Here's a list of some of my favorite music, in no order:

• Punch Brothers

  These guys were hugely influential to me. My father introduced them to me, and the first time I tried listening to them, I wasn't really into their music. The next time I tried, I was absolutely blown away. Their musicianship, composition, and genre stewardship are all fantastic.
  • Julep - music doesn't get much better than this
  • Reptilia
  • Another New World
  • Moonshiner

• SPEAK

  I love this band so much. I wish they were still going. I never got to see them play, but at least they made my favorite album. I love the vocals, the instrumentals, the production, the writing.
  • 81 (the acoustic version)
  • PEAKS
  • Be Reasonable, Diane
  • Weiss + This Much I Know

• We Are Castor

  I've always loved their music. They are endlessly inventive, but so far, DOEP is definitely their most mature. Their use of samples is unparalleled, their grooves are driving, and they inspire me to make braver music.
  • Walk
  • La Baleine (La Plus Solitaire Du Mond)
  • Guns and Wolves
  • Karen Dalton - Something on Your Mind, WAC Edit
  • Inspiration II

• David Surette

  He was my teacher, and without him I would never have become the musician and person that I am now. He created a community which shaped my life and my family. He leaves behind not only his music but the music of hundreds that learned from him. I will never be able to express the depth of gratitude I have to him, so I can only hope to pay it forward.

• Madeleine Stewart

  Madeleine is my sister, and just so happens to be a fantastic musician. She also benefited from David's instruction and community. We had a band together for a while, but she made the jump to study music in Scotland, and become a professional fiddler. I am grateful for every opportunity that I have to play and work with her, and in the meantime, to listen to her music. She has several excellent projects, another one of which is the Peanut Gallery, a duo with Rufus Huggan, and yet another being the Routes Quartet, with the addition of David Lombardi and Emma Tomlinson.

• Martyn Bennett

  Another musician who pushed me to understand the vastness of possibility.

• Martin Hayes and The Gloaming

  Martin's fiddle playing is so good that very good fiddlers are tired of people trying to sound like him. He has a fluidity and range of motion and expression that makes for a gorgeous music. Martin's playing with Dennis Cahill is also legendary.

• Noel Hill

  When I set about learning concertina, I looked for guidance. Noel is a distant star that I can steer to. His playing has a wonderful life to it.

• Villager

  This guy is way too good. He has otherworldly production and the excellent musicality needed to lend that talent meaning. Some truly excellent tracks of his of the past are missing now.

• Chris Fisher-Lochhead - Vatic Lullaby

  This song was a lightningbolt to me. I got to study with him for a while, and learned a lot.

• Elis Regina - Como Nossos Pais

  I want to learn this song, but the language barrier makes it very difficult for me. I will one day succeed. Elis's voice is incredibly forceful and beautiful.

• Chico Buarque and Milton Nascimento - Calice

  Written by Gilberto Gil. Milton Nascimento is one of my favorite voices, and Chico's wonderful too. This song is always pertinent and always heartbreaking. Intensely powerful. Speaking of Bituca,

• Milton Nascimento - Travessia

  Monumental song.

• Rura - The New Yorker

  This has a special association for me - it was what I would listen to to try and perk up in the morning on the way to high school. It always worked - it's a work of reckless optimism.

• Liz Knowles and Kieran O'Hare - The B Set

  Listen to the gorgeous, victorious hum.

• An Buailteoir Aerach / The Enchanted Lady / The Holy Land - Mick O'Brien and Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh

  Another banger. Check out the whole album.

• Paul Brady

  Paul Brady is a huge part of my understanding of Irish music, but also branched out significantly, with great success. I think all of his work is great.
  • Mary and the Soldier - accompanied by Andy Irvine and Donal Lunny, both titans in their own right.
  • If you can tolerate the awful buzz in this one, it's my favorite performance of Arthur McBride, a great song.
  • Nobody Knows

• Andy Irvine

  Here he is as well.
  • The Longford Weaver - my favorite of his works. The ending is incredible.
  • As I Roved Out - a beautiful, bittersweet song.
  • The Blacksmith - an incredible demonstration of ability, and a great song.

• Ian Stephenson

  Ian is a multi-instrumentalist of great power - so much so that I encountered and learned to love his music twice without realizing it was the same person. He has a SoundCloud, on which he has posted some gorgeous music on accordion, piano, mandolin, smallpipes, etc. He is also the guitarist for KAN, a band whose music I love deeply.
  • Return from Helsinki, one of my absolute favorite tunes. An instant classic.
  • In the Bleak Midwinter, a gorgeous performance and arrangement.
  • Noble_, by KAN.
  • 1, 2, 3, by KAN.

I am, of course, missing quite a bit that has mattered a great deal to me. However, this has taken plenty of time already, so I will stop for now.