These are descriptions of some of the solo programs I produce. Some I have performed many times, and can perform with little notice. Others take more preparation. When performing at festivals and other themed events, I always try to customize these to the themes and locations:


According to legend, after the arrival of the tribes of man to the shores of Ireland, the beings who preceeded them- known as the Gentry, the Sidhe, the Tuatha De Danann- went quite literally underground, dividing the hills and their ancient stone fortresses among their kings and queens. This program explores the stories and music of some of these hills, bringing the tales of the Daghda and Wandering Aengus, Fionn MacCumhaill, and the harper Turlough O'Carolan together with the music of these hills.


These are tales- inspiring, amusing, and tragic- of interactions between faeries and human musicians, and the traditional melodies that resulted from these encounters: Bards hired to play for faerie dances, the Good People who gave tunes to fiddlers they favored, and how the Sidhe Queen Boand gave birth to the three strains of bardic music. Hear tales of Faerie musicians like Sennbec and Cascorach, legendary bards like Thomas of Ercildoune and the Black Rogue, and historical figures like the lilter Biddy of Muckross and members of the Doherty family of fiddlers who learned music from the Good People.


Although many of the popular conceptions of Faerie Lore derive from Western Europe, rich oral and musical traditions of the Otherkin can be found throughout the world. In fact, according to many traditional accounts, the Faeries themselves have been in contact with those of other cultures for ages. This program is an exploration of mystic creatures in tales and tunes from seven different cultures around the world. Creatures we might visit in a given program might include the Yunwi Tsunsdi of the Cherokees or elves of the Picuris Pueblo, the Mmoetia of Ghana, the Mu and Menehune of Hawaii or the Luve-ni-Wai of Fiji, Duendes and Pomberos of Latin America, the dancing faeries of India, Djinn of Turkey or Morocco, the Patu-Paiarehe of New Zealand, Huldre of Norway, the Lamiak of the Basque people, East European Vilas, or to whatever Otherkin my current research takes me.


Who are the Celts, anyway? This show explores Faerie music from each of the modern Celtic nations: Brittany, Cornwall, Galicia, Ireland, the Isle of Man, Scotland, and Wales, and outlying areas of Celtic influence such as the Shetland Islands, Nova Scotia and Appalachia. Through the sounds of Celtic languages and diverse musical genres from these cultures, I travel through tales of a spiritual world closely interwoven with our own, showing the distinctiveness and interrelatedness of these unique cultures.


In Ireland and the Scottish Highlands, the Banshee (from Bean Sidhe, Faerie Woman) is much more than a messenger of coming death. The Banshees were muses for the ancient bards, lovers to heroes of the epic cycles, and the first matriarchs and constant guardians of many highland clans. In this presentation, I present music and tales of Banshees, including several melodies notated by various witnesses who heard her keening cries.


This show focuses on music and stories of trickster spirits and the Unseelie Court. Hear about first hand accounts, and traditional music inspired by creatures such as Pookas, Buccas, Trows and Trolls, Sylphs, Pixies, and Changelings.





I first produced these programs for book release parties of the Harry Potter series. I have enjoyed the way J. K. Rowling has melded so many of the creatures and concepts from folklore and mythology into a cohesive storyline. These stories have brought together people form different cultures, young and old alike, who appreciate the possibilities of the imagination and well told stories.

This series of programs immerses the audience in the world of Hogwarts by presenting lessons, drawn from actual historical sources, about the relation of music to magical arts. Neither "Wizard Rock" nor "Filk" music, these tales and tunes drawn from early music and world music sources present material that can be appreciated by anyone with a love for mythology, or hearing instruments they never knew existed. I present these in full costume as a guest professor of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, with visual learning materials and prizes (in lieu of house points) for students with insightful answers to class questions. My intended audience for these classes are people who have read the entire Harry Potter series, as I base these programs on the books as opposed to the movies. Younger siblings may not necessarily grasp all the concepts I present here, although there is no inappropriate material, and the music itself can be enjoyed by anyone. For your event, I will be happy to collaborate with other presenters to make a seamless, immersive experience.


Before there were enchantments, there was chant. Before there were incantations, there was cantus, the song. Epic literatures demonstrates how the earliest concepts of magic were by means of music. In fact, much of the earliest epic literature itself, including Beowulf, the Illiad, and the Elder Edda, were sung long before they were first written. This lesson presents music with magical properties: a Gaelic song to stop hailstorms, an Italian dance to alleviate the bite of a mysterious spider, an Irish melody taught by a mysterious stranger to cure sunstroke, as well as music historically attributed to witches and a tale of the great wizard singing duel of Karelia.


Knowledge of magical creatures is only complete with an understanding of the music each creature creates. Included in this program are descriptions and melodies of underground creatures like Icelandic trolls, Shetland trows and Irish Sidhe, Scottish music learned from merfolk and selkies, Renaissance tunes of faeries and sprites, A Boy's Lament for his Dragon and the story of how the Chinese phoenix created a description for musical scales.


This is a hands on program. First focusing on Organology- the study of musical instruments, I will discuss the magical origins and properties of instruments such as the Finnish kantele (a lyre used by Baltic shamans and wizards), and Tibetan seven-metal singing bowls and tingshaws, and each student will have a chance to play each of these instruments. Next, using materials from my publication, A Pocketful of Magic, I teach students how to play a couple of melodies from magical creatures on either ocarina or tinwhistle using music with fingering illustrations. Ideally each student should receive their own instrument and book, so at each event their will need to be a system to sign up for this practicum lesson.

Some magic comes about by staying silent, and letting that intent go forth unaltered by the intentions and thoughts of others. There are other kinds of magic that can only be brought about by sharing your intentions with those who want to create the same energy. That's what I want to do with this initial blog, and the next few blogs that follow will give more details.

I wish to share my performances of music of the faeries, the stories behind this music, and my own creations with many and diverse audiences.

I wish to collaborate with other artists to create interactive, immersive theatrical pieces based on well-researched mystic and musical themes. I wish to form an ensemble to bring these experiences to the world.

I wish to create archives, both virtual and at locations throughout the world, of music and aspects of music relating to mystic beings throughout the world.

I wish to find the right community to be my home base to travel from for my performances, somewhere I can have both many people to learn from and to share with, a place that respects nature, music, learning, and the spiritual manifestations thereof.

My next few blogs will elaborate on these, describing in detail the programs which I perform and those which I am developing.

I have found something to interest me in all the profiles I've looked at here on enchantedfolk, but I'm going to resist the urge of making a pest out of myself by making friend requests of everyone at once, and for now limit my requests to those I know in person and musicians and performers I think would be interested in my productions. Please don't be shy about requesting me as a friend if any of this resonates with you.

Kaade