0:00:13 > 0:00:16Welcome to Brownlow House. Right in the centre of Lurgan.
0:00:16 > 0:00:19And we're delighted to invite you to a series of programmes
0:00:19 > 0:00:23that capture the variety and scope of the music that is Ulster Scots.
0:00:23 > 0:00:26And what variety that is as we welcome to our opening show...
0:00:28 > 0:00:32The Kellswater Flute Band and Zara Montgomery.
0:00:33 > 0:00:35Plus we have the very special reunion
0:00:35 > 0:00:37of the Killycoogan Accordions.
0:00:39 > 0:00:42So, let's get underway with two of those accordions, in the hands
0:00:42 > 0:00:45of Emma Colgan frae Kells and Ballymoney's Valerie Quinn.
0:04:02 > 0:04:04CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:04:07 > 0:04:10Well, what a fabulous to start our series, thanks, girls.
0:04:10 > 0:04:11- Thank you.- Thank you.
0:04:11 > 0:04:13Being an accordion player myself, I just wanted to get up
0:04:13 > 0:04:15and dance and tap my feet and get along with you!
0:04:15 > 0:04:17- You should have done! - I should have done.
0:04:17 > 0:04:19So, Valerie, when did you start playing the accordion?
0:04:19 > 0:04:22I didn't start till I was 15.
0:04:22 > 0:04:23My father had bought me one,
0:04:23 > 0:04:25because it was an instrument we always loved,
0:04:25 > 0:04:27so from learning the accordion,
0:04:27 > 0:04:30I then moved into the English accordion band from Cloughmills
0:04:30 > 0:04:32and then, from there, into Dunloy,
0:04:32 > 0:04:35and from that, into Killycoogan, where I then met Emma.
0:04:35 > 0:04:38So, it's always been marching bands you've been associated with?
0:04:38 > 0:04:40Always marching bands I've been with
0:04:40 > 0:04:43and that has, as I have left the marching bands themselves
0:04:43 > 0:04:46and taken part in them, it's gone into the more administrative side
0:04:46 > 0:04:48with the Confederation of Ulster Bands.
0:04:48 > 0:04:52Emma, so, you play here at home, but you've also played abroad, as well?
0:04:52 > 0:04:55I have, yeah. I've been lucky enough to travel to a lot of countries,
0:04:55 > 0:04:58including Italy, places in America
0:04:58 > 0:05:00and as far away as Hawaii, as well.
0:05:00 > 0:05:03And I've been involved in a number of great projects,
0:05:03 > 0:05:05for example, the musical On Eagle's Wing.
0:05:05 > 0:05:09So it was fantastic to be involved with such great musicians.
0:05:09 > 0:05:11Tell us more about how yous met.
0:05:11 > 0:05:14Well, Emma was already in Killycoogan and then I joined it,
0:05:14 > 0:05:17so we spent five very happy years together in Killycoogan,
0:05:17 > 0:05:21travelling quite a bit with that, and then we started doing duets.
0:05:21 > 0:05:22Playing duets, as well, yeah.
0:05:22 > 0:05:24So, it just expanded from there
0:05:24 > 0:05:26and we've been playing on and off ever since.
0:05:26 > 0:05:28So, you talked about Killycoogan.
0:05:28 > 0:05:32We're actually going to come back to that story later in the programme.
0:05:32 > 0:05:34So, thanks very much, ladies, for a brilliant opener.
0:05:34 > 0:05:37- We'll chat to you again later. - Thank you.- Thank you.
0:07:40 > 0:07:42CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:07:44 > 0:07:46So, Reuben, Tabitha and Benjamin,
0:07:46 > 0:07:49otherwise known as the bluegrass band Cup O'Joe,
0:07:49 > 0:07:51you're very welcome to Brownlow House.
0:07:51 > 0:07:53- ALL:- Thank you.
0:07:53 > 0:07:56Tabitha, you are the rose among the thorns here,
0:07:56 > 0:08:00- you're the only girl in this family band.- Yeah, I keep them in order.
0:08:00 > 0:08:02Well, I'm a big fan of bluegrass myself
0:08:02 > 0:08:04and I've also sung with my family,
0:08:04 > 0:08:07so I understand the drama, you know,
0:08:07 > 0:08:09singing with the family band and what goes along with that.
0:08:09 > 0:08:13Yeah, no, it's a bit of a strange thing, you know,
0:08:13 > 0:08:15like, a family from Armagh playing bluegrass.
0:08:15 > 0:08:19And basically, I got started because we're really competitive.
0:08:19 > 0:08:22And they started to get better at me at something, I thought,
0:08:22 > 0:08:26"I can't have that." So, I just thought I have to try stuff as well.
0:08:26 > 0:08:30And obviously, your close harmonies are so sweet, and I know that
0:08:30 > 0:08:33that only comes from singing with family members.
0:08:33 > 0:08:34I think probably it was, kind of,
0:08:34 > 0:08:37it's just a natural kind of thing, you kind of don't think about it,
0:08:37 > 0:08:39didn't really try to work on it that much.
0:08:39 > 0:08:41But then, whenever you need to sing together,
0:08:41 > 0:08:44you, kind of, just have a go and see what happens.
0:08:44 > 0:08:46That's kind of what we've done, especially in bluegrass,
0:08:46 > 0:08:49because a lot of it's built on harmonies
0:08:49 > 0:08:51and that's a really big part of the music.
0:08:51 > 0:08:53So, it's just exciting to try new things.
0:08:55 > 0:08:59# Well, I wish I was in London Or in some other seaport town
0:08:59 > 0:09:02# I'd send myself on a steamboat and sail the ocean round
0:09:02 > 0:09:06# Sailing round the ocean Sailing round the sea
0:09:06 > 0:09:10# I'd think of handsome Molly Wherever she may be
0:09:28 > 0:09:32# Well, I went to church last Sunday She passed me on by
0:09:32 > 0:09:36# Could tell her love was changing By the roving of her eye
0:09:36 > 0:09:40# Hair's black as raven Eyes as black as coal
0:09:40 > 0:09:43# Cheeks sure like lilies Out in the morning cold
0:09:44 > 0:09:48- ALL:- # Sailing round the ocean Sailing round the sea
0:09:48 > 0:09:52# Think of handsome Molly Wherever she may be
0:10:10 > 0:10:13# Well, do you remember, Molly When you gave me your right hand?
0:10:13 > 0:10:17# Said if we were to marry then I'd be your man
0:10:17 > 0:10:21# Then you broke your promise Go marry who you please
0:10:21 > 0:10:24# And my poor heart is saken You're living at your ease
0:10:26 > 0:10:30# Sailing round the ocean Sailing round the sea
0:10:30 > 0:10:33# Think of handsome Molly Wherever she may be
0:10:52 > 0:10:55# Sailing round the ocean Sailing round the sea
0:10:55 > 0:10:59# Think of handsome Molly Wherever she may be
0:10:59 > 0:11:03# Sailing round the ocean Sailing round the sea
0:11:03 > 0:11:07# Think of handsome Molly Wherever she may be. #
0:12:09 > 0:12:12CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:12:15 > 0:12:16As we all know by now,
0:12:16 > 0:12:20music from these parts has travelled around the world.
0:12:20 > 0:12:22And sometimes, we even find it landing back
0:12:22 > 0:12:24in our very own doorstep.
0:12:24 > 0:12:27In 1982, Jay Unger wrote a fiddle piece
0:12:27 > 0:12:31to mark the end of one of his fiddle and dance camps
0:12:31 > 0:12:33in the Catskill Mountains of New York.
0:12:33 > 0:12:37Now, he wrote it in the style of a Scottish lament and, indeed,
0:12:37 > 0:12:41he had one tune very much in his heid for it. Lochaber Nae More.
0:12:42 > 0:12:46"Farewell to Lochaber and farewell my Jean,
0:12:46 > 0:12:50"Where heartsome with thee I hae monie days been
0:12:50 > 0:12:54"For Lochaber no more Lochaber nae more,
0:12:54 > 0:12:57"We'll maybe return to Lochaber nae more."
0:12:58 > 0:13:00So, when Jay Ungar composed his tune,
0:13:00 > 0:13:03this was the sentiment he had in his mind for it.
0:13:03 > 0:13:06So, playing it for us tonight, in the ballroom,
0:13:06 > 0:13:09here at Brownlow House, is Rachel Lutton frae Antrim,
0:13:09 > 0:13:12along with the Kellswater Flute Band.
0:13:12 > 0:13:14This is Ashoken Farewell.
0:16:16 > 0:16:18What a fantastic performance.
0:16:18 > 0:16:21David, tell me a wee bit more of the history of Kellswater Flute Band.
0:16:21 > 0:16:24Well, the band was formed in 1947
0:16:24 > 0:16:26and so, we're coming up to the big 70th anniversary.
0:16:26 > 0:16:29The band is very much based on family
0:16:29 > 0:16:32and a number of generations in the band.
0:16:32 > 0:16:35We're just from outside Ballymena, just near Kellswater River.
0:16:35 > 0:16:39And we've been on the go doing different things - contests,
0:16:39 > 0:16:43concerts and a lot of work on the road, as well.
0:16:43 > 0:16:46Rachel, David mentioned about the generation of the band,
0:16:46 > 0:16:48so how did you become a member with Kellswater?
0:16:48 > 0:16:50My great-granda Joe was in the band
0:16:50 > 0:16:53and my granda and my daddy,
0:16:53 > 0:16:56and then my brother's in it, as well, so it's quite a family thing.
0:16:56 > 0:16:58So, I started when I was in P1 or P2,
0:16:58 > 0:17:01when I was five or six, playing the triangle,
0:17:01 > 0:17:03and then I moved on to the concert flute.
0:17:07 > 0:17:09So, we welcome back Valerie and Emma
0:17:09 > 0:17:11and now we're joined with Willie Hill
0:17:11 > 0:17:14and we're here to talk about Killycoogan, is that right?
0:17:14 > 0:17:16We're here to talk about Killycoogan, that's right, Nicola.
0:17:16 > 0:17:18The famous Killycoogan Band,
0:17:18 > 0:17:20who we are all part of
0:17:20 > 0:17:21at a different period
0:17:21 > 0:17:24through what we'd call the glory years
0:17:24 > 0:17:27from the middle '80s until the late '90s,
0:17:27 > 0:17:32when Killycoogan were probably the best band, accordion band,
0:17:32 > 0:17:35not only at home, but also across the water.
0:17:35 > 0:17:37And when was the band originally formed?
0:17:37 > 0:17:39The band was formed 1947,
0:17:39 > 0:17:41originally connected with Killycoogan village,
0:17:41 > 0:17:44and basically, that was their function. They made...
0:17:44 > 0:17:48they did radio various parades across the province.
0:17:48 > 0:17:51The marching bands obviously just playing marches,
0:17:51 > 0:17:54but the competition band will have been playing
0:17:54 > 0:17:55a slightly higher standard of music.
0:17:55 > 0:17:59They'd be playing originally orchestral transcriptions.
0:17:59 > 0:18:01Same as most bands, like the flute bands would have done,
0:18:01 > 0:18:03even the brass band would have done.
0:18:03 > 0:18:07But the time we got to the first competition in England,
0:18:07 > 0:18:09in 1984 in Buxton in Derbyshire,
0:18:09 > 0:18:12they were playing music which was written specifically
0:18:12 > 0:18:15for accordion bands, or as they called in those days,
0:18:15 > 0:18:17the accordion orchestra.
0:18:17 > 0:18:21And it was just the dedication the players had, in those days,
0:18:21 > 0:18:24but they wanted to go to rehearsal. Emma will tell you.
0:18:24 > 0:18:27- She looked forward to a Wednesday night.- I really loved it, yeah.
0:18:27 > 0:18:29Well, I was there when they were still winning
0:18:29 > 0:18:31British championship titles,
0:18:31 > 0:18:36and I was there for about eight years in total, from about 1992.
0:18:36 > 0:18:39So, I really did enjoy my part in the orchestra, yes.
0:18:39 > 0:18:42You're going to play for us tonight. What are yous going to play?
0:18:42 > 0:18:45Well, we've chosen a piece that we probably would all associate
0:18:45 > 0:18:48with Killycoogan and it's a Hungarian piece called Czardas.
0:18:48 > 0:18:51And after that we're going to go straight into a polka.
0:22:09 > 0:22:12CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:22:14 > 0:22:17We're not leaving the Killycoogan story there just yet.
0:22:17 > 0:22:21I'm joined by former member, Kara Bowman, who is going to tell us
0:22:21 > 0:22:25a fascinating story of when she was just a wee schoolgirl.
0:22:25 > 0:22:26Yes, well, when I was in P7,
0:22:26 > 0:22:28I had a wonderful opportunity
0:22:28 > 0:22:30to star in a TV drama
0:22:30 > 0:22:32done by the BBC called Henry.
0:22:32 > 0:22:35- And that was in the 1990s, wasn't it?- It was, yes.
0:22:35 > 0:22:38Basically, it was just after I had done the 11 Plus
0:22:38 > 0:22:41and they wanted a young country girl.
0:22:41 > 0:22:44I was from the country, at that stage,
0:22:44 > 0:22:47I lived in the Grange. I was taught the accordion in Culleybackey.
0:22:47 > 0:22:50And they wanted to see if somebody could play the accordion first.
0:22:50 > 0:22:55But then I was asked if I wanted to try out to see if I could act.
0:22:55 > 0:22:57So, they decided to give me the role.
0:22:57 > 0:22:59How's it work?
0:23:01 > 0:23:04That there's the lungs, and that's the heart.
0:23:04 > 0:23:07'Well, basically, I had to go for a competition,
0:23:07 > 0:23:10'I had to live with a family in Belfast,
0:23:10 > 0:23:13'coming from the country, to living in this high-rise flat.
0:23:13 > 0:23:14'It was six weeks filming,'
0:23:14 > 0:23:18and they came and picked me up every morning with my mum
0:23:18 > 0:23:20and took me down for filming for the whole two months,
0:23:20 > 0:23:23so we were driven down every day to Belfast and driven home.
0:23:23 > 0:23:26- You got proper A-star treatment, didn't you?- Oh, it was fantastic.
0:23:26 > 0:23:27Fantastic.
0:23:27 > 0:23:30Everybody was very nice and they all looked after me very well.
0:23:44 > 0:23:46Zara Montgomery, all the way from Donegal,
0:23:46 > 0:23:48you're very welcome to Brownlow House.
0:23:48 > 0:23:50Thank you very much for having me. It's a pleasure.
0:23:50 > 0:23:53So, tonight, you're singing The Parting Glass for us?
0:23:53 > 0:23:55I will be, yes.
0:23:55 > 0:23:57It's known as an Irish song,
0:23:57 > 0:23:59but in fact,
0:23:59 > 0:24:02it's only known as an Irish song since the 1950s. Before that,
0:24:02 > 0:24:07it was... It dates back to the 1600s, to an Ulster Scots song.
0:24:07 > 0:24:10It would have been used instead of the Burns Auld Lang Syne.
0:24:10 > 0:24:13It would have come before that, it would have been used as a toast,
0:24:13 > 0:24:15a farewell, a goodbye song,
0:24:15 > 0:24:20as the words are so appropriate in the actual song,
0:24:20 > 0:24:22for saying goodbye to loved ones, The Parting Glass.
0:24:22 > 0:24:25And I believe the opening stanza dates back to a poem
0:24:25 > 0:24:27about the Border Reivers?
0:24:27 > 0:24:30It's taken from a poem called Armstrong's Goodnight,
0:24:30 > 0:24:32that dates back to the 1600s.
0:24:32 > 0:24:36And it's about the execution of a very famous Border Reiver.
0:24:37 > 0:24:42# Of all the money
0:24:42 > 0:24:46# That I e'er I had
0:24:46 > 0:24:49# I spent it in
0:24:49 > 0:24:53# Good company
0:24:53 > 0:24:57# And all the harm
0:24:57 > 0:25:00# That e'er I done
0:25:00 > 0:25:04# Alas it was
0:25:04 > 0:25:07# To none but me
0:25:09 > 0:25:13# And all I've done
0:25:13 > 0:25:16# For want of wit
0:25:16 > 0:25:20# To memory now
0:25:20 > 0:25:23# I can't recall
0:25:25 > 0:25:29# So fill to me
0:25:29 > 0:25:33# A parting glass
0:25:33 > 0:25:37# Good night and joy
0:25:37 > 0:25:42# Be with you all
0:25:43 > 0:25:47# Of all the comrades
0:25:47 > 0:25:50# That I e'er I had
0:25:50 > 0:25:54# They're sorry for
0:25:54 > 0:25:57# My going away
0:25:57 > 0:26:01# And all the sweethearts
0:26:01 > 0:26:04# That e'er I had
0:26:04 > 0:26:11# They wish me one more day to stay
0:26:13 > 0:26:16# But since it falls
0:26:16 > 0:26:19# Unto my lot
0:26:19 > 0:26:23# That I should rise
0:26:23 > 0:26:26# And you should not
0:26:27 > 0:26:31# I'll gently rise
0:26:31 > 0:26:35# I'll softly call
0:26:36 > 0:26:38# Good night and joy
0:26:38 > 0:26:42# Be with you all
0:26:44 > 0:26:47# A man may drink
0:26:47 > 0:26:51# And may not be drunk
0:26:51 > 0:26:54# A man may fight
0:26:54 > 0:26:57# And not be slain
0:26:57 > 0:27:00# A man may court
0:27:00 > 0:27:04# A pretty girl
0:27:04 > 0:27:10# And perhaps be welcomed back again
0:27:12 > 0:27:15# But since it has
0:27:15 > 0:27:18# So ought it be
0:27:18 > 0:27:21# As a time to rise
0:27:21 > 0:27:24# And a time to fall
0:27:26 > 0:27:29# Come fill to me
0:27:29 > 0:27:33# A parting glass
0:27:33 > 0:27:37# Good night and joy
0:27:37 > 0:27:41# Be with you all
0:27:42 > 0:27:46# Come fill to me
0:27:46 > 0:27:51# A parting glass
0:27:52 > 0:27:55# Good night and joy
0:27:55 > 0:28:02# Be with you all. #
0:28:05 > 0:28:08CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:28:12 > 0:28:15Performing next week on Music Night At Brownlow...
0:28:16 > 0:28:20Sontas are joined by members of the Churchill Flute Band.
0:28:22 > 0:28:24And we have a spine-tingling performance
0:28:24 > 0:28:25from Brunswick Accordion Band.
0:28:28 > 0:28:30Haste ye back.