Concert: The McNordiques

Spring Concert: The McNordiques
Free and Open to the Public
Thursday, April 4, 2024
5:00-6:30 p.m.
Allen Centennial Garden, 620 Babcock Drive, Madison, WI 53706

We are pleased to be joining our colleagues from Sustaining Scandinavian Folk Arts in the Upper Midwest, Center for the Study of Upper Midwestern Cultures, and Department of German, Nordic, and Slavic+ in presenting this event, in which 2024 Musician-in-Residence Renee Vaughan (nyckelharpa) will be performing alongside Tom Klein (uilleann pipes) and Dan Newton (accordion) as part of their band The McNordiques. As their site says, The McNordiques “blend Celtic, French and Scandinavian music in a way that shines through to make your toes wiggle with joy.” 

The plan is to celebrate spring with this outdoor concert, so bring your favorite blanket and some lawn chairs and enjoy the show from the lawn of Allen Centennial Garden. Wisconsin weather can be fickle in April, so the rain/cold weather location and time will be Morphy Recital Hall, Humanities Building, 455 N. Park Street, at 7:00 p.m.  

Vaughan’s residency on campus is from March 18–May 5. She will focus her research on uncovering the contributions of previously unknown first-generation Swedish immigrant musicians (1885–1910) to Minnesota. Another project will be to trace the journey of the nyckelharpa from its Swedish roots to the Upper Midwest. Finally, Renee has a keen interest in creating a resource of Upper Midwest Scandinavian Allspel tunes to facilitate learning and preservation of this rich musical tradition. She has been in Mills Music Library this week conducting research with some of our Special Collections materials, as well as items from our circulating collections. We’re happy to help her, and we look forward to hearing her perform with her band! We highly recommend reading the Fun Facts and Her Journey Begins sections on the My Story page of her site.