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Written in Southern Rag (later renamed fRoots) issue 21, 1984


MILLADOIRO
Milladoiro 3
CBS (Spain) S 25248 (1982)

Milladoiro are a 7-piece instrumental group from Galicia, the north-west region of Spain. You may have seen the band on Channel 4's How To Be Celtic series. This is their third album (their first and second, at least one of which is on Discos Ruadas of La Coruña, are proving hard to get) and their first for a major label. It’s full of fine tunes of the sort I remember from childhood trips to Galicia.
      Traditionally, the music is either sung in a strong choral style, emphasising thirds, or played instrumentally, particularly on bagpipes (gaitas), typically in pairs harmonising in thirds and accompanied by drums and percussion.
      Milladoiro make the sound of a group of musicians who are part of the living tradition but aware of the progress (and perhaps pitfalls) of the European traditional music revival. They have widened their choice of tone colours by utilising some of the instruments currently popular in the revival - fiddle, guitar, keyboards, bouzouki, mandolin, accordion, flutes, crumhorn, whistles and Scottish pipes - as well as gaitas, harp and percussion. There's nothing unusual in that, but the arrangements are so intelligent that what comes through is the music; eclecticism and technique are means to that end.
      All the tunes are good; most are traditional in Galicia, though there is a witty Parisian-style waltz by fiddler Michel Canada, a reel and double jig by keyboard player Antón Seoane, and an interesting version of Greensleeves.
      Milladoiro are, I think, an important band whose records should be more available here. I happened across a copy of Milladoiro 3 in Collets, soon after it came out in early '83. This rather late review was prompted by another sent to S. R. by a thoughtful Spanish subscriber. Gracias. Production and recording quality are excellent, the pressing is good and the sleeve is opulent. The notes are in Gallego, but readers of Spanish or Portuguese shouldn't have too much trouble.


© 1984 Andrew Cronshaw
 

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