Fair enough - for some reason I was in aggressive rant mode tonight, not sure why. Sincere Apologies.
At the moment I am really digging Kevin Crawford’s second album “In Good COmpany”. It sounds very little like Lunasa to my ears. There’s some dance-hall style piano, some orchestral arrangements (Actually some of the strongest tracks), some tasty tunes played on the Bb with viola accompaniment, and some simple duets with fiddle.
About five years ago, one of my friends and I had a long conversation with Kevin after a Lunasa show. I don’t remember the exact words he used anymore, but at one point he said something to the effect that the Lunasa style was just something he did when playing with Lunasa. Certainly the D Flute Album (my favorite solo album of his) and his work with the band Moving Cloud sound very different than his Lunasa work…
Whose word of the month? And what does it mean?
I am going to see (and hear) Lunasa for the first time in 3 weeks really looking forward to it..especially after seeing the positive comments posted here about them..
On another note I have been playing an Alba Q1 since staring starting on the whistling highway of life and have just ordered my second whistle from Mack Hoover…could this be the start of the dreaded WhOA I have read so much about??? 
I think if you read her original message more closely you’ll see that she said it’s the Irish word for the month of August, not the word of the month of August.
Here’s some more info, from Wikipedia:
In the Irish language, August is known as Lúnasa, a modern rendition of Lughnasadh, named after the god Lugh. August 1, (Lá Lúnasa) in the Irish Calendar is regarded as the first day of Autumn.
It means “August.” “August” in Irish is “Lúnasa,” named for one of the old pagan festivals honoring the god Lúgh.
Whether the band named itself after the month or the old holiday, I have no idea.
Redwolf
Hilarious. I read it “the word of the month for August”. (twice)
I guess once your mind is set up for a certain way of understanding something,
it’s hard to see it the right way.
When I first started playing the whistle and really listening to a lot of Irish music, I absolutely loved Lunasa and was astounded to hear that some did not consider them “traditional.” Now, a few years later and after listening to countless CDs, clips, and tunes by various musicians, I wouldn’t refer to Lunasa as traditional. Yes, they play traditional tunes (and a lot of new stuff too) but for me personally they don’t fit the bill for traditional. I like a lot of their music but rarely listen to them any more, having come to prefer music that I consider more traditional. That’s not saying, “I won’t listen to them because they’re not traditional,” just “Yes, they’re fun but I prefer to listen to others for my shot of ITM.”
Susan
Redwolf is correct about the origin of he word and pronunciation. Except I have to disagree on one point. To me Lunasa is 100% ITM. OK, ok, there’s some French stuff.
ITM has been played with all kinds of instrumentation and various styles over the centuries.
At the moment I am really digging Kevin Crawford’s second album “In Good COmpany”. It sounds very little like Lunasa to my ears. There’s some dance-hall style piano, some orchestral arrangements (Actually some of the strongest tracks), some tasty tunes played on the Bb with viola accompaniment, and some simple duets with fiddle.
Kevin Crawford is one of my favorites. Funny, but I actually don’t care much for orchestral arrangements on ‘In Good Company’, though I like the album.
I think it lacks the intimacy the title suggests, but I stll like it.