On Sunday afternoon, Goitse will take the Linde Center stage on the sprawling campus in Lenox and Stockbridge, Massachusetts. The five-piece group named for Irish Gaelic slang for ‘come here’ combines traditional music with original compositions.
“So, we all grew up playing in kind of informal - like, we call them - sessions, which would be tune playing jams," explained banjo player Alan Reid. "We all learn all the traditional melodies or standards. There's thousands of them, and then in the summer, there's a lot of festivals. So as teenagers, we're meeting up with other teenagers and swapping tunes and playing.”
Reid says Goitse’s end goal is to translate the raucous energy of an acoustic jam session with friends to the higher production values of a theater setting.
“We like to kind of intersperse the vocal numbers then in when it just like it would happen in a pub session here on the west coast of Ireland," he told WAMC. "You'd have the instrumental stuff, which is crazy energetic and fun, and then after a few numbers of that, you bring it down with a song, and then back to the crazy energetic stuff.”
The five musicians came together in the unique environs of the University of Limerick.
“University of Limerick was a real special place. It's the only place in the world where you can study just solely Irish music. So, you had the cream of the Irish musicians going there to study. I would say it was electric. There was music every day, dancing every day, and you were always being pulled into different ensembles," said Danny Collins, who plays piano accordion. “We also had to study as well. So, there was a 50% practical element and a 50% academic element. So, we really delved into music theory and stuff as well- And that was a great thing for us as a band, because we were able to apply the music theory to our own music. I suppose because Irish music is an oral tradition, a lot of musicians don't have that background, and they can't understand the theory of the music."
Goitse’s songbook spans centuries of Irish music, and includes both standards and originals.
Collins says the tune that best captures the band’s blend of old and new is ‘Cave Of The Wild Horses,’ a composition by Reid.
“It's the last reel of the set, and that's an old Irish melody- It's a reel called the Caledonian," said Collins. "Even though it's very old and traditional here in Ireland, we have put our own take on the tune. So that's kind of an important piece of Goitse. We always tend to put our own stamp on the music.”
Reid says inspiration for the three-part medley was drawn from the land he calls home.
“The name is based on an old folklore story about a cave in the area I live here," he told WAMC. "I'm in a kind of famous limestone region called the Burren, and the place is hollow. There's people are finding caves all the time, so there’s a magical story about a cave here.”
The lore around the cave in County Clare claims that it was home to a savage herd of – you guessed it – wild horses in days of yore infamous for laying waste to the region’s plains.
“Me and a neighbor went exploring in this cave one day, which was which was hard to find," Reid continued. "You can't google where it is or anything, you need to ask local people and stuff. And then we go into a really old piece of music, and then we go into another traditional piece that we've kind of re harmonized, reworked. So, I think that's a good example, because we have something brand-new, brand-new composition, a very old tune -- and that was from a manuscript that no one has actually recorded, no one's probably heard it in a while -- and then we rework some another traditional piece. And so that's the kind of the overall- The song, it moves like that over three pieces of music that segue into each other.”
Collins says, after years of studying, playing, and teaching Irish music, he is still amazed by its range and depth.
“The one thing that stands out for me is the different styles there is and the different versions of the tunes. Even though our country is quite small here, there's a big difference in the style from the likes of Donegal right down to County Clare,” said Collins.
He hopes Goitse’s tireless tour schedule will deepen a global appreciation for the island nation’s culture.
“I suppose there is this kind of perception of Ireland of Leprechauns and shamrock and all this kind of carry-on, which is a great part of the tradition too," he laughed. "But I suppose it's great to be able to travel and show people what the real music actually is.”
Goitse’s Tanglewood concert is set for 3 p.m. Sunday. The band will also perform on St. Patrick’s Day at Middlebury College in Vermont, on Tuesday, and the Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts in Katonah, New York, on Friday, March 20.
