Just John..... His band members are his instruments which are :
* George Lowden 010 guitar
* Peter Abnett Bouzouki
* Gibson A2 Mandolin
* Jay Haide vioin
* Bodhran by Roddy Turner.
If you live in north yorks/north east and you need a multi string player with years of experience, John is on the look out for new musical collaborations (you can e-mail John on johnbazgtr@btinternet.com)
As for John's solo work.......... read on !
John uses a digitech "Jamman" digital looper/recorder to record multi-instrumental pieces LIVE .............................. and of course his head , hands and feet and heart !
So, what you get can be anything from solo guitar with a single added fiddle melody,a selection of songs with guitar/fiddle/mandolin accompaniment or a full band performance with six fiddles,two bouzoukis,bodhran and guitar...the possibilities are endless !! Playing in ensembles,of course is the best way to
improvise and "bounce" of other musicians,when John will quite happily dispense with the electronics and play "conventionally" should the opportunities come along........
Influences
IRISH ,ENGLISH,SCOTTISH AND AMERICAN TRADITIONAL MUSIC AND SONG.
VAUGHAN WILLIAMS, BALKAN/HUNGARIAN AND MORE.
as long as it gets to the heart !
Sounds Like
All of John's instrumental compositions are influenced by thirty plus years of playing with and listening to many musicians from all parts of the world.His vinyl record/cd collection includes anything from Turlogh O'Carolan to Vaughan Williams to Django Reindhart to Liam O'Flynn to Steeley Dan to Doc Watson. John's musical heroes and their music have no doubt had an influence on his music, pulling on the memory banks of all these genres.
Here is a bit of background on the tracks you can listen to:
1." The Bouzouki Rag " ( LIVE radio show) Composed after listening to an old Scott Joplin Vinyl, which apparently felt like a rag when completed. 2.John David... written in memory of his Dad.He was a quiet gentle man who witnessed the horrors of Hiroshima at the end of world war 2, and worked hard the rest of his life in engineering passing away after virtually no retirement. 3. The Waiting Game...........selling and buying houses and moving on to the next home is a real pain.Feels like sitting in a waiting room for John,whilst the solicitors shuffle the documents and rake off their fees.
4. Old for New.... written for Winnipeg based musician D'arcy Stearns,who had his bouzouki stolen from his college rooms.John saw his add on "Gumtree" seeking a good bouzouki.John had just replaced his 1979 Peter Abnett bouzouki with a brand new one from the same fantastic luthier......... nice to know his old 1979 Abnett bouzouki is being played and cherished across the pond. 5 " Zorbas' Waltz" ...... John remembers a Cretian holiday some years back,and being knocked out by the bouzouki playing of the resident band in the local bistro.Most people wanted fast and furious tunes to smash plates to in the tradition,whilst the musicians just looked despressed with it all .John wrote this sad waltz to remember these fantastic players. 6. The Voyage of hope............. written in honour of the thousands of Irish emigrants from centuries past,travelling the world seeking work and taking their families, fiddles and pipes with them. 7.The Bouzouki belly dance..... a mad title and an equally mad tune... you'll need to be olympic standard to belly dance to this one. 8.Summerhouse Lament........... Summerhouse has been John's home for several years and has been inspirational to him for his music composition. Soon to be moving onto pastures new, John wrote this tune to celebrate this beautiful rural hamlet in county Durham.
9. The Endless Road........... John spent many years driving the motorways of England as a music rep. The tune and it's title sums it up for John. 10. The Recovered Mandolin ........ A music dealer friend of John's turned up a 1918 Gibson A2 mandolin which was in a dreadful state. Much care and attention brought it back to life and the tune was written in celebration.
The tracks listed here,are just a small number of John's compositions, with new tunes seemingly "arriving" almost daily.
Make your own judgements on the small sample of tracks you can listen to here........ John hopes you enjoy them !!
John Burge - " One Man Folk Orchestra "
Here is what some reviewers had to say about John :
"There was this man singing who seemed to be able to play the guitar and violin at the same time.....marvellous stuff!"....holmfirth festival 2007>
CD Review "The Link" (www.cultfound.org) June 2007"The Voyage of Hope"........." An excellent 15 track CD from John Burge who plays guitar,bouzouki,fiddle and bodhran ALL AT THE SAME TIME ! John uses live sampling/looping techniques to build up an amazing array of sound.................... "
" John Burge was in the club room,busily fusing cutting edge digital technology with good old fashioned digital dexterity,building a one man folk orchestra of layered loops which arced and soared majestically ...........Beverley folk festival 2007 review "The Talk "magazine
August 2007 www.thetalkmagazine.com.............................................
Bradford Topic Folk club programme........John Burge is a "one man band" who combines LIVE performance with his own recorded self on a variety of instruments,overlaid with simultaneously recorded lines.Not only is this technically fascinating,but some of his violin tunes are stunningly beautiful ...................................................................
The Talk Magazine November 2007.......This (CD) is a little gem......John is a gifted multi-instrumentalist........there is not the slightest
hint of flash for its own sake - just top notch playing from a quite remarkable talent............................................
CD "Echoes" Review Link Magazine february 2008(www.cultfound.org)
"an instrumental album from south durham based multi-instrumentalist John Burge (guitar,bouzouki,fiddle,mandolin and bodhran) John's stage performances are amazing.Using looping and sampling technology,he builds up layers of sounds from a range of instruments - and he has mastery of them all.Useful brief sleeve notes describe the background and inspiration for each tune - a story unfolds. Inspired by UK and Irish traditions,with a nod to Americana and eastern europe,John's inluences are far ranging. " Doubting Thomas " effortlessley demonstrates his mastery of his chosen instruments welded to modern technology.When he first started performing his compositions in public one or two sceptics believed he was miming,not fully understanding the technology enabling John to play,record and harmonize simultaneously. "Doubting Thomas" was composed especially for them !
An exceptional album.
DIRECT CONTACT WITH JOHN : johnbazgtr@btinternet.com
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Review of " Echoes" in The Talk Magazine May 2008 issue (www.thetalkmagazine.com)
JOHN BURGE : ECHOES
Hot - or at least pretty damn warm - on the heels of his fine Voyage of Hope comes this new disc from one-man folk orchestra John Burge. Actually, it was a rather quicker follow-up than the timing of this review suggests as, although I have listened to it a lot over the past couple of months, I have just not been able to come up with a review. The thing is, this is a disc that, for me, really resists the analytical approach. With no vocals this time round, this is a beautifully sequenced set of instrumentals which draw the listener in and take them to an almost cinematic landscape of the mind. The Celtic influence is well to the fore, with some emotive fiddle weaving its way through a very 'modern Irish' (yes, the bouzouki box is ticked!) tapestry, though one which assuredly avoids the pitfalls of post- River Dance blandness which mire so much in this field. And, as with his debut release, multi-instrumental dexterity is never wheeled out for its own sake; rather, it contributes as necessary to the overall mood of each piece. 'Authenticity' has been a vexed concept pretty much since the label of 'folk music' was first bandied about, but listening to Echoes gives a sense that - for all the technology which permits this layered musical approach - here is a writer and musician responding to tradition and place in a heartfelt and decidedly authentic manner. John Burge is definitely someone who deserves to be heard by a much wider audience.
oz hardwick.....................................
DIRECT CONTACT with John : johnbazgtr@btinternet.com
" Echoes" Cd available free of charge to interested concert/festival/music promoters................
Just floating in to say hi :-)
The fairies and I would very much appreciate if u came to our page to show some pixie luv and listen to my Faerie tunes ♫.•**•.♥ ♫.♫.♥♫.•**•.♥♫ ♫
♫♫♫♫♫.•**•. ♫♫♫♫♫.•**•.
Blessings!
Freyia
It is a pleasure to have you as my new MySpace friend… I find your MySpace page, your talent and your enthusiasm for music pleason’ to many… I welcome you’re other MySpace friends to visit my MySpace page that I’ve dedicated to my admiration of many talented guitar playing musicians of many styles… Stop by check it out and leave a comment if you like… Thanks Ken…
After you've finished here, you may like to hear this poem sung on myspace...
Poem 162 of 230, WalkaboutsVerse (please see my blog): TEES TO TYNE: FIRST IMPRESSIONS - SUMMER 2001
Where traditions are not so rare; Sea, country and works scent the air; A multitude of monuments, Planted tubs and patterned pavements.
The longish pedestrian malls; The remnants of defensive walls; Historic buildings are a gauge Of the respect for heritage.
Wheat, rape and pines in the fields; Estuaries guarded by shields; Long sandy beaches and wide scenes; Romantic-ruin go-betweens.
Rivers in parts licked by trees, Or fringed by boat clubs, wharfs, gantries, And crossed by practical delights - Varied spans, forming pleasing sights.
Fine churches headed at Durham; Football kits ad infinitum; Kept castles - one for study; Masonry behind masonry.
And, with moulding-works out that way, It’s somewhere for a longer stay..?
INTERNATIONAL AWARDS & FESTIVAL. MORE THAN 50 AWARDS & 60 HONOURABLE MENTIONS ASSIGNED BY AN INTERNATIONAL JURY OF ARTISTS AND MUSIC INDUSTRY. APPLY NOW on www.thethinktank.it!!
