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| Celtic Radio Community > Minstrels Gallery > The Silent Ones |
| Posted by: shamelin 12-Jun-2005, 01:41 AM |
| Hello, I thought I would mention that we are holding a special sale of my CD, The Silent Ones, A Legacy of the Highland Clearances. For a limited time, we will be offering the CD at a reduced cost of $12.95 (US) including shipping. The CD can be purchased from my website located at http://www.torquil.net For those of you who are not familiar with the recording, The Silent Ones tells the story (in song) of Bruce County, Ontario, Canada's Lewis Settlers. The settlers were evicted from their crofts on the Isle of Lewis in Scotland's Outer Hebrides in 1851 by landlord James Matheson and transported overseas. Victims of Scotland's infamous Highland Clearances, the Lewis Settlers (109 families) settled together on a block of land in the centre of Huron Township, Ontario, maintaining their language and culture well into the twentieth century. I know a couple of families in the township, for instance, who still speak Gaelic in the home. There are lots of Lewis descendants still residing in the area, some on land first cleared by their ancestors. The Silent Ones project is especially dear to my heart as I am a descendant of Lewis Settlers. In February of 1998, I left a comfortable arts administration job and moved back to Huron Township establishing Torquil Productions and Recording Studio on a plot of land first cleared and settled by my great grandfather and namesake, Angus Macleod (a native of Mid Borve on the Isle of Lewis' west side and one of the evicted crofters). The Silent Ones was recorded, there, on the very homestead of my great grandfather. Nominated for Album of the Year. "The story and history are fascinating and the music is stunning." Patrick Laffan Host/Producer Celtic Connections Radio Show Middletown, CT "The production is exceptionally good, very much in the style of Capercaillie at their best. ...Unless you happen to be a blinkered adherent of heavy metal or Improvisational jazz or are totally devoid of a soul, this recording deserves a place in your CD rack." From a review by Brian Palmer The Ileach Newspaper And Web Isle of Islay, Argyll Scotland "wonderfully atmospheric Gaelic verse and narration, fantastic instrumental music, and accompanying Angus on vocals, the soothing and at times haunting voice of 16 year old Sarah Buckingham - a talented singer who's got a bright future ahead of her...anyone with Celtic heritage will not fail to be moved by this album." Calum Macdonald Celtic Set Isles FM 103 Stornoway, Isle of Lewis Scotland "one of the greatest works from or about Scotland in many years" Dave MacLean ScotRadio "The music of The Silent Ones is absolutely stunning, both in performance and content, more so, because it comes from deep within the soul of Angus Macleod. Perhaps all Celtic music flows from the heart, but very little of it has the heartfelt quality of The Silent Ones." Frank A. Mills Celtic Heritage Magazine Halifax, Nova Scotia "The Silent Ones has to be one of the best concept pieces that I've heard in decades and as a composer/arranger, Macleod's work is absolutely brilliant. It is a rare treat indeed to listen to an extended work that is as sensitively melodic throughout as this one is. As well, this CD offers a composition/arrangement mix of traditional and now sound that is so well blended, it deserves a style name of its own. Allegorically, the sound of this CD would visually translate as watching cinemascope on the big screen after black white 17" television." From a review by Alan Argue, Creative and Performing Arts, The Wellington Advertiser, Fergus, Ontario "Absolutely amazing...an incredible project. The music is first rate." David Chiasson CKDU Radio Halifax, Nova Scotia "The CD is probably not like any you have heard before...you can feel the history, the great sadness and loneliness at forced emigration and the longing to return someday." Catholine Butler, The Celtic Connection Magazine, Vancouver, British Columbia "a hauntingly beautiful experience" Moira Mackay Scottish Memories Magazine "hauntingly beautiful...Angus Macleod's music has a compelling eloquence..." SCOTS - Celebrating Our Scottish Heritage Magazine Bowral, N.S.W., Australia "It's all too easy for such works to be shrouded in a faithless Scotch Mist of Fairy - Tale and Brigadoonery, but The Silent Ones has a darkness at its heart, as well as an undeniable romance, which gives it a strength and validity it could all to easily lack." Roy McMillan Manx Radio Douglas, Isle of Man "a must for anyone who wants to understand the many links between Scots and the New World." From a review by Alasdair Maclean The Scots Magazine Dundee, Scotland "...Enya-esque, but with more bite and verve..." Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak, Ancestry Daily News The Silent Ones can be purchased at the special reduced pricing mentioned above at my website located at http://www.torquil.net Tapadh Leibh Angus Macleod WEBSITE: http://www.torquil.net Email: [email protected] http://www.torquil.net Official Website of Angus Macleod Email: [email protected] |