A truly magical evening of Celtic music - trad. tunes, shining original compositions, and a great deal of fun and cameraderie.
A button accordion and concertina player of enormous integrity and innate empathy with the music, John Williams (founding member of Solas) received his music from his father Brendan and grandfather Johnny who lit up countless house dances in Doolin, County Clare with reels, jigs, and hornpipes on concertina and button box. His is a fluent style, full of maturity, vitality, and tunefulness.
Dean Magraw's passion transcends all perceived musical boundaries, yet the vital essence of his distinctive style is ever present, whether he's performing and recording as a solo artist, leading his own ensembles, or in collaboration with such notables as Japanese shamisen prodigy Nitta Masahiro, classical violinist Nigel Kennedy, South Indian vocalist and vina virtuoso Nirmala Rajashekar, jazz bassist Anthony Cox, and countless others.
Once the listener gets beyond the history and into the mystery, Dean the musician takes over: with tone and taste, unveiling soulful melodic grooves intricately designed to heal the broken dancer, confuse the boldest mathematician, and eradicate ennui in our lifetime.
Dean and John's first recording together is titled Raven: "This loose-limbed Raven soars effortlessly. (Williams) brings a zest to both traditional and original tunes, and he's found his spiritual equal in guitarist Dean Magraw, who's a mean draw when it comes to tune writing, too. There's enough space in between this pair's playing to let the
oxygen molecules truly ignite... What matters most of all, though, is the duo's utter confidence in the music's ability to carve its own identity without a hint of posturing. An inspired pairing."
- Siobhan Long, The Irish Times
