Harvest Love Knots

"Drawing by John Roos ©2005"

In Northern Ireland, young men and women would take long braids of straw and twist them into deocrative knots. These harvest knots were then given as love tokens for men to wear on their lapels and women to wear in their hair. When one's lover accepred a harvest knot, it was assumed that a wedding would follow in the next spring.

Today, love knots are made with raffia and adorned with flowers and colorful ribbons. They are used as a boutonniere for the groom, worn in the bride's hair, attached to the bride's bouquet, and even used as napkin rings for the reception feast.

Copyright © 2005 by Anne Roos, excerpt from the liner notes to "Haste to the Wedding" CD, available on the Cambria Master Recordings Label. All rights reserved.

Can you read between the lines?

In the lyrics to the traditional Irish Percy French song, "Come Back Paddy Reilly,", who could it be who is calling for him to, "come back to me"? Could it be Percy French, Paddy's horse, or perhaps an unknown lover who isn't included in the lyrics?

See if you can read between the lines and figure out the lyrics of the newest download! This complimentary solo Celtic harp tune can be found in the section of my website called the Celtic Club. If you're already a member, go to the login page, enter your email address and password, and enjoy! (If you forgot your password, notify me).

If you're not yet a member, there is no cost or obligation to receive this download. When you sign up, you'll get a solo Celtic harp tune for your own use plus interesting background information about the tune. After you receive your first download, I'll drop you a line whenever there is a new tune posted.

The free download in the Celtic Club is just a sample of what I play. You can now purchase complete album downloads at my website, too.

Celtic Holiday Gift Baskets

I’ll admit that I haven’t put a lot of time into my postings as of late....I have two new CDs coming out that should be available for your holiday shopping! So, I’ve been thinking about creating holiday gift baskets to add to my website store.

Of course I’ll include my CDs, and here are some of the other items I am thinking of including:

• One or two tea cups filled with Irish Breakfast tea bags
• A Celtic bookmark
• Celtic beads or pendants
and ???

What would you like to see in my Celtic music holiday gift baskets?

Gold Country Weddings Bridal Fair

Getting married in the Sierra Foothills or South Lake Tahoe?

This is a great opportunity to audition me at this lovely boutique bridal show, inside a beautifully restored mansion, the Sequoia.

I will be performing in Molly’s Parlor and have the entire room to myself to play your favorite wedding selections.

Email me with your request and I’ll play it for you.

Get two admissions for the price of one with your online registration at www.goldcountryweddings.net.

Why bagpipes are played at weddings

It’s always a treat to perform on local radio, especially on comedian Howie Nave’s fabulous morning radio show on KRLT called “Howie’s Morning Rush”. Not that we have a morning rush here at Lake Tahoe at all. The pace is slow. And on Howie’s show, the mood is decidedly silly.

Piper Seán Cummings joins me in the interview as we promote our 5th Annual Celtic Concert, part of the Valhalla Summer Music Festival.

Hear Seán and I play “Mist Covered Mountains” (Seán plays the Scottish whistle on that number with me on the Celtic harp). Listen closely and you’ll hear me play a few notes of “Stairway to Heaven”. Find out why bagpipes are played at weddings and laugh along with us.

Thanks, Howie! We had a blast! (click on the links below to listen)

Harpist Anne Roos & bagpipe player Sean Cummings pt 1 (4min 18 sec)
Harpist Anne Roos & bagpipe player Sean Cummings pt 2 (4min 01 sec)