Playing both solo and in collaboration, this concert melds the Swedish nyckelharpa and the 5-string fiddle with traditional Gaelic piano.

Steeped in Swedish music traditions, lydia ievins performs an energetic and engaging variety of new and old traditional tunes on nyckelharpa and fiddle — including waltzes, schottises, polskas, and more. Thanks to her love of harmony playing and her pet project from the pandemic, she now uses looper-pedal magic to weave melodic and harmonic lines.

Neil Pearlman has been described by Gaelic singer and radio personality Mary Ann Kennedy as “one of the finest traditional pianists I have ever had the pleasure of hearing.” His approach to the piano blends a deep knowledge of the Scottish Gaelic music tradition with a love of spontaneity and improvisation that makes each concert unique.

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Friday, January 19 at 7:00 PM (doors 6:30 PM), 75-minutes with an intermission

Tickets are available for $15 in advance, $18 at the door, and $22 for preferred seating (pay-what-you-can available)

Be sure to register for the Scandi Tune Workshop with lydia ievins on Saturday, January 20 at 11:30 am - 1:00 PM. Come learn a couple of Scandinavian tunes, with an emphasis on making your playing danceable.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Massachusetts-based lydia ievins plays nyckelharpa and five-string fiddle for Scandinavian and English Country dancing. Her absolute favorite thing about playing in either genre is the opportunity to improvise rich harmonic lines. As an avid dancer herself, she infuses her playing with rhythmic clarity and sensitive phrasing to make it irresistibly danceable. Deeply immersed in exploring Swedish fiddling traditions, lydia is the only fiddler in the US who has earned both a bronze Zorn medal and a "diplom efter brons" in Sweden, for her fiddling in the Uppland tradition.

A highly respected performer and teacher, lydia has appeared at the Newport Folk Festival and Kaustinen (Finland) Folk Music Festival, as well as at Scandinavian museums and cultural centers across the US. Inspired by her 2012–13 year of study at the Eric Sahlström Institute with some of Sweden’s best fiddle and nyckelharpa teachers, lydia has since focused her teaching on finding fun and effective ways to share those insights. Together with fiddler Andrea Larson she developed Träd Weekend, a popular intensive workshop for Scandi-interested dance musicians.

lydia's recordings include Koivu (2018) with Helsinki-based pianist and composer Juha Kujanpää, Fika (2013) and Trip to Tobo (2012 EP) with Andrea Larson, and Northlands (2010) with Bruce Sagan. She has taught and/or played on staff at a variety of camps across the country including Nordic Fiddles and Feet, Scandia Camp Mendocino, Northern Week at Ashokan, Fiddle Hell, Northeast Heritage Music Camp, CDSS English Week at Pinewoods, CDSS Family Weeks at Pinewoods and Ogontz, Folklore Village, and Berea Christmas Country Dance School.

Multi-instrumentalist, step dancer and host of the TradCafe podcast, Neil Pearlman is a vital and distinctive voice in contemporary traditional music. Described as “a tremendous pianist” on BBC Radio Scotland and “a force to be reckoned with” by WGBH’s Brian O’Donovan, Neil is best known for his groundbreaking approach to the piano in Celtic music. Motivated by a deep musical curiosity and a love of collaboration, his playing is continually evolving and spontaneous without losing its roots in the traditional piano styles of Atlantic Canada, New England and Scotland. He has appeared at major festivals across North America and Europe including the Newport Folk Festival, Celtic Connections in Glasgow, Celtic Colours in Cape Breton, the Orkney Folk Festival and has recorded, performed or otherwise collaborated with such artists as Natalie MacMaster, Darol Anger, Seamus Egan, Alasdair Fraser and many more.

Growing up in a musical family, Neil was immersed in Scottish and Cape Breton music and dance from the start. He began dancing at the age of 3 and the piano followed soon after. Joining his parents and siblings on stage as the family band Highland Soles, Neil learned the art of performance early at festivals and concert halls across New England. At the age of 11, he appeared several times as a dancer in Natalie MacMaster’s high-powered show alongside his mother Laura Scott and a few years later released his first album with his father, fiddler Ed Pearlman. Already at that age he was exploring a passion for other styles of music, especially a lifelong love of jazz that has always played a role in his creative voice.

Today Neil’s musical projects run the gamut from deeply traditional to refreshingly contemporary. His podcast TradCafe is a series of conversations and collaborations with traditional musicians from around the world. In 2021 TradCafe launched a video series featuring one-off musical collaborations between Neil and artists such as Troy MacGillivray, Jenna Moynihan, Begona Riobo, Anxo Pintos, Yann Falquet and Alasdair White. His 2020 release Burden Lake with acclaimed Shetland fiddler Kevin Henderson received 5 stars from The Scotsman and his 2023 solo piano release Refractions led Gaelic singer and presenter Mary Ann Kennedy to describe him as “one of the finest traditional pianists I have ever had the pleasure of hearing”. He tours regularly with Kevin Henderson, Katie McNally, The Pine Tree Flyers, and as a solo pianist, while playing more intermittently with a wide variety of side projects featuring top Celtic, Americana and Jazz musicians.

PAY-WHAT-YOU-CAN POLICY

No one will be turned away for lack of funds; contact MSA at 207-879-4629 or info@mayostreetarts.org to take advantage of pay-what-you-can admission.

COVID-19 POLICY

Mayo Street Arts no longer requires audience members attending public events to wear masks. Audience members who feel sick—whether due to COVID or any other illness—should stay home out of respect for others.

CANCELLATION POLICY

Mayo Street Arts has a no-refund policy for all reservations. In the event that MSA is forced to cancel an event due to weather, illness, etc., refunds will be offered via the Ticket Tailor platform.