Dennis Rahm goes One-on-One with Geoffrey Castle

Story and Interview by Dennis Rahm; photo by Jenna Rahm; YouTube Performance courtesy of Geoffrey Castle

Geoffrey Castle’s Celtic Christmas, featuring guests from the Seattle Opera and the Seattle Irish Dance Company, will be presented this Friday evening (12/20) at the Chelan Performing Arts Center. Castle, widely considered to be a violin virtuoso, will also bring his holiday show to Leavenworth on Saturday night and to Moses Lake on Sunday.

The Friday night show will mark the second appearance by Castle in the Lake Chelan Valley this year. He also performed in May at the Deep Water Amphitheater at Mill Bay Casino. It was during the May show in Manson that I was able to sit down for an interesting and wide ranging interview with the talented musician who embraces many styles and genres of music including classical, Celtic, jazz, blues, country and rock.

Castle explained that as a child he began playing orchestral and classical music before his involvement in other styles, even once playing in a Greek Flamenco rock band. His goal as he got older was to reinvent the violin to sound like an electric guitar and acknowledged that the late Jimi Hendrix was his primary musical influence. Says Castle, “I have been doing stuff that nobody expects a violin player to do”.

Castle’s enormous skill has given him the opportunity to share the stage with several of the most successful rock bands and musicians in the business, including many who are members of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He also has a childhood connection to actor/musician Dermot Mulroney.

During our visit last May, Castle was happy to discuss his musical background and influences.

Give a listen and find out why he chose to reinvent his instrument and take a less traveled musical path. He also talks about why he likes to find different ways and places that he can insert the violin musically and still have it work.

“A friend of mine played violin and he got out of class. I wanted to get out of class…” – Geoffrey Castle

During my visit with Castle, we both shared stories about how hearing a certain song from your past can trigger vivid memories. There’s an acronym for this occurrence, called MEAMS, which stands for Music Evoked Autobiographical Memories. Like a musical version of a time machine, a song from our past can transport us back to a specific time and place.

I have experienced this phenomenon personally, as have many others I know. One time I heard a deep cut from a Led Zeppelin album that immediately took me back to sitting with friends in my car during the summer of 1969 as we looked up in the sky and talked about the first moon landing. This memory was extremely detailed and came out of nowhere until triggered by a few notes of music.

There have been several studies exploring the link between music and memory, some even looking at ways to develop therapeutic options that may aid those who struggle with dementia and depression.

Castle hopes his music brings joy in the moment and evokes happy memories to listeners around the world.

For more information about his performance schedule and musical ideology, follow Castle online at GeoffreyCastle.com 

Geoffrey Castle in Concert