Our Song of the Day comes from Dónal Lunny’s latest collaboration Atlantic Arc which involves 8 top musicians from Ireland and Scotland including Aidan O’Rourke on fiddle (recently interviewed here), Sharon Howley on cello, Davie Ryan on drums, Ewen Vernal on bass, Graham Henderson on keyboards, Jarlath Henderson on vocals, guitars pipes and whistles, Pádraig Rynne on concertina, Pauline Scanlon on vocals, and of course – Dónal Lunny himself on bouzouki and guitar.
Watch the accompanying video for their new single ‘My Son David’ which was recorded at Malbay Studios Ireland and filmed by Alan Doherty of ALDOC Productions.
The single, My Son David, was recorded over a full day in Malbay Studios County Clare, engineered by Martin O’Malley. The song is a dark murder ballad and a conversation between a mother and her son. It is a variant of the song “Edward” associated with the singing of Jeannie Robertson from Scotland. The track features the vocals of Atlantic Arc’s two distinctly expressive singers, Pauline Scanlon and Jarlath Henderson.
Although the musicians arrived in studio with the basic plan for the song, the band’s natural chemistry soon sparked off and the arrangement eventually shaped into the song as you hear it now. Plans to record a full album had to be shelved last year due to the Covid crisis:
“For the past year, Covid restrictions have made it impossible for us to meet and rehearse. However, we sustain the determination to record our music because of the creative chemistry that makes this combination of artists very special. So we have decided to launch a Kickstarter campaign to fund our debut album. It will enable us to come together long enough to record an album that will capture the unique spirit of the music which we love. We have been working remotely, writing and collecting fresh material, and we’re hoping to rehearse together before recording in early summer. Please see our website for further details. Our Kickstarter will be launched on 13th April.” Donal Lunny
A lot of care has been taken with the arrangements which you can clearly hear from the opening. The light brushstrokes of Dónal’s guitar and Pádraig’s concertina really allow Pauline’s vocals to shine. There are some beautiful sweeping touches throughout with Davie Ryan’s gentle percussion and a gorgeous combination of Graham Henderson’s keys, Sharon Howley’s cello and Aidan O’Rourke’s fiddle which enrich this backdrop with gentle sways as Jarlath Henderson’s Low whistles provide intuitively placed accents. When Jarlath joins Pauline on vocals we enter the sublime, it’s an outstanding single that should be enough encouragement for you all to jump onboard and support this project.
Atlantic Arc is a collaborative ensemble of renowned traditional musicians and singers from Ireland, Northern Ireland and Scotland, under the musical direction of Dónal Lunny, one of Ireland’s most accomplished performers, composers and producers.
Having formed in 2016 for a series of one-off shows, including Cork Folk Festival and Celtic Connections, the members discovered a shared interest in further exploring and cultivating contemporary expressions of traditional music. “ The heart of this music is found in the Celtic countries along the arc of the Atlantic seaboard, from the west of Ireland to the coast of Galicia and expressing it in fresh ways that link it into contemporary music” Donal Lunny.
Atlantic Arc invites you to be a patron of the collective, enabling the collective to fulfil its musical vision, and make it available to listeners at home and around the world.
Full details of the patron rewards are available on the band’s website: https://atlanticarcmusic.com/
Pre-order the debut album: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/donallunny/atlanticarc
Download the single on bandcamp: https://atlanticarc.bandcamp.com/releases