I have already listened to the first one..which you kindly posted for us. I will save the others for later tonight when I can enjoy them with a glass of malt whisky after choir practice. I don’t play any instrument, but have been singing all my life and cannot envisage stopping until my voice gives out on me! It is an instrument too of course, as my school singing teacher told me more than 60 years ago, and must be looked after and not abused. I live in Northern Ireland, and myself am Scottish, so appreciate and love Celtic music, but also, mostly all good and well written music from everywhere.

@Marionville

Good! Never give up your "instrument!"

Having said that, I realize that the human singing voice CAN eventually fail or at least become weaker. The only physical problem I have with playing is some arthritis in my left hand...the one that fingers the fretboard.

@TommyNIK Yes...I’m afraid the years do take their toll...on joints including fingers, and sadly the vocal cords too. So far I’ve been lucky with the voice but have told my (young) choirmaster not to hesitate to let me know when he thinks I’m past it!

@Marionville

I have Irish-Scottish roots. We have a family history which states that the progenitors of my father's side of the family emigrated to the USA in 1811, landing in the port of Philadelphia, PA and migrating to the north-central part of the state where I was eventually born and raised.

@TommyNIK Do you have any idea where your ancestors emigrated from?

@Marionville

As you listen to my work, you'll notice several song parodies, most of which are political. I don't know how much you keep up on what's going on over here, so they may not have an immediate impact. Also, some of the other songs go back several years to my early experiments with home recording. I recently updated my home studio...new software, etc. and I have learned a lot about the ins and outs of this enjoyably hobby. Thus, I'm in the process of redoing many of those songs. Carolan's Ramble is one of the first.

I’ve listened to a few...they’re all very good.

@Marionville

County Antrim. I even found the passenger manifest from the ship The Harmony which arrived at the port of Philadelphia PA in 1811. Their names were John and Mary Hunter and they were a young married couple, both in their early twenties, born around 1790.

I suspect, although I have no proof, that THEIR ancestors might have come from Scotland and emigrated to Ireland. I say that because the Hunter family, dad's family, were serious Presbyterians and the surname HUNTER might be more Scottish than Irish. I'm just speculating though. Could be why I've always liked the sound of massed pipes...!

@TommyNIK I live only a few miles from County Antrim in East Tyrone, near the borders of Counties Londonderry and Antrim. There are a great number of Scottish family names in and around Co. Antrim, it was the main area where the Scots settled when they came over, and there is only a short sea crossing between the two countries. Hunter is indeed a Scottish name, and there are quite a number of families around here where I live with that surname. I have a close friend, whom I sing with, who was Hunter before her marriage..she’s Mary Louise, Mary Lou for short, and another friend’s daughter in law was Hunter too, before changing it on marriage, and yes they are all Presbyterians. The country Antrim accent is a bit more like the Scottish one, and they use a lot of the same Scots expressions and words...it’s known as Ulster Scots. We have loads of pipe bands here too, not just in Scotland, and in fact the current world champions at the moment are from around ten miles from here.