CDs ~ STORYTELLING
2010
Listen to some samples here: Irish version of Taily Po, My First Haircut and Tony and the Donkey
MyBad, Bad Dog
When I was young I lived near a chicken house and a small farm. Officially, we were in New York City , “the Borough of Richmond” or Staten Island. We were held to New Jersey by many bridges but the only direct way to get to those other, more famous boroughs, like Manhattan and Brooklyn, was by the ferry. Thanks to all the kids who listened as these stories evolved- especially the students and 4th grade teachers at the Center School in Chelmford, MA. Stories: Grandma Makes Worm Cake - Husky, Bad Dog First Haircut- When Our Streetlights Come On- “Doodies” Revenge & O’Henry
Stories From The Neighborhood
In summer of 2002 I was invited to perform at the Newport Folk Festival. The presenter said “ Bring your CDs -You can sell product! ”Right I thought. Here is the excuse to create “product”. So I recorded two CDs in 2 days, These are some of my favorite folk tales. Like my Cambridge neighbors, these stories come from many countries and continents. Some of these story motifs are found in the ancient Indo-European sources and others are unique to their culture and place. Whether you believe that the stories we call folk tales have identifiable sources and or you believe that that the commonalities in the world's stories reflect each culture's response to similar and all too human circumstance, I hope you find my versions of these timeless world travelers satisfying.
Irish Folktales were recorded live in March of 2007 at Club Passim. One of my oldest friends, Susan Miron,accompanied me on this portion of the show. Susan Miron's love of music and literature resulted in careers as a harpist and a book critic. She performed over a hundred concerts with the Melisande Trio (harp, flute, viola) which included her longtime musical partner, her husband former BSO violist Burton Fine. In addition to two CDs with singers (most recently "A Birthday Hansel" on Chandos Records) and two solo CDs of her transcriptions of harpsichord sonatas of Domenico Scarlatti (Centaur Records), she wrote about 250 books reviews for such publications as The New York Times Book Review and The American Scholar. The tunes of 18th century blind harper, Turlough O’Carolan are combined with legend and folktales from the vast store of Irish whimsy and tradition. Egg Girl and the Leprechaun –. Finn and the Magic Fish – Piper and the Mermaid –. Molly O’Donahue –Taily Po
All of Norah’s published CDs are available online. Click on any cd above to go to cdbaby.com
Under construction: CDs in production: Wise Guy - wisdom tales from Italy Giufa stories and Salt, Sea and Piracy, Mary Read’s story and Golden Age of Piracy
Music of Angels was my first CD ever. I recorded it in 1999, while I was performing in the Xmas Revels in Cambridge. I did it in one take after renting an engineer and studio for 3 hours. All these stories are totally inauthentic as folklore and represent my personal versions of entities extant in the universal subconscious. I have no idea where my ideas begin and the cosmos ends. But then, who does know where the cosmos ends? I am going to copyright the stories anyway. Although every care has been taken that these tales retain their timeless quality repeated listening may cause damage. © 1999
“Italian" Folk tales for all seasons
Wit wisdom and garlic - its a spicy blend from wise peasants and "paisans" or country people with attutude. Listen, laugh and learn. Traditional Italian folk tales serve up common story motifs with a distinctive flavor. Despite a large extended Italian family in my background, I came to my cultural heritage through the back door of my enthusiastic but slapdash scholarship. The work of Italo Calvino, Bocaccio, Straparola and Basile inspired me to tell my versions of these timeless tales. As many European storytellers before me, I also found inspiration in the ancient Panchantantra texts and the old Buddhist Jataka tales. The Three Hens is my own fable. I have cooked up these nontraditional tales for you. The ingredients used to dish up these tales are very old, and the"recipes" and the seasonings come from Italy. Buon appetito!
Rabbitails are just a few of my favorite stories about small animals that are subversive and never subservient The tales collected here come from the world folk tradition. Rabbitails - tales of trickster rabbits from all over. Hopping drums accompany these timeless tales of wise, foolish, funny and feckless rabbits from all over the world. Shake it up.
© 2006 Norah Dooley
Shake it Down - drums - Conejito, Little Rabbit -story - Hop and Jump - drums- Old Rabbit Saves the People - IndiaTail Shake - drums-Rabbit & Tiger@Lunch Latin America -story-Jumping All Over - drums -Aesop’s Racing Rabbit -story -Running Rhythm - drums - Lil’ Rabbit Frou Frou
