Polish Dance in Ireland: Altan and "Mazurka"

Today's random tune is performed by Altan, which was originally formed in County Donegal by vocalist and fiddler Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh and her husband Frankie Kennedy in 1987 after the pair initially released a pair of albums as a duo. They named the band after a lake in County Donegal. County Donegal has a rich tradition of Irish music and styles, and Altan made this music available to the world and in the process became known worldwide with a popularity to match The Chieftains. Kennedy died of Ewing's sarcoma in 1994, leaving Mairéad Ní Mhaonaigh to keep the band going. Besides The Chieftains, they have worked with musicians such as Enya, Dolly Parton, Bonnie Raitt and Alison Krauss. This song, called Mazurka, can be found on their 1993 album Island Angel. A mazurka is a music and dance style originally from Poland that was imported into Ireland in the 1840s. It is a style largely played in the Donegal region.

Listen to songs like this and more on the KUNM Global Music Show every Monday night from 10 pm - 1 am Mountain Standard Time. Live streaming, program information and the two-week digital archive can be found at http://www.kunm.org.

Sources: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Altan_%28band%29; http://altan.ie/