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Skylark Productions: folk and traditional cds and songbooks

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"More-or-less traditional music of the Northern Hemisphere and the Previous Millennium"

Skylark Productions was begun by Pat Sky when he was making field recordings of fiddlers and Irish pipers and whistle players in Ireland. (This was his logo.)

Skylark Productions LogoHe made quite a few well-regarded cassettes (yes, cassettes) but later lost interest and gave his business to me. I have used it ever since as an umbrella organization for the compact discs and songbooks produced by my friends and me.

You can go directly to our website if you like: Skylark Productions: acoustic folk music. Or stick around here and learn a little more about us.

Welcome to our world.

These recordings and songbooks are made by musicians in central North Carolina; we have loved each other and worked together for decades.

Skylark Productions compact discs




Click anywhere in the box to be taken to the Skylark productions site where you can read the track lists and hear more samples than I can provide here.

Rag Faire by the Pratie Heads

British Isles, Celtic, early American, Yiddish, Mexican, and Swedish music (and some originals)

Bob Vasile and Jane Peppler (that's us, the Pratie Heads) made this recording in 2006 when we started performing together again after an 18 year break. I think it's great, but then, I am very proud of ALL our recordings. See what you think.
Rag Faire: Music from the British Isles & Beyond

Rag Faire: Music from the British Isles & Beyond

Amazon Price: $6.99 (as of 05/31/2012)Buy Now

Steve Winick of Dirty Linen magazine wrote, back in the day: "The Pratie Heads were their state's premiere performers of British Isles traditional music ... they have made some of the best Celtic, English, and early American folk music available in recorded form. They have picked beautiful, uncommon songs to play, have thoroughly researched tunes and texts to produce the best possible versions, and have lovingly and impeccably arranged them. And still it emerges as spontaneous, joyful music - it's a rare gift they have."

Into the West, Berayna, Monymusk x 4, Sea Duck/Thirty Year Jig, Frozen Girl, Jamestown Homeward Bound, Bagira's Walk, Mayn Shvester Khaye, Strings in the Earth and Air, New Land/Toda Una Vida, Boutros the Cat, Daichovo Horo, Rag Fair, Siete modos de guisar las berenjenas, Old Songs/John Roy Lyall's Air, Bonny Ship the Diamond/Willafjord, Rosehill Reel, Lord Franklin

All the Skylark Productions songbooks

Click on any book to see it at Createspace (they ship very quickly!)


The TJC Hanukah Songbook More information


The Triangle Jewish Chorale Songbook More information


The Three Log Night Songbook: uncommon music for the holiday season (Christmas and Hanukkah) More information


Let Memory Keep Us All (the Solstice Assembly songbook) More information


The Laduvane Songbook (women's slavic a cappella (Balkan) music More information


Songs Anyone Can Sing More information

Sedgefield Fair: more-or-less traditional songs from Scotland and England

Jane Peppler, Jacqueline Schwab, and Robbie link play folk music from the British Isles

This might be my favorite child among all my recordings.
Sedgefield Fair: More-or-less traditional songs from England & Scotland

Sedgefield Fair: More-or-less traditional songs from England & Scotland

Amazon Price: $6.99 (as of 05/31/2012)Buy Now

The songs are incredibly romantic, Jacqueline Schwab (she is the pianist on many of Ken Burns shows and plays with the English Country dance band "Bare Necessities") is a genius, and Robbie played his heart out too. We didn't live in the same state and were never able to tour to support the album but I still love it and am very proud of it.

Lenses on interesting ballads and songs found on our recordings.

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"We Did It! Songs of People Behaving Badly."

by the Pratie Heads

Bob and I made this in 2008; it was a true labor of love. It was originally going to be all murder ballads (some of them are surprisingly up-tempo and cheery) with fiddle tunes to lighten the mix, but we relented and recording songs about some of the other deadly sins as well. We were looking for an intimate, casual feel - as if we were in your house gossiping about something awful we heard from the neighbor...

"Songs Anyone Can Sing," my newest (and oldest) songbook

First edition of this book was about 20 years ago. This brand-new one compiles the most successful songs from 25 years of teaching "Songs for Non-Singers"
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"World Music our Way" by Mappamundi

Mappamundi (Jane Peppler, Beth Holmgren, Ken Bloom, Jim Baird, and at that time Robbie Link) made this recording in the mid 1990s and we probably won't make another. It's bursting with interesting songs from all over the place - starting with a Bulgarian song about a beautiful girl on a swing. Her boyfriend comes and says her parents have given him permission to marry her, but she says she won't marry him because she's in love with Ivor, the grocery boy.

Triangle Jewish chorale songbooks

Traditional and composed music for 2- to 4-voice choirs (SATB) in simple but luscious arrangements in Hebrew, Yiddish, Ladino, and English. A high school chorus could easily sing these arrangements and it would bring diversity to their programs.
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"Courting Disaster: Centuries of Failed Love Songs"

Beth Holmgren and Jane Peppler made this recording in 1991, when they were living on opposite coasts and didn't know if they'd ever be in the same time zone again. As it turned out, a couple years later Beth got a job at UNC - she is now Chairman of the Slavic Languages department at Duke University - and they've been singing together ever since. I love Beth. This is sort of an anti-wedding cd I fear.

The musicians who made those recordings play together at festivals, concerts, workshops - but we would really like to be playing more weddings. Weddings are the best. Everybody's in a good mood and if there aren't a lot of people there it's not our fault. If you know someone planning a wedding in North Carolina, South Carolina, or Virginia, please send them our way!

My first Squidoo lens, and a recent one.

I'm hoping that brides and grooms from North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia who are in the mood for something a little different, from a more elegant world, or a more down-home world, who want to honor an ethnic heritage whether it's Jewish or Scottish or Irish or Polish or Hispanic, will think of us.
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Songs and tunes for weddings

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From my "hobby" wedding music blogs

Sugar Flowers for wedding cakes | wedding cakes De...

Sugar Flowers for wedding cakes | wedding cakes Decoration Wedding cake is not only the main centerpiece of the wedding but they represent the happiness of the newly wed couple. Wedding planning not...

May 20, 2012 @ 1:09 am rss

Cake Search ? Looking For Vancouver Wedding Cakes

Cake Search – Looking For Vancouver Wedding Cakes So you are getting married and want to find the best cake for the big day, go online and check out the bakeries as to what they have to offer...

May 15, 2012 @ 1:09 am rss

Wedding Towel Cake

Wedding Towel Cake   You can choose any color you want or towel that the bride and groom want. White towels with a little pressure on them a really nice wedding towel cakes. They are the first...

May 10, 2012 @ 1:09 am rss

Wedding Anniversary Cakes

Wedding Anniversary Cakes Couples generally go in for the wedding anniversary cakes which are replicas of their wedding cakes. This helps them to relive those beautiful moments since they time they...

May 1, 2012 @ 1:09 am rss

Making Wedding Cakes

Making Wedding Cakes   Finally, a skilled cake designer makes a lasting impact on visitors. His business card is required by many if the taste is exceptional!   You have to be a creative artist to a...

Apr 20, 2012 @ 1:09 am rss

Most unique wedding cakes

Most unique wedding cakes A wedding cake, the traditional cake served to the guests at a wedding reception, was originated from Roman Empire. At that time, it was a loaf of bread that the groom brok...

Apr 15, 2012 @ 1:09 am rss

Ubiquitously Delicious Wedding Cakes

Ubiquitously Delicious Wedding Cakes It is impossible to go to a wedding and not find wedding cakes as a centre piece. It is always highlighted by a specifically designed platform; to elevate it fro...

Apr 10, 2012 @ 1:09 am rss

Cherry Blossom Wedding Cake

Cherry Blossom Wedding Cake Choosing the Cherry Blossom as the theme of your wedding is beautiful in many ways. In symbolism – as in the beauty and briefness of life, as well as the belief tha...

Apr 5, 2012 @ 1:09 am rss

Beach themed wedding cakes

Beach themed wedding cakes Among the most populated destination weddings, beach motif wedding gains a lot of reputation recently. Besides beach wedding dresses, beach theme wedding cake is a unique...

Mar 25, 2012 @ 1:09 am rss

Our Celtic wedding music

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And finally...

A few more music lenses...

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"Some Assembly Required" by the Solstice Assembly

Amazon can't seem to find the correct cover image for this one. It's great.

"Under the Drawbridge" by the Solstice Assembly

Margot Adler of NPR interviewed me showcasing this recording, can you believe it! They played tons of cuts, it was a long interview. But - it was before the days of the internet (yes, it was) and they GOT OUR CONTACT INFORMATION WRONG at NPR and so when people called them asking, "What was that music," they couldn't find out! For years and years people would eventually find me and write frustrated notes saying, "I've been trying to find you for years." What a wasted opportunity! Oh well.

What do you think? Would you hire us? Would you spend 89 cents to download one of our songs?

  • AddaptAbilities Sep 17, 2010 @ 1:18 pm | delete
    When I'm not broke, I'd prefer to have your music on CD so it's of recording quality is better than an MP3 :)
  • Heather426 Nov 20, 2009 @ 2:57 pm | delete
    amazing lens! 5* and angel blessed.
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Striving away in my obscure corner of the musical kingdom...

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ChapelHillFiddler

Musician in Chapel Hill with two bands: Mappamundi, a world music - klezmer - swing band, and the Pratie Heads, a Celtic - British Isles - early music... more »

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