Music and CatsSunday, May 22, 2005
Music for a Sunday morning
This morning I was at my computer, writing. Prairie Home Companion played on the radio, hovering at the periphery of my awareness. I hummed along when Shetland musicians Ale Möller and Aly Bain (one of my favorite fiddlers, with a pair of gorgeous icy blue eyes) played a couple of beautiful Shetland tunes that I knew, but I was focused on my writing.
A short while later, my mind briefly registered the sound of guitar chords. Then came a voice that demanded my attention, a woman's clear, pure voice singing:
A second female voice joined in, her close harmony floating just below the melody:
With the third verse came a third voice, weaving its way through the other two:
After an instrumental interlude, the three women's voices returned. The first line of this verse mirrored the beginning of the song, but the meaning of 'one voice' was dramatically different:
When the song ended, I was teary-eyed with joy, for both the beauty of the singing and the glorious hopefulness of the song.
These three Canadian singers - Ruth Moody (composer of One Voice), Nicky Mehta and Annabelle Chvostek - are known as the Wailin' Jennys. (Because their music thrills me, and I'm fond of that Texas Outlaw, I'll forgive them the horrible pun of their name.) If I didn't have a rehearsal this Thursday night for a gig at the Northwest Folklife Festival, Paul and I might well be taking a road trip up over the Canadian Border to see them perform in Nelson, BC. I think they'd be worth the trip.
You can listen to One Voice here.
A short while later, my mind briefly registered the sound of guitar chords. Then came a voice that demanded my attention, a woman's clear, pure voice singing:
This is the sound of one voice
One spirit, one voice
The sound of one who makes a choice
This is the sound of one voice.
A second female voice joined in, her close harmony floating just below the melody:
This is the sound of voices two
The sound of me singing with you
Helping each other to make it through
This is the sound of voices two.
With the third verse came a third voice, weaving its way through the other two:
This is the sound of voices three
Singing together in harmony
Surrendering to the mystery
This is the sound of voices three
This is the sound of all of us
Singing with love and the will to trust
Leave the rest behind it will turn to dust
This is the sound of all of us
After an instrumental interlude, the three women's voices returned. The first line of this verse mirrored the beginning of the song, but the meaning of 'one voice' was dramatically different:
This is the sound of one voice
One people, one voice
A song for every one of us
This is the sound of one voice
This is the sound of one voice
When the song ended, I was teary-eyed with joy, for both the beauty of the singing and the glorious hopefulness of the song.
These three Canadian singers - Ruth Moody (composer of One Voice), Nicky Mehta and Annabelle Chvostek - are known as the Wailin' Jennys. (Because their music thrills me, and I'm fond of that Texas Outlaw, I'll forgive them the horrible pun of their name.) If I didn't have a rehearsal this Thursday night for a gig at the Northwest Folklife Festival, Paul and I might well be taking a road trip up over the Canadian Border to see them perform in Nelson, BC. I think they'd be worth the trip.
You can listen to One Voice here.
