Sheehan hails from Tipperary where he learned his craft, and he’s been successful on stages throughout the world for many years. Together with his duo partner Cormac Doyle, he performs his own songs, telling timeless tales of love, loss and longing and managing to teach a few Irish song lines in between.

The next set combines Irish tunes played by Mayo native David Munnelly and a band he put together exclusively for the Irish Spring festival: together with Shane McGowan on guitar and young Joseph McNulty on fiddle, he unleashes a tempest of energetic jigs, reels and hornpipes which set the stage for step dancer Andrew Vickers, whose precussive and captive moves are greeted with standing ovations from an enthusiastic audience.

After a break, fêted newcomers Connla from Armagh and Derry in Northern Ireland take the stage. An exciting new band awarded several prizes during their first year, they offer an impressive line-up with siblings Emer and Conor Mallon on celtic harp and pipes, Paul Starrett on guitar, Ciaran Carlin on flute and bódhran player and singer Ciara McCafferty. During their set, it becomes clear why the sextet have been predicted a long and successful career on the Irish traditional circuit. In spite of their young age, all of them are experienced players with enough confidence to depart from traditional paths in pursuit of their genre’s future, a fact that is obvious in their innovative interpretations of old classics and their invigorating original work.

They also offer the dry humour which can be key to connecting with listeners: “If you don’t like our CD, send it to Ciaran. He’ll send you a CD he doesn’t like, and if I see you leaving the venue with our CD, I’ll tell you the story behind the second tune, which is very embarrassing for me”, Conor informs the audience, ensuring a steep climb in sales numbers.

The three groups join for a fast and furious finale during which the Berlin audiences’ famous reservedness has long since been blown away by this fine performance of Irish music and entertainment skills. The German capital city will hopefully become a regular stopover for future editions of the Irish spring festival – especially since many concertgoers expressed some disappointment about the continued absence of a St. Patrick’s Day parade and festival in their city.

Two years after their last album Getting Through soared straight to No. 1 on the Irish charts, The Riptide Movement follow up with Ghosts, their first ever record to be produced in the U.S. by Grammy award winning producer, Ted Hutt. After the remarkable success of its predecessor, the expectations resting upon their new album are high.

The fact that a band who sold out Dublin’s Olympia three times and headlined major festivals present their latest offering in intimate clubs like Berlin’s Musik & Frieden says a lot about the music industry and the challenge of “getting it out there”. Even for a band with a track record of undeniable successes, it’s hard work to warm up audiences to a new record. The phenomenon becomes clear at pretty much every live show when older songs are greeted with cheering, hollering and clapping, while the new ones usually get a more reserved reaction.

The Riptide Movement, however, are a band with an unusual knack for playing live shows, and they fill the place with energy and passion from the very second they burst onto the stage. Their knack for playing live accomplishes the impossible: they manage to keep the enthusiasm of their listeners on a high level throughout the set which mixes the up-tempo chart toppers from Getting Through with songs from the – in Germany still unreleased – Ghosts.

So, does it live up to the expectations? is the obvious question about the follow-up of every huge success. Whether it’s a relevant one is a different story, because it’s a general human trait to stick to what’s familiar and to be wary of what’s new. It also has to be said that Getting Through-tracks like “Animal” or “How Can I Let You Go?” are easy to love and get attached to. With their up-tempo groove, their roots in classical and timeless rock’n’roll tunes and catchy, energetic melodies, they qualify effortlessly as on-every-playlist-on-the-ipod-songs which become the daily soundtrack of jogging rounds or traffic jams on the way to work and back.

Some of the Ghosts tracks are certainly less easy listening – and therefore much more interesting. Unrulier, edgier, at times darker and more reflective, “Skull And Crossbones” or “Elephant In the Room” highlight the journey the album has been for the band as well as the “coming of age” process they doubtlessly went through since their last record. Ghosts exposes a band who are finding their own style more and more, yet never faltered in their fierce determination to know, do and get what they want. Independent band vs. signed artists (Ghosts appears on Universal Records) hasn’t changed that.

Ghosts definitely shows a development. In the music industry, developing and renewal at the risk of not fulfilling preset expectations by keeping on doing the same thing can be daring, but it is also the only chance of long-term survival. Without breaking free from their Alt Country roots on Yankee Hotel Foxtrot (and famously falling out with Warner Records over it), feted Chicago band Wilco would likely be little more than a footnote of early 90s music history today.

Ghosts may not be as radical a breakaway from “the early years” asYHF was for Wilco, but it clearly shows a band finding their way and confidently doing their own thing. While influences are still clearly identifiable on their other three studio albums – and while Ghosts may not surmount its predecessor’s commercial success – the band’s fourth offering has good chances of being remembered as the album setting the stage for “the TRP sound”. Bottom line: maybe not a chart breaker, Ghosts is a winner from a band that could, and judging from their resumé to date will, go much further than they already have.

Dance Masters! Best of Irish Dance swept away an enthusiastic audience in Berlin’s Tempodrom with a well balanced show of Irish dancing, tunes and songs embedded into a timeless story of love, passion and jealousy – by Franziska Kast, Irish Culture Events Berlin

‚Dance Master‘ Patrick has a lot of foot work to do on the long road to his beloved Kate’s heart. Training a dance company for a show, Patrick falls for the beautiful dancer – who, unfortunately, does not seem to notice, let alone reciprocate his feelings as she’s dating fellow dancer Kevin.

A journey through time

It’s a simple plot, but it sets the scene for a lot of breathtaking performances of energetic Irish tap dance sets in perfect sync. Woven into it is an entertaining cultural history of Irish dancing which developed in close connection with traditional Irish music. The characteristic tap dancing that was made one of Ireland’s most successful cultural exports by shows like Riverdance during the 1990s, however, emerged first during the 18^th century due to the often confined spaces for dancing during a music session.

The Dance Masters! of the time were traveling teachers who brought their knowledge to places all over the island. The audience get a glimpse of those days when Patrick falls asleep after a long day of rehearsing with the company and goes on a journey through time in his dreams. Colourful costumes – which the protagonists change for every scene – plus moves that seem to mock the laws of gravity and a stunning choreography by none less than Richard Griffin of Gaelforce fame all combine into an expressive and performative way of storytelling that would work even without the voice over narration. A large screen ensures that everyone in the large arena gets to follow the dancer’s every move.

Traditional live music

Another highlight of the evening is the six piece live band, whose sets consist of sing-along pub classics like “The Wild Rover” as well as gems of contemporary Celtic music like Dougie MacLean’s touching “Caledonia”. Barry Tierney (Guitar & Vocals), Ciara Murphy (fiddle), Aaron Dolan (Uillean Pipes and Whistle) and their fellow musicians present a bouquet of songs and the traditional jigs and reels whose rhythms lead to the development of the rapid dance steps.

The live music sets provide a welcome counterpoint to the restless, hypnotic clicking of the fiberglass tipped tap shoes without being any less energetic and lively. Music, dancing, beautiful images on the screen and costumes from different centuries are the perfect ingredients for an entertaining evening full of Irish joie de vivre and engaging rhythms and tunes. By the time Patrick finally holds Kate in his arms, the notoriously reserved Berlin audience have warmed up considerably, abandoning their seats to clap and tap along.

The cast of Dance Masters! are not let off the stage without performing several encores, and in the ensuing autograph session, none of them expresses any visible signs of fatigue after over two hours of providing high-energy, high-speed entertainment interrupted only by one short break.

The almost five-month tour of the ensemble continues until April 2^nd, 2017 and guests dozens of venues in the Northern half of Germany. Please see Reset Production’s website for tour schedules and tickets. Looking for the best 2017 Irish dance & music events in Berlin? Irish Culture Events Berlin will continue to find them for you and keep you posted!

Long connection with Germany
In a very Irish way, Kieran Goss has perfected the art of being not only a singer-songwriter, but also an entertainer. The anecdotes and stories he weaves around his songs cross the gap between performer and audience effortlessly. The confidence and skill acquired during many years of touring carries each song of the two sets. Opening the first set with the nostalgic, pensive “One Boy’s Treasure”, things quickly get more up-tempo with “The Reason Why”, which is greeted by clapping, hollering and cheering.

Kieran Goss songs: from experience to “I could have written that”
Kieran Goss’ music is both profoundly personal and universal enough for listeners to relate to his songs. It doesn’t take his specific family background (he has no less than fourteen siblings, several of whom left their home country in pursuit of work and income) to connect to “Reasons To Leave”. “Should I stay or should I go moments” are part of every human life, be it for economic or personal reasons, and it’s not surprising that it’s this song audiences usually know best, as Kieran Goss states. It is also his own favourite, and it fulfills his stated conviction that songs are at their best when they are universal enough for audiences to identify with the emotions they carry and to have a “I could have written that” reaction to them. He ends the first set with “Time To Go Sleeping”, a lullaby he wrote for his niece.

Kieran Goss and Annie Kinsella: a power couple of modern folk
While Kieran Goss jokes that he might have “exaggerated” his stardom in Berlin when talking to Ireland’s RTÉ Radio 1 about playing the “Lichterfelde Arena”, he certainly doesn’t when he describes his special guest for the second set, Annie Kinsella, as a “world class harmony vocalist”. The harmony between them is not restricted to the musical connotation of the word either, but can be felt in every song they perform together, whether it’s the Nashville-inspired “We’ve Got Us” or Rodney Crowell’s emotional New Orleans hymn “Jewel Of The South”.

Before Kieran Goss performs Cole Porter’s “Every Time We Say Goodbye” – one of the many early musical inspirations his large family provided by exposing him to whatever they, respectively, were into – the songs he and Annie Kinsella perform show how connected the couple are as spouses and artists. Almost 20 years on the road together have turned them into a tight musical unit unachieved by most other duos. The comparison with country music’s immortal power couple, Johnny Cash and June Carter is inevitable, and Kieran jokingly refers to himself and Annie as “Johnny and June” – before his wife dryly comments, “more like Sid and Nancy”.

The pair are living the dream, and they know it. Together they have created a powerful bond of music and love inspired by their families, relationship, their adopted home in Sligo on the West Coast of Ireland and the people they meet on their road trips, and they generously share that bond with their audience. Kieran Goss’ shows might not be the “arena” type of live gigs, but his listeners meet one of the most real artists on the folk scene, and that’s what keeps them coming back to what is a sold out live show but feels like a family gathering.

Setlist:
One Boy’s Treasure
The Reason Why
Wall Of Tears
Reach Out I’ll Be There
Reasons To Leave
Smile
Time To Go Sleeping
The Song Of Wandering Aengus – with Annie Kinsella
Jamaica I’m In Love – with Annie Kinsella
Out Of My Head – with Annie Kinsella
We’ve Got Us – with Annie Kinsella
Into Your Arms – with Annie Kinsella
Hand Upon My Heart – with Annie Kinsella
That’s What Love Is For – with Annie Kinsella
Jewel Of The South – with Annie Kinsella
Every Time We Say Goodbye / Song of Bernadette

Hansard eröffnet das Set mit Leonard Cohen’s Bird On The Wire. Die Hommage an den kürzlich verstorbenen Großmeister wird nicht die letzte des Abends bleiben, aber zunächst folgt eine Auswahl von Hansards aktuellem Studioalbum “Didn’t He Ramble”. Just To Be The One, das heitere, dylanesque Winning Streak und My Little Ruin geben einen Vorgeschmack auf dessen eindrucksvolle musikalische Bandbreite, die von den Musikern eins zu eins in Liveversionen übersetzt wird. Das stürmische irische Jig-Finale von McCormack’s Wall koexistiert friedlich mit: groovigen Big Band-Klängen von Curtis Fowlkes an der Posaune und seinen Kollegen an Saxophon und Trompete, den Gewitterstürmen, die Hansard und seine Tourneepianistin auf dem Klavier entfesseln, orchestralen Streicher-Parts, dem Van Morrison-beeinflussten Celtic Soul-Gefühl des Titelsongs und der easy listening-Gelassenheit von Wedding Ring, die irgendwo knapp vor Neil Diamond-Territorium haltmacht.

Zeit zum Luftholen? Oder um den Anschnallgurt anzulegen? Nicht vorgesehen. Willkommen in Glens Achterbahn. Eine derartige tour de force könnte, müsste erschöpfend sein, und die Platte wurde von grantigen Kritik-Eminenzen schon mal “überproduziert” gescholten. Faszinierenderweise trifft beides nicht zu. Teilweise, weil sämtliche noch so unterschiedlichen musikalischen Galaxien, in die Didn’t He Ramble vordringt, eisern von Hansards Gesang zusammengehalten werden, der vom gutturalem Wolfsknurren über kratzige, resignierte Klagen bis ins sanfte, tröstende Flüstern oszilliert. Teilweise, weil der vollkommene Einklang und die sprühende Spielfreude der Band – höchstens Bruce Springsteen und die E-Street- Band sind fähig, Vergleichbares abzuliefern – so unglaublich anstecken. Hansards Gabe, ein Publikum mit sich zu reißen sucht ihresgleichen, und er und seine Musiker setzen ihre Zuhörer so etwas wie dem Borg-Angriff unter den Live-Konzerten aus: Widerstand ist zwecklos. Diese Leute haben eine Mission. Die Trommel mit dem Schriftzug SAVE A SOUL steht schließlich nicht zum Spaß auf der Bühne.

Als Hansard sein bereits jetzt nach Luft schnappendes Publikum nach den ersten sechs Songs zum ersten Mal direkt adressiert, tut er es mit einem flapsigen deutschen “Alles klar?” In die sich anschließenden Lacher und Zurufe serviert er ebenso trocken die erste Anekdote des Abends. Die Szene könnte John Dos Passos‘ “Manhattan Transfer” oder dem New York-Kultstreifen “Smoke” entnommen sein: Hansard und Kollegen hängen in einer New Yorker Bar ab und verlieben sich allesamt in Barkeeperin Renata – “die in allem immer Recht hatte”, wie er ausführt, “Barkeeperinnen haben einfach keine Zeit für dummes Zeug.” Als ein betrunkener Hansard und einer seiner Konkurrenten in Habachtstellung auf etwas Zeit mit der Angebeteten lauern (“er wartete wahrscheinlich darauf, dass ich endlich abhaue. Ich wartete definitiv darauf, dass er endlich abhaut. Sie wartete darauf, dass wir beide abhauten. (…) Und dann fragte er, ‚bist du nicht der Typ aus “Once”, der diesen ganzen romantischen Scheiß schreibt?‘) endet der Abend damit, dass der Troubadour dem romantischen Rivalen zu seiner eigenen Überraschung einen Song schreibt, um das Herz der gemeinsamen Geliebten zu erobern.

Ob die charmante Geschichte nun wahr oder dem Reich der Bühnenfiktion entlehnt ist: dem Song Renata war es nicht vergönnt, seine Heldin zu erweichen (“er hat ihn gesungen, ich habe Gitarre gespielt, und sie hat uns beide rausgeschmissen.”) Die Erfahrung hat Hansard offensichtlich nicht entmutigt, weiter romantische (wenn auch zweifelnde) Songs zu schreiben, wie er gleich danach mit Wedding Ring unter Beweis stellt. Von da begibt er sich übergangslos in politisches Fahrwasser, als er seinen Zuhörern Woody Guthries selten gespielte Perle Vigilante Man präsentiert, nicht ohne darauf hinzuweisen, dass der verstorbene Vater des politischen Folk sich seitenweise über Donald Trumps Vater Fred ausließ.

Liebe und Respekt für andere Künstler ziehen sich durch das ganze Set. Das Publikum darf einer Bande Musiknerds in ihrem Element zuschauen, die den Abend selber am meisten zu genießen scheint. Der dreckige, bluesige Groove von Hansards Lowly Deserter mündet in ein Zitat des berühmten Doors-Covers von Brecht/Weills Alabama Song. Prince wird mit einem funkensprühenden Cover von Kiss geehrt. Zwischendurch schmuggelt Hansard O’Shaugnessys berühmte Worte “We are the music makers/And we are the dreamers of dreams” ins Frames-Original Star Star, bevor er das Publikum endlich vom Warten auf Falling Slowly erlöst.

Wer denkt, der Abend könne nicht noch emotionaler werden, wird eines besseren belehrt, als zwei ausgedehnte Zugaben zum Cohen-Tributeset werden. Mit Who By Fire, Famous Blue Raincoat und So Long, Marianne beschwört Hansards Stimme die schmerzhaft vermisste Legende, und es ist herzzerbrechend und tröstend zugleich, wie sehr er sich in manchen Augenblicken an Cohen annähern kann. Der intensive, gemeinsame Moment von Trauer und Gedenken lässt niemanden unberührt. Mit auf der Bühne steht Cohens langjähriger musikalischer und persönlicher Wegbegleiter Javier Mas, dessen Laute noch zum überwältigenden Eindruck von Präsenz beiträgt. Gemeinsam erzeugen die Musiker schwer in Worte zu fassende Augenblicke voller Hoffnung und Transzendenz. Es bleibt ihr Geheimnis, wie ihnen das mit Anmut und Würde gelingt; wie sie es schaffen, den emotionalen Moment nicht ins Sentimentale kippen zu lassen und wie sie geschickt die ganzen Ozeane voller Pathos und Kitsch umschiffen, in denen weniger respekt- und taktvolle Performer die Magie dieser Momente ertränkt hätten.

Als das Publikum – aufgewühlt, glücklich, traurig und getröstet, alles auf einmal – sich allmählich auf die Ausgänge zubewegt, taucht die Band plötzlich in der Mitte der Arena auf und zieht, jetzt unverstärkt, alle verbliebenen Besucher in eine gemeinsame Darbietung von Passing Through, den Cohen einst berühmt machte. Gesang, klatschende Hände, stampfende Füße, schnipsende Finger setzen das letzte Ausrufezeichen hinter das starke Zusammengehörigkeitsgefühl des Abends.

Glen Hansards Liveauftritte zählen zu den besten, die es im Moment zu erleben gibt. Mühelos und geschmeidig überbrückt er die Distanz zwischen Aufführenden und Zuhörern. Unter seiner Führung entsteht eine große, warme, vibrierende Blase aus Musik, Emotionen und Gemeinsamkeit, die während des Abends alle Stadien von “sometimes happy, sometimes blue” durchläuft. Hansard hat es von den Straßen Dublins auf die größten Bühnen der Welt geschafft – aber dort hat er die Kunst, seine Zuhörer mitzunehmen, gelernt und zur Perfektion gebracht.

Blackberry Time beschwört eine flüchtigen Begegnung mit einer Frau, die auf einer Radtour nicht etwa bloß ans Ziel kommen wollte, sondern sich Zeit nahm für die kleinen Dinge am Wegesrand nahm. Es ist eine berührende und zutiefst persönliche Erinnerung, doch Luka Bloom wird die nächsten zwei Stunden zeigen, dass seine Songs auch vor Geschichte, Politik und Gesellschaft keinen Halt machen. Er besingt die Hungersnot, die unzählige Iren in die Emigration trieb. Er beleuchtet den Fall des inhaftierten indianischen Aktivisten Leonard Peltier. Und er setzt in Frúgalisto, dem titelgebenden Song seines neuen Albums und seiner aktuellen Tour, all jenen ein Denkmal, die gegen den allgegenwärtigen Konsumzwang Gemüse anbauen. Bloom findet Worte und Harmonien für alles, was ihm wichtig ist.

Ein Mann, seine Gitarre und Geschichten. Mehr braucht Luka Bloom nicht, um das Publikum den Abend über in seinen Bann zu ziehen. Freude und Nachdenklichkeit verpackt in musikalisches Können und Unterhaltungskunst ziehen sich durch das gesamte Set, das der Künstler ohne Pause präsentiert. In eine musikalisch aktive Familie hineingeboren, schrieb Bloom viele seiner “old man”-Songs in sehr jungen Jahren. In diese Kategorie fällt Wave Up To The Shore, eine eindringliche Ballade über den Kreislauf von Leben und Tod. 44 Jahre habe er gebraucht, um “die Stimme für dieses Lied zu finden”, aber das Ergebnis rechtfertigt die lange Reifezeit allemal. Der 16 Jahre alte Bloom schrieb den Song, der 60-jährige Mann nahm ihn endlich auf – und der macht im Übrigen kein Geheimnis daraus, wie viele Vorteile er im Älterwerden sieht.

Luka Bloom hat sie hinter sich gelassen, die Versuche, zu imponieren und tough zu sein. Heute begrüßt er Verletzlichkeit, ein Wort, das er von seinem Publikum in Stuttgart auf Deutsch gelernt hat, als Katalysator für Kreativität – “dann fängt man an, die Dinge richtig zu tun.” Warrior ist ein eindrucksvoller Appell zu diesem Thema: “Wenn du ein Krieger sein willst, solltest du besser lernen, zu weinen.” Zweifellos hat Bloom den “sweeter groove” gefunden, den der Song allen verspricht, die weniger auf Coolness und mehr auf Ehrlichkeit setzen.

Auch außerhalb seiner Songs trägt er das Herz auf der Zunge. “Ich hasse Workshops. Da muss man morgens um neun in einem Zelt sein und über Songwriting reden,” gesteht der Musiker. Ein Workshop beim dänischen Tønder-Festival, bei dem auch Arlo Guthrie sprach, sei es allerdings wert gewesen, den Wecker zu stellen. Guthries Zusammenfassung zum Thema Songwriting enthält Luka Bloom seinem Publikum nicht vor: “Das ist wie beim Angeln. Du wirfst die Angelschnur aus, holst sie langsam ein und hoffst, dass ein dicker Fisch am Haken hängt. Und du darfst nie flussabwärts von Bob Dylan fischen, denn der fängt die Besten, und er schmeisst niemals einen zurück ins Wasser.”

Luka Blooms Publikum zählt zu der Sorte, die die Arbeit eines Künstlers über lange Zeit verfolgt und im Zweifelsfall textsicher ist. Während er seinen Zuhörern vor allem eine erlesene Auswahl der besten Songs von Frúgalisto kredenzt, ist ihm klar, dass sie sich nicht ohne ein paar seiner Klassiker zufriedengeben werden. Songs wie The City of Chicago und You Couldn’t Have Come At A Better Time werden gleich bei den ersten paar Akkorden erkannt und begrüßt wie alte Freunde. Als am Ende des Abends alle begeistert mitsingen, wird das, was Bloom beim Schreiben und Spielen antreibt, greifbare Wirklichkeit: “Ich will niemanden mehr beeindrucken. Ich will aus meinem Herzen zu euren singen.”

The atmosphere at Kreuzberg’s beautiful Passionskirche is festive and the venue sold out for Norland Wind’s long expected Berlin concert. The current line-up sees five top class musician joining forces for a gorgeous spring evening filled with nordic and celtic tunes and songs. The diverse backgrounds of the members make for a large part of Norland Wind’s incredible dynamic and energy. So, may we introduce the band to you before rather than after the concert today?

Singer, guitarist, songwriter and composer Kerstin Blodig is the only Berliner on stage, although her music is inspired by her Norwegian background and her preoccupation with Norwegian traditional music. The band’s much-cited Clannad connection – a group which won numerous awards including a Grammy – is Donegal native Noel Duggan on guitar and vocals.

On the keyboards (all the way from Odense, Denmark): Johann Skov-Hansen, a talented young pianist who will later have one of the night’s great solo moments. Thomas Loefke, originally from the Black Forest region in Germany’s southwest, learned his craft from Ireland’s leading harp players. Angelika Nielsen, born in Vestmanna on the Faroe Islands, is her home country’s leading lady on the fiddle and a regular member of the Faroese Symphony Orchestra. All of the musicians tour and record together in various constellations and have other projects with some of our time’s leading folk artists going.

After a ravishing intro by the full band, the evening’s first highlight is Kerstin Blodig’s rendition of the folk tale of the wild bird which is featured in both the Norwegian and German canon of legends. The singer’s breathtaking vocals, her skillful guitar playing and the effortlessness of her solo performance make it easy for the listeners to empathize with the infatuation of the king upon listening to the bird who chooses the freedom of the forest over the riches in the palace.

Noel Duggan takes up the torch with a touching performance of the Irish ballad Foggy Dew – a perfect choice for the days leading up to the centenary of the Easter Rising as the song chronicles the events of the 1916 rebellion led by James Connolly and Patrick Pearse and has been performed and recorded by many feted folk artists over the past decades.

After the political and historical intermezzo, many a tale is told that night. Stories of a raven, a rock in the sea and the full moon, all of them brilliantly arranged and effectively staged with loop stations, take the audience on a dreamy journey to distant shores, ancient myths and the enigmatic realm between legend, reality and states of the human soul. The setting and great acoustics of the Neo-romanesque Passionskirche lets them resonate even more intensely within the listeners.

Yet, the transition to current affairs of our time is effortless in Blodig’s performance of Melissa Etheridge’s I Need To Wake Up, a song which is connected to burning questions of our time via its usage in Al Gore’s film An Inconvenient Truth and addresses the need ‘to move, to wake up to change and to shake up’ in order to make a difference.

Angelika Nielsen and Thomas Loefke bring up the rear of stunning performances with a fiddle/harp duo set featuring of one of Nielsen’s own compositions which according to her was inspired during a tour in Scotland and which leaves the audience audibly breathless before a storm of well-deserved applause breaks out. Even after being treated to an encore, some listeners don’t want to let the band leave, and enthusiastic ‘One more song!’-shouts fade first after the stage lights have been switched off.

Norland Wind’s next concert is in Dresden, but for all Berliners who want more after that night, the Berlin concert dates of the artists’ various projects can be found at thomasloefke.eu – and of course, over the coming weeks and months, on ice-berlin.com.