Bean Sidhe

The name “Bean Sidhe”, pronounced banshee, is the gaelic alliteration of the name of the ancient Celtic Gods that currently dwell in the “Sidhe”. Literally translated as: “the people of the Sidhe” It represents the inhabitants of the magical kingdom under-earth and undersea where all is eternal joy, mirth, music and festival. At times of seasonal celebrations, the Bean Sidhe join with humans and lend us a spirit of joy,, happiness and celebration. It is our hope our music brings a glimpse of this mystical expectancy, and those that hear it are uplifted.

David Russell – guitar, bouzouki, mandolin, tenor banjo, bodhran. Is a well known local musician and story teller. He also a woodworker and has built a number of instruments. He plays a number of musical instruments, at least a dozen at the performance level.

Amanda Burts – recorder, accordion. Amanda lives in Brasstown, NC. She is an original member of Bean Sidhe.

Karin Lyle – Harp, Fiddle – Karin lives in Balsam, NC, and is a professional stringed instrument instructor. She is a professionally trained violinist. She is regionally recognized and in great demand as a soloist and is a member of the Western Carolina Community Orchestra.

Ralph Murphy – vocals, bodhran, guitar. Ralph lives in Bryson City, NC. He is a classically trained Baritone and a soloist with the Western Carolina Community Chorus.

Bean Sidhe was started out of a desire to study and explore the uplifting traditional music that came to America with our ancestors from England, Scotland, Wales, and Ireland. It is an attempt to keep alive the musical heritage that informed much of our contemporary music especially “Blue-Grass” and “Country”. Bean Sidhe has been playing together in some fashion for over 10 years and has developed an extensive repertoire of Jigs, Reels, Ballads and other traditional music from the “Old Country”. Bean Sidhe plays in such venue’s as; local folk festivals, art center events, library music series, weddings, and benefits.

Bean Sidhe's CD titled “Lilting Banshees” is a collection of a dozen pieces from the core of the group’s repertoire. It highlights the versatility and the musicality of the members of the group by offering a variety of instrumentation. Each piece has a unique sound and offers the listener a broad sampling of the potentialities of traditional music.

CD’s can be ordered by calling 1-828-488-8941 or sending an e-mail to beansidhe1@juno.com. The price is $17.50 each which includes shipping and handling.