Our KZSM.org Program Hosts share their passions by creating original programming. Jeanne Randall of “Celtic Corner” (Saturdays noon to 2 p.m.) entertains Celtic music enthusiasts and introduces new listeners to a rich and varied genre.
Celtic music covers everything from Scotland, Ireland, Wales, Brittany, and Galicia, to Australia and the United States — any place where the Celts have migrated. Jeanne plays both traditional and New Celtic music, which might be older music played on contemporary instruments or contemporary music played on traditional instruments. “One of my favorites is the Red Hot Chili Pipers, she says. They play songs like ‘Smoke on the Water’ and ‘We Will Rock You,’ but they do it with bagpipes.”
Jeanne began attending KZSM.org Volunteer Meetings with her husband, but firmly resisted invitations to develop her own program. “I kept saying no, and then I realized that I did have something to share,” she recalls. “I’ve been hearing Celtic music since I was born; my grandfather emigrated from Scotland to Canada and later to the United States.” She remembers Saturday mornings spent cleaning house to the accompaniment of jigs, reels, and bagpipes.
To prepare a show, she draws on a database that includes every track from her collection of 200 Celtic CDs. “If I’m in the mood to dance, I’ll pull out jigs and reels and everything I want to dance to.” Another show might feature “curl up in a chair with a glass of wine and read music,” like Claire Hamilton’s album “The Magic of the Celtic Harp.” Other shows celebrate holidays: “January first I do a pub crawl--all Irish and Scottish pub music—the songs that, after you’ve had three drinks, you’re going to sing along with the band. Around January 25th, Robert Burns’ birthday, “I’ll play every song I have by him.”
Since COVID-19, Jeanne records “Celtic Corner” in her home studio. But earlier shows featured local Celtic bands live in our KZSM studios, including The Bedlam Bards, Faire to Middlin', O'Malarkey, and Liberty Shores.
And every show includes at least one bagpipe selection: “most people don’t appreciate the pipe,” she says, “but I know what it takes to learn to play it! The bagpipes, the Celtic music— it’s my heartbeat!”
Like Jeanne, you can share the music of your heartbeat with others who love it and those who will learn to love it. To learn how, email [email protected].
