Salsa Celtica - El Agua De La Vida

Salsa Celtica need little introduction these days - they have long left behind any perceived novelty dimension to their signature blend of big-band Latin dance music with Scottish accents. They have earned admiration among the cognoscenti for their balance between authenticity and originality. And they’re recognised by audiences of folk, jazz and world music alike as one of Scotland’s top party bands.

The title of their third album is El Agua De La Vida - ‘the water of life’ - a sly Hispanic nod to the Gaelic root of ‘whisky’. Its Celtic elements are more artfully pronounced than ever, right from the cheeky opening number Cumbia Celtica - featuring guest Eamonn Coyne on tenor banjo - to the equally impish closer, a salsa-style revamp of Auld Lang Syne. The band now features two fiddlers - Chris Stout and Kenny Fraser - with long-time member Fraser Fifield on bagpipes, whistles and soprano sax.

Their integration of idioms boasts a new sophistication - as in the plaintive slow pipe tune that leads into Guajira Sin Sol, or the ebullient pipes and fiddle reel that kicks off the high-spirited title track. The alternating moods of yearning and celebration, after all, are fundamental to the music of both cultures; and it’s by expanding on this emotional commonality that Salsa Celtica combine them so effectively.

Author: Sue Wilson