It takes a village to rear a song
A gorgeous African custom where a village community embraces a newborn child through song informs the centrepiece to an eagerly anticipated concert by Claire Crehan.
The Mullahoran based composer, pianist and singer brings ‘In Conversation With Beauty’ to the Ramor Arts Centre on Sunday, May 11. At the show’s core is ‘Suantraí a Chroí, or lullaby from the heart’, a song she penned for her son. It was inspired by an African tradition practised at childbirth.
“All the women in the village would gather with the pregnant woman and listen for the child’s song, and they would receive the song,” explains Claire during a break in rehearsals at the Ramor’s studio. “When the child was born the first thing the child heard was this song. Then at every initiation the song was sung.
“The reason for the song was if for any reason, somebody goes astray in their life then rather than punishing them, they bring them back into the village and they sing the song so that they remember who they are.”
Claire received support from Cavan Arts Office to develop the project, but its gestation took longer than expected. Initially she planned to have a classical choir perform it, but that “just didn’t feel right”.
She enlisted the help of her close friend, soprano Eileen Coyle and wrote a number of pieces for the Cavan native, and then sought a male accompaniment.
“I was saying last October that I keep hearing a male voice but I don’t know who he is. I haven’t met him. It was you,” she beams across to Daithí O’Connor, the folk singer, better known as Dotts O’Connor. The fateful moment came during a soundcheck for a Drumlinia event.
“Something inside said, that’s the voice! I love the combination of Eileen’s voice, you’re very pure,” she says to the Ballymachugh native beside her. “Eileen bridges heaven and earth, and Dotts, you’re of the land - it’s very raw I love the authenticity of your voice because it’s just who you are. The landscape sings through him.”
Dotts readily admits that this project “is quite new for me”.
“I come from a folk, traditional background, so I’m pushing myself to the limit with this. When Claire gave us the individual parts, you’re not hearing it, but when it all comes together, it’s amazing.”
Genre-wise, Claire says it’s “difficult to pin down” as her background embraces everything from trad to cabaret to jazz to tango.
Eileen suggests it’s “sort of world music - but not wishy washy”.
Although Claire has penned the compositions, she seeks the other musicians’ input in the moment to create an authentic performance.
“You’re in tune with the people on stage and music that wouldn’t be possible on your own comes in because of the constellation of people who are there.”
Eileen volunteers: “It’s spacious, there’s room left over for the people to be creative.”
With improvisation comes a degree of jeopardy.
“When things fall apart is when people stop listening to each other,” Claire says, coining a phrase that could apply to every sphere of life from the African village to the White House.
She distinguishes between “improvising from a place of wanting to be heard”, as opposed to the “purity” of “listening to the space, and responding to each other” .
“If I’m playing and I suddenly think I want people to hear what I’m doing because it’s impressive then I know that I’ve just lost presence and it’s going to go to shit,” says Claire.
“It’s hard not to do that” Eileen responds, and switches into an onstage internal monologue “‘Oh that was cool wasn’t it?’ It’s not cool after that!”
Claire recalls a transcendent moment of improvising a solo in a live performance on a grand piano.
“During it my whole body went on fire and I actually started to cry with joy.”