"World class fiddler …. far from just offering one dance tune after another, simple settings allow the true beauty of the music to shine through" -- Sing Out

3/6/08

Announcing the release of “Song” the new acoustic collection of New England folk songs, recorded by Vermont based fiddler and singer, Lissa Schneckenburger. Lissa's fiddling is uplifting and lively, and her singing is gentle and evocative. Both in concert and in the studio she is regularly accompanied by some of New England's best musicians, including guitarists Keith Murphy and Matt Heaton and double bassist Corey DiMario. Recently she has been closely studying the roots of the Downeast traditional music that she first heard as a young girl.
Her latest project is “Song”, the first in a pair of CDs dedicated to reintroducing some wonderful but largely forgotten songs and tunes from New England. “Song”, to be released April 15th, 2008, contains ten timeless ballads that go back as far as the eighteenth century that she set to carefully crafted modern arrangements. The second recording, “Dance”, is scheduled for release in 2009, and will feature a unique repertoire of New England fiddle tunes. "There is currently a lot of focus on traditional American music from the South", she explains, "and many bands are exploring and recording that repertoire, but no one is getting to hear the amazing wealth of traditional music from the North. This is my first attempt at getting some of that music out there for people to enjoy. It is really important that we represent these two essential aspects of New England’s traditional music heritage equally. The songs and dance tunes both combine to create an overview of the culture and the sound of traditional music from the northeast. The CDs ‘Song’ and ‘Dance’ are two halves of a whole that describes a musical heritage I am very proud of"
“When researching music for “Song”, I found that one of the most fertile places to get music was in the repertoire of the old logging camps (or Shanty Towns) from the northeast. There are a number of books of these songs, with transcriptions collected by ethnomusicologists from the logging camps, starting at around the turn of the last century. I started out knowing nothing about the logging industry over the past 100 years, and was surprised to find out that these communities were at one time the breading ground for some of the best folk music I have ever heard. To think that these guys were up there during the cold winter months, working their butts off in hazardous conditions, far from their homes and families, and to pass time in the evenings they would sing songs. They sang a diverse repertoire of ballads on almost any topic including love, work, drinking, food, fun, sorrow, and you name it! They’d make up bawdy songs, or tributes to the people they knew, as well as sing their own versions of old Irish and Scotch ballads that they’d learned from their families. I was so impressed with the collections I found that a good portion of the music on this CD is taken from the logging camp song tradition.”
“There’s also a Sacred Harp, (or Shape Note) song, and a number of New England versions of old Child ballads. We had a fun time putting all the music for the recording together, because the songs are on a variety of topics- not just your typical love lost type stuff. Although- there is plenty of that too, don’t worry!”
Lissa has assembled a star-studded cast to accompany her on her fourth solo release. Accordion players Sharon Shannon and Jeremiah McLane add their reeds to the mix, along with cellists Rushad Eggleston and Natalie Haas. Not to mention Lissa’s regular touring band of Keith Murphy (guitar) Corey DiMario (double bass) and Stefan Amidon (percussion). Whether playing for a folk club audience or putting it down in the recording studio, Lissa brings to the stage enthusiasm, energy, and the bright future of New England’s musical traditions.