Celtic Song Class with Karen MacLeod

The Irish rise to the top of the heap worldwide for their love of storytelling through song! Join songstress Karen MacLeod for a surprisingly fun 90 minutes and learn 2 or 3 traditional Irish songs, one of which will be in Irish. In past workshops, we have learned Cúnla, Her Mantle So Green, Oró Sé Do Bheatha ‘Bhaile, The Famine Song, and The Wren Song.

This workshop is great for anyone, all ages, who enjoys singing: no training is required, and we learn everything by ear. Lyrics and links to the songs will be shared in advance, and we spend some time answering any questions related to music/singing/history as they come up. It really feels like a song circle in our living room— please join us!

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Karen MacLeod has been playing and singing at traditional music sessions since 2005 and has been teaching song workshops for the Irish Real Life (IRL) Festival since its inception in 2017. She taught “Irish and Scottish Traditional Song” for Riverside Celtic College for ten years, and teaches similar workshops for McDougall Cottage in Cambridge, and the Spring Rain Open Platform Feis in Fergus.

She studied Gadhlig language and song through the School of Celtic Studies (University of Toronto), and guitar with Tony McManus. She has won singing awards at both Irish and Scottish events.  Inspired by the Carmina Gadelica (prayers and incantations from the Highlands and Western Isles of Scotland) Karen formed the duo “Gaedelica” with flautist Jason Pfeiffer in 2010. Some of their work together can be heard on her independently released cd, “Charmed”.  She has also performed traditional music with flautist Laurel Swinden, multi-instrumentalist Saskia Tomkins, and singer/harpist Ruth Sutherland.  In 2017 she collaborated with Irish-Canadian playwright Ciaran Myers researching Irish immigrant experiences at Grosse Ile.

Her classical singing training includes ten years of private singing studies, a long tenure with the Grand Philharmonic Choir, training with European soloists in the Canadian Renaissance Music Summer School and passing the highest level singing exam with the Royal Conservatory of Music.  She currently sings with the Tallis Choir of Toronto and Guelph Chamber Choir.

Keen to introduce the experience of singing to anyone, Karen supported a group of amateur singers who won honours at the Spring Rain Feis and has founded a “Forest Choir”, open to all, combining singing and hiking!

Karen is excited to share and learn some songs with you over Zoom for the 2022  IRL Festival!