Bengal's Corner

[Press release] When three major talents combine in one musical group, great things can happen. Take the new Pioneer Valley-based Celtic trio, Mist Covered Mountains. Playing Celtic roots music from Ireland, Scotland and French-Canada, the trio takes a fresh look at old favorites, also penning tunes destined for the fiddling canon. Award-winning fiddler Donna Hébert delivers encyclopedically accurate styling, aided and abetted by groovemaster Max Cohen’s guitar rhythms. With Katherine First’s driving, brilliant fiddle (and her colorful cowboy boots!) kicking the group into overdrive, you’d better nail down the stage for this trio!

A 2008 Massachusetts Artists’ Fellow in the Folk Arts, Donna has a duo with Max and also plays with him in Franco-American heritage group The Beaudoin Legacy and old-time band Groovemama. With Groovemama, they perform and teach every summer at Old Songs and Philadelphia Folk Festivals, while with the Beaudoins, they are deeply involved in the Vermont-Quebec Quadricentennial celebrations.

Donna also fiddles and sings with Franco group Chanterelle, still going since 1993. Donna also co-founded Valley favorites Rude Girls in 1985, winning an Indie Award with them for their “Rude Awakening” Flying Fish debut. Her credits since include major U.S., Canadian and European festivals, residencies and conferences as well as anthology recordings on Smithsonian/Folkways. A pioneering fiddle teacher, “Donna gets it all right” says string legend Darol Anger in his introduction to her new “Fiddling Demystified for Strings.”

Katherine & Max’s duo has played many venues in the Pioneer Valley, including First Night 2008. Max not only performs with fiddlers Katherine and Donna, but also with folksingers Priscilla Herdman and Leah Kunkel as well as with Norman Blaine’s progressive rock band, The Authentix.

This year both Donna and Katherine released fiddling CDs. Donna completed the companion Fiddlejam CD to her pioneering Fiddling Demsytified for Strings, while The Beaudoin Legacy released a live concert CD, Une bonne soirée: Live at the Blackstone River Theatre. Donna has released ten other solo and band recordings.

Katherine’s new CD, The Sweet Spot, has been a hit at local performances. Additionally, when not on the road, she leads the Session at The Basement in Northampton. Says Valley Free Radio, “Katherine First delivers traditional tunes with finesse and firepower.”

Max’s solo guitar CD, Saltwater Color received lofty praise. Guitar For The Practicing Musician raved, calling Max one of the “most musically complete players we have seen.”

Trio members also play with other fine New England musicians who may show up on stage with the trio, including Nightingale piano and accordionist Jeremiah McLane, who plays with Max and Donna at Boston College this February 10th! Also joining the trio is Scottish multi-instrumentalist Dan Houghton from Vermont band Cantrip. Dan excels at everything from Gaelic and English songs to bouzouki to Scottish pipes, flute and whistle.

The trio is currently working on a demo and is booking performing arts venues in New England. Their media tracks are available on their home page.

To hear Katherine and Max on tracks from The Sweet Spot and for more information about Katherine, please check out: link.

And for Donna and Max’s performance Oct 4 for the Massachusetts Cultural Council (sampled on YouTube) and for their duo media kit, please go to: link.