Tuesday 17 February 2009

Tradition: pancakes

In the UK, there is a much-loved tradition of making and eating pancakes on Shrove Tuesday, which falls between February 2 and March 9 each year, depending on the date for Easter. In 2009, Shrove Tuesday falls on 24 February. Shrove Tuesday ('shrove' stems from old English word 'shrive', meaning 'confess all sins') is the day before Lent.

According to Christian beliefs, Lent commemorates Jesus' 40 days in the wilderness, and observant Christians mark this period by fasting. So Shrove Tuesday was cleverly invented to use up the ingredients that were given up for Lent - milk, butter and, particularly, eggs - which may not be eaten again until Easter.

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Monday 16 February 2009

Music from England: Kate Rusby

Kate Rusby was born on December 4, 1973 in Sheffield. She is an English folk singer and songwriter from Penistone, South Yorkshire. She has headlined various British national folk festivals, and is regarded as one of the most famous English folk singers of contemporary times. In 2001 The Guardian described her as "a superstar of the British acoustic scene." In 2007 the BBC website described her as "The first lady of young folkies". She is one of the few folk singers to have been nominated for the Mercury Prize.
Her official website at http://www.katerusby.com/


Tuesday 10 February 2009

St Valentine's Day

Romantic festival of St Valentine's Day is celebrated with enthusiasm and fond regard in several countries around the world. Most commonly observed Valentine's Day tradition and custom is expressing one's love with an exchange of cards, flowers and gifts. Pampering one's beloved and making a romantic proposal to one's sweetheart is the other popular tradition of the festival that celebrates love.

In the beginning, Valentine's Day was associated with romantic couples only but in recent times the festival is seen in much larger perspective. Now, people take opportunity of the day to wish ‘Happy Valentine's Day' to anyone they love be it father, mother, teachers, siblings, friends, co-workers or just anyone special to them. The idea behind this tradition is to celebrate love, get love and give love to everyone around us.



Thursday 5 February 2009

Music from Scotland: Amy MacDonald

Amy Macdonald was born on 25 August 1987 in Bishopbriggs, Scotland and she is a Scottish singer-songwriter. She is a self-taught musician and started to play her father's guitar after being inspired by Travis at the T in the Park Festival in 2000, where she heard Travis' song "Turn" and wanted to play it herself. Macdonald started her trade at various pubs and coffee houses in and around Glasgow at the age of 15.


Monday 2 February 2009

Music from the USA: The Killers

The Killers are an American synth rock band from Las Vegas, Nevada. Formed in 2002, the group consists of Brandon Flowers (vocals, keyboards), Dave Keuning (guitar, vocals), Mark Stoermer (bass guitar, vocals) and Ronnie Vannucci Jr. (percussion, drums). Part of the post-punk revival movement, The Killers draw influence from music styles of the 1980s and 1990s.