Eoghan Ó Ceannabháin & Ultan O’Brien – Solas an Lae
Watercolour Music – 5 November 2020
The more you look into sean-nós, through the media, through the artists and through academic research, the more you realise that a great debate continues as to what makes it what it is. The dictionary definition will have it as ‘old-custom or traditional manner’, which infers for some the use of the term as a catch-all for Irish singing, whereas some may attach it to a very ornamented style of vocals, usually unaccompanied; and others may yet refer to the style of song as well as the presentation, particularly the air and the lament.
For Lorcán Mac Mathuna, writing for Folk Radio UK in 2010 (read the full article here), sean-nós “is something of a niche within a niche within a niche” and thus the term means something more specific the further down the rabbit-hole you travel. It is not just the song, nor just the ornamentation (if there is any) nor the language, but all this and more. It could also include the melding of the words and the tune. There is no need to understand the words, in one sense, in order to understand the beauty of the song, the integral role of the tune doing this for you. And even with these specifics, as Lorcán points out, there are differences between the styles to be found in the South and the West of Ireland.
So where does that leave us? We must beware of glibly using terms that can mean something very different to other people. Having said that, sean-nós does seem to be thriving. It never ceases to amaze me how beacons of light pop-up to show that all is well and that traditional music is moving forward and is very happy with that state of affairs. The latest one to my ears is Solas an Lae – The Light of The Day by Eoghan Ó Ceannabháin & Ultan O’Brien. Eoghan’s voice is a rich tenor that has so much power he must permanently keep the throttle back, with great control. Meanwhile the fiddle of Ultan is the perfect partner, moving seamlessly from accompanying voice, to foil, to driver.
You don’t have to travel too far into the album to pick up most of these points. The relatively jolly tune An Sceilpín Draighneach has elements of ornamentation that some may look for in true sean-nós (though see above!) but it is not over the top and in fact subtly adds colour and depth to the words. The violin is the second voice, the backing singer in places, interaction and interplay between voice and instrument at the very heart of the pair’s work and laid out perfectly for all to hear.
Don’t get too carried away by the jollity though. There are some serious and seriously sad songs on here, things of beauty and pathos, grist to the sean-nós mill. Tá na páipéir dhásaighneáil, is such a song. As one might expect, these songs have roots, often deep roots, in more troubled times but still create an impact now on the memory, on the collective and individual psyche. Here the drummers of Gael are heading overseas with the other soldiers, and the bride-to-be, whose wedding-dress has yet to be spun, is lamenting that she will surely die from her loss. The tale is a sad one and Eoghan’s voice drags us into the lamentation, the tune as much as the words feeding us the dread, the desolation and the impending doom felt by the young woman.
Following a bright interlude with a set of traditional tunes called Spikey Flynn, comes Òran A’ Cheannaiche, an air with more than a puff of lament about it. Not surprising really, I suppose, as this is an instrumental version of another poignant song, adapted by Ultan from the singing of Mary Ann Kennedy. After this Caisleán an Óir lets the heart brighten and the feet tap.
And then we confront All Our Lonely Ghosts. The lonely ghosts are not only the women and children that suffered under Catholic Ireland whose stories of mistreatment have recently begun to come to light. The lonely ghosts are still here and in modern Ireland they are to be found in direct provision centres for asylum seekers or in family hubs for the homeless. But these are not just Irish ghosts. Every country has their own, whether it was last century long-stay mental hospitals for having a child out of wedlock, or now, with detention centres where asylum seekers are criminalised, not helped. This is a powerful song. The tradition doing what it does best – and here in English. No bones about its content, singing to a wider audience.
One of the many attractive aspects of this album is the balance between light and dark. As in life, as in the tradition. The tune medley of Máirseáil na Sióg/Johnny from Grandsey/Rip the Calico lightens the heart again and demonstrates the Irish version of vocalise or scat singing, the diddling or lilting, the voice as instrument.
So, if we were looking for a contemporary rendition of sean-nós, then I would suggest that there would be no better place to start than here. Solas an Lae is the complete package, the tune and the words and the presentation together encompassing the emotional tales of the tragedy of life. To me, this is what makes sean-nós what it is. And here it is being continued, and continually worked on by young artists. The importance of the tradition is to recognise that it is not a static beast but one that keeps moving, branching, embracing. And singing about the issues that matter, great and small. Excellent.
Solas an Lae is out now (Digital/Vinyl) via Bandcamp – https://eoghanultan.bandcamp.com/album/solas-an-lae-the-light-of-the-day
Editors Notes:
Folk Opera Album Launch
In celebration of their album launch, Eoghan and Ultan decided upon creating a digital Folk Opera as opposed to a live stream concert, in order to convey the ideas behind Solas an Lae, and to include some of the collaborators on this album – namely visual artist and musician Ruth Clinton, and producer and sound-artist Nick Turner, who both created visuals and music videos for the opera.
“We felt the whole process of creating this album was an escape for us – a musical escape from the overwhelm. Things can get on top of you – music is the great escape. It lifts off the bridles and anchors the world puts on us; lifts up the door’s latch. Since we recorded this, life has grown heavier for many people, for many different reasons. We hope this music can help fling off a bit of the weight and help people breathe a little bit easier” says Ultan.
Eoghan adds: “The Digital Folk Opera reflects this escapism, as we ramble about Dublin within our 5km-covid-restricted-radius, spanning Dublin’s Grand Canal to Sandymount Strand and hitting parts of the River Liffey in between.
The vast expanse of Sandymount Strand, with the ESB towers marking the skyline to the North East, the quiet bubble of canal benches while traffic and sirens spin around you, the neon lights of the IFSC intruding onto a contemplative moment on Sean O’Casey Bridge –
These stop-offs provide a breath of calm within the city, although the surroundings never sink away entirely.”
The duo filmed at these locations early in the morning attempting to catch the first light of the day, Solas an Lae.
Order the album: https://eoghanultan.bandcamp.com/album/solas-an-lae-the-light-of-the-day
Dig deeper…
Watch the Film – Song of Granite (you may recognise some of the punters in one scene as members of Lankum during a gorgeous song from Lisa O’Neill). It’s the biopic from acclaimed filmmaker Pat Collins (Silence) and it charts the rise of traditional Irish folk singer Joe Heaney, and how the songs of his west of Ireland childhood helped shape his complex character.