Tune Tale with Helen Kisiel

Episode 37 – Tune Tale with Helen Kisiel: Pianist Helen Kisiel talks jazz cows and Irish encounters 
This Irish Music Stories episode aired Jan 14, 2020
https://shannonheatonmusic.com/episode-37-tune-tale-with-helen-kisiel/

Speakers, in order of appearance
>> Shannon Heaton: flute player, singer, composer, teacher, and host of Irish Music Stories 
>> Helen Kisiel: Watertown Massachusetts-based piano player who played with many great Boston legends, including fiddle players Brendan Tonra and Seamus Connolly

>> Nigel Heaton: young announcer for Irish Music Stories, and co-producer of this story

———

>> Shannon: I’m Shannon Heaton. Welcome to another Irish Music Stories Tune Tale… a short, off-season meditation on Irish music, and the bigger stories behind it.

[ Music: “The Phoenix,” from January EP

Artist: The Assembly (FKA Popcorn Behavior) ]

Like, how some Irish musicians commemorate events. Like, you know, when you have this hilarious night. You’re coming out of a pub in Ireland and you see your pals from Boston drive by and they say, “GET IN the car!” And you have this epic night.

Sometimes it’s hard to convey just how hilarious—and important—that moment was. Even though the four of you talked about it for years. Even though it was a building block in your friendship. Even though it’s poignant to talk about it after one of those friends is no longer around.

Well, if you hadn’t been there it all kind of transcends language.

Which is where music can come in handy.

[ Music: “D Chimes,” from Production Music Made for Irish Music Stories

Artist/Composer: Matt Heaton ]

Piano player Helen Kisiel lives in Watertown, Massachusetts. She and fiddle player and composer Brendan Tonra shared a lot of memories—and some of them got written into his tunes.

>> Helen: Brendan wrote a lot of wonderful tunes. Those are very special to me. 

[ Music: “Celtic Grooves,” from Production Music Made for Irish Music Stories

Artist/Composer: Matt Heaton ]

The Ennis Encounter we came out of a pub one night, he and I. And coming up the street in an open car was Seamus Connolly and his brother, Martin. And they, “Come on, get in, come in, we’re going over to the house!” So we did and so that was…he wrote a tune about anything that was fun and worth remembering. He went through a period of writing tunes, a lot of tunes about all kinds of things. Yeah.

>> Shannon: That was a way to commemorate that night? The Ennis Encounter?

>> Helen: Yeah! haha

>> Shannon: I’d never heard The Ennis Encounter jig. Helen sang a bit of it, as we sat around her piano. I tried to grab the melody with the right hand, with her playing chords. 

[ Music:: “Ennis Encounter,” from Kitchen Session

Composer: Brenda Tonra
Artist: Matt & Shannon Heaton

It was totally hilarious, my part of it anyway.  But it was enough to get her memory going. We figured out the turns and twists of the tune. Eventually we found it in a book of Brendan’s. 

And once I got home, I had it well enough to teach to Matt. Here’s the tune once, played around the Heaton kitchen table.

[ Heatons play the tune again ]

I think this is SO Irish Music Stories podcast! Getting different people together and piecing together different ideas and perspectives until something emerges—a tune… an insight…  a story. ‘Til there’s something to share. ‘Til there’s something to pass on.

‘Til it jogs ANOTHER memory.

>>Helen: I bought a book. It said, “How to Play the Tin Whistle.” And I put my blanket down in a pasture while my friend visited a friend of hers. And I had my book and I had my whistle, and I’m sitting out there trying to play and way over about as far as the street out there was a hedge with a little separation in it, and I’m playing. And all of a sudden this herd of cows comes galloping right through there, right for my blanket. I thought they were attacking me. I didn’t know anything about cows. But what they really were was, they were just curious. They wanted to see what this noise was. But I grabbed my blanket and fled. And then when I told the farm lady my friend was visiting, she said, “Oh, they were just going to stand there and look. And I saw something on YouTube about that, Jazz for Cows. They had set up their things on the side of the road and all the cows came.

>>Shannon: laughing What?

>>Helen: Yeah, yeah. Look it up on YouTube. It’s fabulous. Jazz for Cows. They stand there very attentive and listen. They must like the way the sound feels or something.

[Cow moos

>>Shannon: Hope you like the way this episode feels! I hope you’ll check out more Irish Music Stories. 

[ Music:  “Boston Sligo Reel”

Composer: Brenda Tonra
Artists/Composer: Brendan Tonra & Helen Kisiel ]

The full episodes are longer, and weave together stories from a team of people. You really don’t have to know anything about Celtic music to listen—so maybe your NPR-loving neighbor (or your neighbor’s cow) will dig it.

Thanks for tuning in. And here to thank this month’s supporters is my son Nigel.

>> Nigel: Thank you to James Supplee, Brian Murchison, Michael Todd, Robert Levelle, Mike O’Malley, Parker Abercrombie, Mark Haynes, Susan Walsh and Peter Kasin, David Vaughan, Brian Benscoter, Joe Garrett, Rayburn Vrabel and Gerry Corr. 

>> Shannon: Thank you. With YOUR help, I’ve been interviewing people, writing scripts, and assembling shows for Season Four. If you haven’t already donated and you can kick in, it would be a huge help.  Just go to Irish Music Stories.org. There’s a donate button right there.Thanks a lot for listening and I hope you’ll stay tuned next month for another short tune tale.

[ Music ends: “When the Saints Go Marching In,” from Field in Autrans, France

Artist: The New Hot 5 ]