Enya- I was first introduced to Enya's music when my
grade
school PE teacher repeatedly used her music for our "cool downs."
That and Yanni. Never caught onto the Yanni-appreciation and
hated the class itself but... loved the Enya music! (And must
begrudgingly admit I've found myself using tracks from her for "cools
downs" during my own work-outs.) Two of the songs that really
made me want to go out and purchase her CDs were "Storms in Africa" and
"Orinoco
Flow". Other favorites include "Only Time", "Anywhere Is", "Hope
Has a Place", and "Fallen Embers" which always reminds me of C.S.
Lewis' Aslan.

Loreena
McKennitt- Okay, first off,
McKennitt
is actually Canadian. I realize that. :-) The reason
she's here is because many of her songs are Irish/Celtic in origin or
influence. Some of my favorites are "The Mummers'
Dance", "The Lady of Shalott", "Standing Stones", and "Dickens'
Dublin". But lately I've also been really drawn to "Samain Night"
and "All Souls Night". I've heard she's working on a new CD and
can't wait! It's been too long!
The Black Family- The three brothers from this group
actually
came to my school when I was in high school! Its was so cool! They even
taught us Irish
dancing! LOL Okay, now you all know what the highlight of *that* school
year was for me. Their songs are bit more modern than some of Enya's
and
McKennitt's but still really great. I bought both their CDs after they
came to school and love them!
A Man of No Importance, a
musical by Stephen Flaherty and Lynn Ahrens, performed by the 2002
Off-Broadway Cast- I used to attend nearly every
production at one of our local theatres. So when they did this
show, I went. I'd never heard of it before but loved it. In
fact, I went twice and will be going again soon now that it's being
produced at another local theatre. The musical tells the story of
Alfie Byrne, a Dublin bus-driver trying to put on a production of his
hero Oscar Wilde's Salome.
Through working with Wilde's work, Alfie and his cast are confronted
with issues in their own lives that threaten not only their play but
also their relationships. I loved the plot and characters of the
musical and this recording of its music. Particular favorites are
"The Streets of Dublin", "Our Father", and "Love Who You Love."
Waking Ned Devine, motion
picture soundtrack with music composed by Shaun Davey- I all ready
mentioned this on my favorite CD
page. So I don't want to be completely redundant but I love
this score. And the songs are great, too. It has reels and
even a ballad for the eponymous Ned. "Hear Me" nearly brings me
to tears every time I hear it and I *love* this version of "The Parting
Glass." It's definitely on my St. Patrick's Day play list!