Christopher Layer

New CD liner notes and a new festival and school!

2012-01-16T17:44:00.001-05:00

Stay tuned for the extended liner notes folks....coming soon! Sorry they are not up sooner: have been very busy with the new school and festival web site for this summer in New Harmony, Indiana.

Here is that site:
www.newharmonymusicfest.com

New CD ;iner notes and a new festival and school!

2012-01-16T17:41:00.002-05:00

december music fun & new recording:-)

2011-12-06T17:58:00.004-05:00

Hi all,
Here is the latest music news!

-I had a super fun night last night sitting in with composer/poet/musician David Amram at Cornelia street cafe here in Greenwich Village.
-Tonight playing my regular Tuesday session at Swift with Danny Noveck and Eamon O'Leary.

-The big news is that my NEW Seasonal CD: "A Long Winter's Nap" will be arriving at my door this week. If you would like to order a copy or copies send a check for $15 per copy, plus $3 shipping to: Chris Layer, 719 Greenwich Street 4N, NYC, NY, 10014

-As some of you know, I have been working very hard on creating/founding an acoustic music festival and 5-day summer music school in my home state of Indiana: The New Harmony Music Festival & School will officially "launch" with the opening of the website next week. The dates for the festival will take place from July 8th-14th of 2012. Registration for the school will open January 1st, so stay tuned for details!!!

-Remember that Bob Currie's annual Scottish "fiesta" of pipes, pipe organ, fiddles, harps, poets and music will take place in two weeks time, December 17 & 18. Here is the web site for tix! http://www.pipesofchristmas.com
That's it for now my dears...Go out and hear some music before it's next year!
Chris

BLT Pasta!

2011-07-21T17:20:00.001-04:00

Here is a yummy one I made up for Summer.
Enjoy,
Chris

BLT Pasta from CL
So the idea here is all the stuff in a BLT sans mayo...which is almost there, but no egg-y things, sorry. You can change the proportions of ingreeds to suit. I tried to come close to my original formula, but it changes every time.

Ingreeds:
-loaf of 2 day-old bread or plain store-bought croutons
-1 clove garlic chopped
-good olive oil
-1-3 tablespoons of cane sugar
-10-12 strips fave bacon, fried crispy and drained and chopped into 1/2 pieces
-4-5 cups cheery tomats, sliced, or quartered if large, in a bowl...
-baby arugula, spinach, or Maché lettuce, washed and spun (bout enough leaves to fill a medium sized bowl...)
-half a big sweet onion, fine chopped
-4 tblspns fresh thyme
-4 tblspns fresh basil chopped or torn-up
-bout 12-16 oz. of good pesto sauce
-salt and pep
-four good sized lemons, juiced, and the zest of at least one of them.
-1 box dry pasta(organelli, radiatore, farfalle, all are good)
-grana padano, or fresh reggiano parm for grating
-some flat leaf parsley chopped if you wish.
-big platter

Croutons:
(I ALWAYS take bread that is more than a day old and cut it into cubes for croutons ahead of time, but you can start with plain prepared ones from the store or start using day-old bread, cubed up.)
-The croutons may be prepared ahead of time and will keep in the freezer for up to a month in a zip-lock baggie. Make sure they are properly cooled before packing them in the bag, though or they will turn soft.
-Preheat oven to 300º F.
-Combine lemon juice, thyme, salt & pepper, one clove crushed garlic, tblspn of pesto, tblspn of bacon fat, and toss well with 4-6 cups of bread cubes. Cubes should be slightly moist to the touch after tossing.
-Once all the cubes are coated add one half cup grated parm or padano cheese and toss again.
-Spread mixture in a 9 X 12 baking pan so it is easy to toss during baking and put in oven, turning every 10-12 minutes until croutons are dry and crunchy, but not burned!
-Should take about 40 minutes. (If you are starting with day-old bread it will of course take longer.)

Tomato dressing:
Combine 6 tblspns lemon juice, sugar, salt and pep, garlic, 2 tablespoons of fresh thyme, 2 tblspns fresh basil, 2 tblspns olive oil, and 1 tablespoon of melted bacon drippings in a jar and shake well. Dress the tomatoes, toss, and set aside. (Balance the sweet/sour as you like, but don't be afraid to add more sugar or lemon juice as you balance the flavor.) Set aside about 2 tblspns for finishing the dish at the end if you like.

Pasta:
-Simmer the diced onion over low heat until soft in remaining olive oil and 1 tblsp bacon fat in a high-sided sauté pan,set aside. (Pasta will get tossed with the onions and pesto sauce in here before the dish comes together.)
-Cook pasta to "Al Dente", drain, and put in sauté pan to toss with pesto sauce and simmered onion.

Assemble the dish:
-On the large platter, or in a nice yellow bowl, arrange the elements in layers descending in size so you can see each layer. Place the pesto pasta first, then the washed and dried lettuce, the the dressed tomatoes, then the bacon and croutons. Finish with the reserved dressing plus the juice half a lemon just before serving. I usually DON'T do the grated parm shower thing with this dish, but you can put out cheese for your guests.

-Serve with a nice sancerre, pinot grigio, or pouilly fuisse white wine...something a bit tart to complement the bacon etc...
-Can be served warm as a main dish, or at room temp as an antipasto salad....

Swell-egant Caramoor, a swingin estate!

2011-07-11T16:43:00.005-04:00

Yes it was just too swell to play music up at the old Caramoor Estate this last July 1st. We did a splendid program of music from the library of Thomas Jefferson: some classical, some trad folk...My favotire combination!

But the real treat was posing in our bedroom dressing rooms in "the big house" with these two beauties! (Mazz Swift on the left and Kerry O'Malley on the right) Each is a talented singer and Mazz also plays the violin like a little birdie as well! Anyway, there will be a few more updates this week covering my last month of travels.

Much love,
Christopher Layer

Rolling the Woodpile Down

2011-06-06T12:47:00.002-04:00

After a weekend of fun and frolic, I am finally headed off to Indiana for work and play both. Those that requested lessons in Indy would be obliged to email me and set up an appointment if you would be so kind!
Much love,
Christopher

Fun and Frolic

2011-05-25T16:44:00.004-04:00

Here are a few snaps from the Spring...
-Tony DeMarco, Anna Collins and I played the JetBlue Terminal at JFK for Paddy's Day.
-Tony D. Jerry O'Sullivan and I playing a Colin Meaghre's party In Ocean Grove.
-My solo performance with The Baltimore Symphony in Maryland.

I'll be heading out and about for June, but look for me back in NYC for July and then Montana and Utah in August.
Peace,
Chris

Hoosier Junta!

2011-03-29T18:29:00.002-04:00

So here we are in spring preparing for a trip to Indiana. I'll be working with my old groups: Tippecanoe Ancient Fife And Drum Corps and The 42nd RHR of Lafayette, as well as giving a concert in their honor. In addition, I'll appear with my Pop on Saturday the 16th of April at Duncan Hall in Lafayette to pay tribute to the founder of this lovely hall of music!
Hope to see you There!
Chris

Happy Birthday Gammy!

2011-03-29T12:00:00.002-04:00

Gammy Miller, my upstairs neighb and wonder-friend celebrated her birthday in style at the Jazz Gallery here in the Village this last Sunday night. Her husband Kenny gathered friends, food and musicians for a swell time and some fun music. Singers Brendan O'Shea and Jenna Nichols joined me onstage for some tunes and songs and the wonderful John Ellis brought his jazz band and really gave the night a sweet sound on his sax! Here is a funny clip of John's group and I doing a bit of "Blue Monk" with sax and bagpipe "chanter". Enjoy,
Chris

November Warmth

2010-11-02T18:20:00.006-04:00

Hi all,
Here are some upcoming program opportunities in case your travels take you to New York City!

November 21st: Christopher Layer in a solo recital sponsored by the New york Flute Club.
This concert is pretty exciting. The NY Flute Club was founded in the early 20th Century, the first such organization in the country. It is an honor to be asked and I will be joined by two dear musical friends: Irish guitarist/vocalist Brendan O'Shea and violinist/fiddler/hurdy gurdy player Paul Woodiel. Here is the NYFC web site for details:
http://www.nyfluteclub.com/

November 28th: Brendan O'Shea CD release party!
Bren and I have toured with trinity irish Dance Company for ten years or more, and his new CD of original songs is sure to bring him even more acclaim as one of the most gifted songwriters of New York City's East Village music scene. Here is his web site:
http://brendanoshea.com/
And his Myspace:
http//www.myspace.com/brendanoshea/

Best wishes to all and I hope to see you around town this month!
Peace, love, and BBQ,
Christopher Layer

Fugit fugits...

2010-10-19T12:04:00.005-04:00

Here is the last of the Moab entries...It was a wonderful season this year at the Moab Music festival:

-Paquito DeRiviera killed with his composition "Conversations With Cachao". Bassist Robert Black was featured in this tribute to the groundbreaking Cuban musician named in the title.

-The string quartet "Ethel" played a concert that was not so well-received. Not surprising; the pieces they selected for the concert were "out of touch" with the audience. That was too bad. However, I enjoyed their suite of pieces from Phillip Glass' score for the film, "The Hours" as well as a tasty little one-off from cellist, Mark Summer. It was a lovely evening with my friends Margaret Mercer, and Jamie Bernstein watching the sun setting over the Colorado River Canyon at Castle Valley. Colin Fryer, the vigneron and rancher hosted the evening outdoors at Red Cliffs Lodge/Castle Creek Winery.

-Paul Woodiel, Mazz Swift, Jeron "Blind Boy" Paxton and I played two concerts together during the festival. Both were sold-out and very well-recieved. My especial thanks to hostess, Jennifer Spears. the concert at her ranch was topped off by a spectacular fireworks display to the delight of all in attendance. Thanks Jennifer!

-Lastly Paul Woodiel and I hosted a "Musical Walk" with trad tunes along the trail in Hunter canyon. The photo is from that concert, snapped by photog, Neil...oops, sorry Neil..no last name at the moment.
Cheers,
Christopher
P.S. Next entry is from Bergen Norway on this Friday!

The Fifery Furnace

2010-09-23T17:11:00.003-04:00

Robert Burns "Wantonness" on the fife, recorded in the Fiery Furnace of Arches NP courtesy of Steve Damron.

La Loge Rouge

2010-08-08T15:57:00.007-04:00

Here we have something red...an electric bass balalaika to be specific. Wielded by one of The Red Elvises last night in the music tent of The Festival Of Nations here in Red Lodge, Montana. This multicultural jollification promotes tolerance and celebrates diversity: an amazing goal for a town of 2,500. The old mining town, perched on the north gate of Yellowstone National Park still retains scandinavians, germans, irish, and scots. Each group has a dance troop, food booths etc. The german contingency has an amazing brewer, and his beer was super fresh as tasty beyond measure. It was an honor to represent the Scots and Irish here this year. I will remember this weekend very fondly for years to come. The festival was really fun and all enjoyed the piping music. Some the local boys had their own...

New Recepie

2010-08-03T18:39:00.002-04:00

Hi all,
Just getting ready to head off to Montana for engagements in Red Lodge and Butte this weekend and the next! Here is a little summer recipe I made up as a way of using up the fresh stuff in my fridge.

Tuna Sashimi With Fresh Pimento Salsa

Pimento Salsa ingreeds (Make this first and let chill in the fridge while you get the rest of it together.)
10-15 fresh green pimento peppers seeded and chopped
2 medium or one large heirloom or beefsteak tomatoes chopped
1 medium Vidalia onion chopped and micro-waved for 10 seconds
3 carrots finely chopped
4-5 small kirby cucumbers peeled and cut into 1/3" pieces
1 lemon juiced and zested
3 tablespoons rice vinegar
1-2 tablespoons Canola oil
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon Durkee red hot or Louisiana hot sauce (or to taste)
1 teaspoon fresh thyme chopped
(optional: 1 teaspoon fresh cilantro chopped)

Combine all ingreeds and mix well in a big bowl. Put in the fridge and give an occasional stir. Can be assembled the day before for ease and extra flavor, although I prefer to make it the same day.

Tuna Sashimi
Select three very fresh medium tuna steaks at your fishmonger
Just before cooking, rinse well in very cold water and pat dry with a paper towel.
Give the tuna steaks a very light coating of asian chili oil or hot sesame oil.
Roll the sides of the tuna steaks in sesame seeds to coat and transfer to a very hot skillet with a dollop of canola oil. Salt each side very lightly as you flip them in the pan.

Do not move the steaks for at least two to three minutes while they sear, then you may check for doneness. Sear each side for no more than three minutes maximum, remove from skillet and set aside to rest for at least five minutes. (If you do not let them rest, the steaks will be hard to slice and dry inside. The tuna should be just ever so pale pink in the middle.) The tuna should be above room temp when served, but by no menas "hot".

Assembling the dish:
-Wash and dry a single large piece of tender leaf lettuce and set on a chilled plate to form a sort of bowl.
-With a slotted spoon, place a nice scoop of the fresh salsa in the center of the lettuce leaf.
-Slicing against the grain, slice your tuna steak and fan across the pile of salsa.
-Place a dollop of plain Greek yogurt on top of the fan of tuna slices and garnish with fresh cilantro or a thin slice of fresh lime.

Serve with a side of rice and a crisp chilled white wine: Savignon Blanc, St. Veran, Dry Riesling, or my current fave:
A nice "Languedoc Picpoul De Pinet" about $11 at your wine shop.

Dessert: Mango or coconut sorbet with chilled mint tea

Consume.

Chris-cepie...try it!

2010-07-31T16:09:00.004-04:00

Hi all,
Here is a summer salad I made up just now. Try it.

Chris Layer's Sabi-Slaw
You will need:
1 head of Napa Cabbage or Bok Choy, "slaw-chopped".
(or double the other ingreeds and use both!)
4 average sized carrots, grated. (I don't peel them, but I do give them a good scrubby wash.)

For the dressing:
1 Tablespoon of ground horseradish OR 1 teaspoon of Wasabi paste.
(Make sure you know how hot/potent your Wasabi paste is!)
1 Teaspoon of red pepper flakes*.
(Or add flakes to suit as far as heat, but beware: as the mixture "cooks" in the marinade it gets hotter!)
(*For a Korean "kim-chi" twist, substitute Srirachi hotsauce for the pepperflakes to taste.)
2 Heaping tablespoons of sesame seed. (Use the black seeds if you can find them.)
1/4 of an average sized sweet onion, grated or diced finely. (Vidalia if possible.)
1/3 cup rice vinegar.
2 Tablespoons of Honey. (Or to taste, for sweetness.)
5 Tablespoons canola oil. (Mild Sesame oil is OK too but will change the palate, for sure.)
1 teaspoon kosher or sea salt, coarse crystals, if you please.

1/2 lemon. (Keep aside until just before serving.)

Combine the "dressing" ingreeds, less the oil and whisk them together, then add the oil, whisk again, set aside.
In a large glass bowl, combine dressing/cabbage/carrots and toss until well-combined.
Once tossed, GENTLY press ingreds down a bit to maximize marinade/slaw contact.
Lay a sheet of plastic wrap directly on the salad and insure it's well-sealed.
Place bowl in the cooler for at least one to two hours to chill.

Just before serving, squeeze the lemon over the salad and give the mixture a toss to fluff it up.
Garnish with fresh mint or cilantro. Serve with pork on the grill, baked beans, and salad. Dry riesling or beer, please.
Consume it.
Yumski...
Chris

Photos

2010-07-13T00:38:00.005-04:00

Cheers,
Christopher

Nagasaki Calling

2010-07-13T00:22:00.002-04:00

Each time I return to Nagasaki, I recall my history classes and the presence of Europeans here in the 17th Century. The Dutch established trade relations in this city when all other japanese ports were closed to the West. Our performance here was memorable, and the cast visited the Atomic Bomb Peace Memorial here. I refrained from that emotional visit, but recommend it to anyone passing this way.

The photo in this entry was one I snapped of several ancient Shinto and Buddhist "shari" shrines on the island of Inoshima during my visit there in March. Inoshima was the site of Kulai Khan's first failed invasion attempt in the year 1274 when the "Kami-kaze" literally "god-wind" destroyed his fleet at the foot of the island temple and city behind.
Tomorrow: Kumamoto....and Oysters!!!!!!!

Japanese Food Chain

2010-07-13T00:16:00.002-04:00

Nagoya, July 9th
While strolling on the Nagoya Castle Grounds, I came upon an odd pair; This stag munching on the lawn while the raven ostensibly munches on the stag. The cruel bird (I never was a fan of ravens and their daunting song) harried the stag for 15 minutes or more, the stag waving his antlers at the bird each time he alighted on his rump.

Our opening night was well-received with 2,300 attending. The cast rose to the occasion, in lieu of jet-lag and so many new pieces. All in all an excellent start to the tour. Next stop Nagasaki.
Cheers,
Christopher

Opening Night

2010-07-08T20:00:00.009-04:00

Aichi Prefectural Arts Theater, Nagoya, Japan-Just looking out at the lush green grounds of Nagoya Castle across the street from our hotel. The soft summer rain has turned the arboretum and surrounding gardens into a sort of weepy blob of verdant sponges, drifting peacefully to and fro in the sweet lulling breezes of July in Japan. It's a weird sight since the whole place is really a dynastic fortress, complete with the slanting stone battlements and buttressed bastions of an old European stronghold: The age of gunpowder was well under way when the Samurai rulers and warlords built this stop on the king's highway between Kyoto and Edo. (Tokyo)
So opening day's schedule: Rehearsal with Brendan O'Shea, and Barret Harvey at 10:30am this morning then lunch and off to the theater for opening Night! Full company onstage, new pieces, new lights, new sound, new, new, new. Nearly all of the 2,500 seats are sold for the show and the dancers, who are some of the youngest and strongest we have ever carried with the Company, are pounding the boards frantically. Every step and jump aimed at giving their best tonight. It's no small achievement if the performance goes as planned: Mark and Natalie Howard are really pushing the group of dancers to their limits getting them in shape for the show. It is a monumental task, given the prep time leading up to the tour, but both are well up to the task, and enthusiastic if not fanatic in their belief in Trinity.

After rehearsal last night Brendan asked me what I thought makes a great musician in terms of craft. I answered from my heart, thinking back on how I had behaved during the day's work...me being short with him, or just ignoring the suggestions of others. Smiling inwardly, I answered "patience".
Much love to all, and many thoughts to those in the Gulf of Mexico
-Chris

Nagoya Dreaming

2010-07-07T16:41:00.002-04:00

Having escaped 100 degrees of Gotham at home, the Trinity Irish Dance Company has gathered it's forces, summoned the wind and touched down in Nagoya, Japan. We will be shedding here and then performing the first concerts of the tour here as well. Art Director, Mark Howard has cooked up some new works, and the band has new material as well. Looking forward to lifting the dancer's feet and sharing this great company with the people of Japan! Yokoso okoshi kudasai mashta!!!!!
Christopher

Ni Hong On 3,500 Yen A Day

2010-07-05T11:33:00.002-04:00

Yes, it's true I'll be boarding the plane for Japan in 23 hours and rambling the ever-so-clean highways and byways of that lovely place once more! Trinity Irish Dance will be touring thru the 21st and I may stay for an extra wee bit to visit my old teacher and his wife in the mountains. (see photo) Much love to all and hope to see you on the Shinkansen:-)
Christo

Springy Music!

2010-04-13T17:55:00.002-04:00

Not to be outdone by the mockingbirds, my pal Mazz Swift and I are doing a bit of springy music tomorrow night(weds) at Caffe Vivaldi on Jones Street, here in the village:7pm-8pm Come join if you can!
Love,
Chris

Ellis Island Tartan Day

2010-04-09T12:56:00.002-04:00

Spectacular days for Scottish Culture on Ellis Island this last weekend. Calum Pasqua and I played there. Here is some Video:

Deil's In The Kitchen-Drunken Piper

Love, Chris

Snow Falling on Cherry Blossom...Ick.

2010-03-09T21:22:00.003-05:00

Yes, it seems impossible but after this unbelievable visit to Kamakura, Enoshima, and Zushi for a day off Tuesday...It snowed here in Tokyo last night. An excellent few days tho: I took Kieran Coleman, who is on his first trip dancing here, to visit Mr. Nakagawa, my old bassoon teacher and his wife. We all had a great day of traveling around the sea side and seeing the ancient capitol-Kamakura with all of it's charms. It was nice to get out of tokyo for the day and the sun was welcome after a few drippy days. We all had super fab pork cutlets(Hooiser soul food) and hot sake at the end of the day in a little joint known for such things. The warm sake was jus the thing to finish a windy day by the sea! Yesterday, my painter friend: Naomichi Okutsu came to visit me in the city and brought some of his new works which were lovely and gave me a sketch lesson...Yay! We headed over to Shinjuku for dinner and had some really spicy curry which was again, just the thing since it began to SNOW as we exited the elevated metro train...sigh. Sunny today and the last of my three days off...

Bye for now,

Chris

Toky-town Breakdown!

2010-03-06T16:12:00.002-05:00

Yes, it's true folks: all powder is creamy in Japan. It has something to do with the equatorial gibbis, reversing the coriolis effect during transcontinental flights. Nevertheless, here I am in Tokyo etc. doing press shows for the upcoming Trinity tour this July. Mr. Nakamura, our agent here, took Kieran Coleman(Yes, the dancer.) and I out for a smashing platter of sashimi, some yakatori, miso, flaming welk(Yes, flaming welk.) and a host of other culinary delights after we landed last night. We are just west of the Ginza, which is cool since it's close to the Tokyo Palace grounds, one of my favorite places to go running in the morning. Hugz,

Chris

The Brendan Voyageur

2010-02-12T01:11:00.000-05:00

Well, the road again for me kids...it WAS swell to be back in NYC for our little winter spewage/meltage. Now it's sort of like a huge coffee coolatta in the gutters of Gotham. Yay!

Anyway, just home practicing my pipes until Thursday, then off to Billings, Montana to perform with the Billings Symphony.

We'll take a spin through Shaun Davies' Brendan Voyage, a programatic suite for Uilleann Pipes(yours truly) and orchestra written back in the 80's. (That means from before the Lord-of-the-Titanic-Riverdance-Effect.) Anne Harrigan will conduct in her usual slendiforous manner without question.

Peace and Plenty,

Christopher

Layer Duo Splits Musical Atom!

2010-02-01T14:15:00.000-05:00

Yay! Here is a picture of my dad (aged 85) and me this last Saturday in Battle Ground, Indiana: playing for the annual Burns' Night soireé. The local bagpipe band: The 42nd Royal Highland Regiment Incorporated of Lafayette Indiana, hosted the event. The dancers had fun and so did we.

Some of the tunes dad and I played were: Angus Campbell, Smith's a Gallant Fireman, The Drunken Piper (I never was...) Mary's Wedding.

Next stop: Holland, Michigan, Thursday for a duo gig with Martha Waldvogel, and then on to Battle Creek Saturday night where Martha and I will play with the Battle Creek Symphony, in Kellogg Hall, of course! (Insert bad breakfast cereal puns here if you wish...)

Cheers,

Chris

P.S. Her is a preview of a little web site Anee Harrigan made for me: JUMP

On the road

2010-01-13T21:34:00.000-05:00

DEN airport:

Great session with Tony DeMarco last Sunday in NYC ALL the Irish heads were there...unbelievable.

Great gigis for APAP with Norouet in NYC this last week.

-Lovely session at Swift last night with Issac Alderson and Eamon O'Leary.

Back on the road for a bit now:

-Moab, Utah for the annual Robert Burns Tribute Concert with the Moab Community Dance Band, The Playford Trio, Sandra Wong, and Marta Burton! The haggis will be flowing on the 23rd of January!

-Then on to Houston Texas for some more Scots fun with Andrew Wier(of Braveheart fame) for a one-nighter.

-On to Indiana for a family visit and see my lovely nurse/stylist Roz Wollen.

-On to Michigan for a gig with harpist Martha and the Battle Creek Symphony on the 6th of Feb. Home to NYC after that:-)

Hope to see you "out there"!

Love,

Christo

2010-01-05T15:51:00.000-05:00

Hi all,

Well the APAP season is already upon us. Here are the details regarding FREE concerts in town with my Quebec Trad quartet, Norouet as well as the super fab trio, Des Temps Anton:

Thursday, Jan 7th, 7:30pm @ Swift on East 4th Street(Near Bowery St.)

Friday, Jan 8th, 10pm @ Barbes, Brooklyn

Sunday, Jan 10th @ The Scratcher on East 5th Street(Near Bowery St.)

We need your support and the bands are way amazing!

Please drop by to see us if you can!

Best wishes,

Chris

Here and there...

2009-10-12T15:02:00.000-04:00

Hi all,

Well it was an excellent night at the Loeb House Inn. I could not have asked for a better audience and my friends Denise and Michael were really fine as well! The remainder of the weekend was spent out doors camping and celebrating he 40th anniversary of my old fife and drum corps: The Tippecanoe Ancient Fife And Drum Corps. It was full of friends and music and lots of jamming. I felt happy to have the time to be at the event and the organizers did a fab job on the food and hospitality.

Today's photo features the personel involved in a concert for the Moab Music Festival this las Fall. From left to right:

Paul Woodiel-fiddle/Hardanger fiddle

Greg Heffernan-cello

Sandra Wong-fiddle/Nykelharrppa

Me-flute and Pipes

Steve Gibb-guitar

Peace and love kids,

Christopher

Watch this space!

2009-10-01T13:13:00.000-04:00

Hi all,

I will be performing a solo acoustic house concert with special guests: Denise Wilson and Michael Lewis, at the Loeb House Inn in Lafayette, Indiana on Weds, October 7th.

-6:30 wine and cheese reception, 7:15-ish concert. One set, 70 minutes.

-I will have copies of my NEW CD production, N2, by my Quebec-based trad band, Norouet. The CD is getting good reviews and you won't be able to get it on-line for a bit, so come on down and have some fun with me at the Loeb House Inn!

Peace,

Christopher Layer

Music As Food...A Picnic In Central Park

2009-07-03T11:37:00.000-04:00

"If music be the food of love, play on!" And so we do. The "we" is of course The New York Shakespeare Festival, under the auspices of The New York Public Theater. For the last two months, since my return from the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, I have been rehearsing, and now performing the original music of neo-trad band, HEM, with the NYSF production of Twelfth Night for "Shakespeare In The Park". Central Park's, Delacort Theater, here in Manhattan is a wonderful, bucolic setting beneath Belvedere Castle. For the Public Theater, it is the most celebrated (read: biggest) of its venues all year. The reviews are in and with a scant 10 performances left, I am happy to say that we were well-received. In addition to playing Uilleann Pipes, Scottish Smallpipes, Whistle, and Six-Key Flute, I wrote the Funeral Dirge, and contributed/arranged the trad tunes for the little onstage band. (HEM is releasing a CD of the show music with Anne Hathaway, Audra Macdonald, David Pittu and Raul Esparza singing the songs. I "guested" on the CD and again, contributed a few things. HEM is a fine bunch of talented folks: I would be happy to collaborate with them in the future.) Come see us if you can: Just look on-line for the various ways of obtaining free tix! Here is the Times review by Charles Isherwood<jump>. Next entry: Memories and Roots in Quebec!

Spring is alive and well and living in the Village!

2009-04-18T17:39:00.000-04:00

Hi all,
Here is a picture from the times with some special additions by my friend Gammy Miller. Home for a few more days, then New Orleans for a few weeks. See you at the Jazz Fest. You know where to find me:-)
Much love to all,
Chris

The Ides of March Strathspey and Reel

2009-03-09T09:09:00.000-04:00

Happily home in NYC for the Spring season....I had an excellent visit with Paul St. Raymond and Dr. Kimberly Meng of New Orleans: gardening on their roof deck, viewing the Mardi Gras week parades and EATING!!!!!
For those in NYC, I will be playing Tuesday Night Irish Sessions at Swift Hibernian Lounge on East 4TH Street through the end of April.
Also this week and next, I am participating in a dual set of concerts with the New York Festival of Song and The Caramoor International Music Festival. I will drop all those details tonight when I return from rehearsal!
Best to all,
Christopher Layer

long overdue

2009-01-07T23:01:00.000-05:00

hello all! it's snowing in joliette quebec, my present location. much much snow and even more music! the band, norouet, me included, is busy finishing up work on the new cd. if you send me an email, i will send you a sample. much love and music. chris

The New Norouet CD

2008-12-04T11:58:00.000-05:00

Today we are continuing to work on the new Norouet CD here in St Côme, Quebec. I began to play with this wonderful band back in 2000 and appeared as a guest when they made their first CD "Spirale" in 2001. The group features fiddler/singer/composer Stéphanie Lépine, percussionist Patrick Graham, and singer/composer/guitarist Éric Beaudry(of La Bottine Souriante fame). Éric created an excellent recording studio in "un grand shack" behind his father's house deep in the back country of Quebec. Already a foot deep, the snowfall is covering the woods in a blanket of feathery white. The pines have a lovely spiral shape: the boughs holding the snow like pallets of white dough. Winnie and Cliquot, the two resident hounds, can do nothing but frolic and play in the chilled fluff. The stillness is calming and a wonderful retreat from the excitement of New York. My pals, Natalie Haas and Yann Falquet will come this next week to add some guest tracks to the CD. I will try to post some photos in the coming days!
Peace, Chris
P.S. Don't forget the solo gig at L'Interlude this Saturday night at 8:30pm!

Snowy Quebec!

2008-12-02T20:15:00.000-05:00

Hi all,
Sorry for the time lapse. I have been skating about since my concerts in Michigan and Indiana, but have finally landed for a bit in sunny Quebec for continued work on two upcoming CDs: A new Cd from Norouet, with Éric Beaudry, Stephanie Lepine, and Patrick Graham, and one from my dear friend, Jean-Paul Loyer. Both are set to drop in the spring and both promise to be full of the great spirit of the North Country. I will be updating this week as we work with some action photos, quotes and maybe even a vid or two. Meanwhile, for those of you with friends in the greater Montreal/Joliette area, I will play a solo concert at L'Interlude in Joliette, Quebec this Saturday night! The gig starts at 8:30pm. A few special guests will join in for the party so drop in and enjoy the show if you can.
Much love to all, Christopher

Home Again Home Again...

2008-11-17T16:44:00.000-05:00

Home at last!
If you've ever lived in NYC, than you know it is always a thrill to top the hill on the road from La Guardia airport and see the old Gotham sky line rising over Greenwood Cemetery, and to know what joys, heartbreaks, and opportunities await you there. Looking back over the last weeks on the road, there were plenty of fun concerts with my harp buddy, and musical pal, Martha Waldvogel-Warren.
Marti arranged for a couple of fun gigs in Michigan, and I set up a concert in Lafaytette, Indiana. The concert at Third Reformed Church in Holland, MI was a highlight: the audience was cheerful and really receptive to the music. We managed to get a pretty good video of that concert, so watch this blog for a posting of it. Saturday last, we drove down to Indiana where my friend (and Tippecanoe Ancient Fife and Drum Corps Director) Malcolm Duncan put on an excellent pickin' party for Marti and I in his barn in Battleground, IN. Singer, Steve Stump regaled all assembled with his great songs, whistlers Steph and Malcolm chimed in and Marti and I did our best to add to the general air of jollification! Thanks to Malcolm for the great time!
Sunday afternoon, Dick Nagel hosted Marti and I for a house concert at the Loeb House Inn in Lafayette to a fun capacity crown and folks seemed to really enjoy the music as well. Look for photos and such of the events here soon.

My Concerts This Weekend

2008-10-29T17:40:00.000-04:00

Ready for some kickin' Early American and English dance tunes and totally transcendent all-male vocal music in The Cathedral of St. John The Divine??? Get thy corpus up to the "largest gothic anything in the whole damn anything" just up the Red Line here in Gotham, Saturday night at 8pm, and Sunday at 3pm. It's gonna melt your soft parts and give you strength. We (New York Early Music Foundation) just did an audiophile recording live to two mics in the hall this week, so the stuff will be fresh baked, and in that spacious reverberant chamber it's gonna be wet, wet, wet....I am sure there will not be a dry seat in the house. You are gonna love the "gut string trio"...fiddle, chamber bass(a sort of cello-y thing) and six key flute. De lovely Paul Shipper is also doing some citern, guittern, and drummy things too.

Much love to all, Christopher

The Old Flail

2008-10-24T02:56:00.000-04:00

On the news that one of my flute heroes had made the grade and ascended to the land of light last August, I began to assemble a bouquet of tunes of his to send out into the ether for his pleasure. The upcoming tour will feature some threads in the tapestry that was his life. His lines often cover new ground, and the doors he opened with those lines are at once old and new. Vincent Broderick spent much of his life writing and organizing tunes for the enjoyment of others.

Itinerant Piper

2008-10-20T16:29:00.000-04:00

Hi Kids! Here are some solo and duo tour dates for the Mid-West in November...
-Sunday, November 9th, 7:30pm: Radio Radio 1119 Prospect Street, Indianapolis, Indiana, "Solopipes" show
-Thursday Nov. 13th, 7pm: Holland, Michigan: Third Reformed Church: Duo show with harpist, Martha Waldvogel-Warren
-Friday, Nov. 14th, 8pm: Wealthy Theater, Grand Rapids Michigan: Duo show with harpist, Martha Waldvogel-Warren
-Sunday, November 16th 3:30pm: Loeb House Inn, Lafayette, Indiana, Duo w/ Martha Waldvogel-Warren

Piping planetwide, waves of music cause international incident.

2008-10-18T13:45:00.000-04:00

NEW YORK - Recent reports indicate that audible waves of piping have been interfering with corporate plans to "cause a worldwide bummer". First detected by the Very Large Array Radio Laboratory in the U.S. Southwest as a carrier wave distributed by community radio stations such as KZMU Community Radio in Moab, Utah and WWOZ Community Radio in New Orleans, Lousiana, the highly mobile source of this odd but uplifting event seems to be Uilleann Piper and Flutist, Christopher Layer. World leaders, refusing to be swayed from their personal missions to behave abominably towards their own species, other lifeforms inhabiting the Geosphere, and their wives, are in a confused and vulnerable state. One such leader when queried on the issue said: "Umm, well, I guess I'll just have the BLT Double Broiler without lettuce instead." An obvious reference to the "massive-shortage-in-fast-food-crisis" that is looming on the horizon, and currently threatening to cause widespread unemployment in the foodservice and healthcare industries. Welcome to my blog, kids! Please leave a message after the tone. And remember folks: The moving sidewalk is coming to an end, so please...watch your step.