Celebrate the 200th Anniversary of the War of 1812
with the Gloucester Hornpipe & Clog Society
(Rescheduled from June 3 due to rain! Now on Sunday, June 24 at 3pm.)
With rich harmonies and a wealth of traditional instruments, this band of six presents the music beloved by New Englanders during the War of 1812, from sea chanteys to dance tunes to ballads about fascinating characters and events. The band often invites the audience to join in, and children invariably dance. The program includes sea songs enjoyed by both sailors and landsmen, with the usual high spirits and humor of the maritime world, which carried on much of the world’s commerce. The band performs in authentic period clothing.
Highlights include songs celebrating the unlikely victories of Old Ironsides as she faced mighty English warships, the tale of two teenage girls form Scituate who saved their town from attack by playing the fife and drum, and a song about Admiral Perry vanquishing the Royal Navy on the Great Lakes. Both sides are represented, as the program includes the story of Massachusetts-born Laura Secord, a Canadian heroine. In “The Patriotic Diggers,” poet Samuel Woodworth warned, “Better not invade, don’t forget our dads gave you once a basting!”
The band’s instruments include fiddle, guitar, accordion, mandolin, dulcimer, whistle, banjo, and flute — plus bones, spoons, bodhran (Irish drum), washtub bass, and a unique instrument called the pogo-cello — a combination rhythm instrument and pogo stick!. Their singing is spirited, and their love of history and music creates an experience that’s educational and fun for all ages.
Sunday, June 24, 3:00 pm
admission $15
children under 12, seniors, and L-G House members, $12
www.hornpipe.org