and shines on instrumentals including The Rolling Waves, The Japanese Hornpipe and that fine old Irish reel, The Holy Land .

Both Hanz and Kathryn sing and eight of the 14 tracks here are songs, all well known traditional or similar numbers. The Four Loom Weaver and Farewell To Fiunary were standards of the Scottish folk revival and are strongly sung by Hanz. Craigie Hill and New Holland Grove refer to Irish emigration and Kathryn delivers them at a slower tempo than usual, which is surprisingly effective. The Isle Of France may be familiar from the recent Lau recording, a hard act to follow: Araki and Claire make a brave attempt. My Johnny Was A Shoemaker doesn't add much to the album, but the modern workers' laments Farewell Johnny Miner and The Grey Funnel Line are both powerful duets. The combination of song and music makes this a very enjoyable recording and there is still one more release to look forward to in the series. Alex Monaghan

The Irish Music Magazine

A follow on from As I Roved Out: Songs of Spring, Hanz Araki and Kathryn Claire continue with their innovative project, which I last described as 'involving the release of four albums depicting the corresponding seasons in just one year.

The thought process being unique in the fact that the four albums can be toured respectively giving fans of the pair the opportunity to purchase in line with the performance. The albums are produced with minimum over dub and editing and the duo has proved that this can be done at minimum cost to the production yet, on an enjoyment level, with a maximum benefit to the listener.

This, the third in their seasonal music, unusually is not based on the sunshine and joy of Summer. lnstead the pair have gone beyond the stereotypical seasonal theme and based this release on the time of year that, in past years, saw emigration hit as Irish men and women left their homeland in search of the seasonal employment that was to be found across the seas. With this in mind the initial track is that of The ExiIe's jig; a heady mix of flute and fiddle floating over a strong percussion that kicks into the stark lyricism of Johnny Miner; the instrumental mix adding a poignant flow to the vocal harmonies that carries through with a beautifully melancholic air in Leaving Glasgow. The heavy percussion at the intro to The Steampacket somewhat distracts from the main instrumental at the start but converts into a complementary backdrop as the tempo picks up. The rhythmic opening to Covering Ground, in contrast, fully enhances the flute and fiddle as they alternatively take the lead with definitive pace.

The Emigrants Song retains the quality of showmanship that was evident in the other recordings in this unique project. I'm looking forward to listening to what Autumn brings. Eileen McCabe