With this arrangement I wanted to explore the solace that can be found in a simple melody, raw, bare and exposed as it stands alone, and contrast it with the warm sense of unity that familiar melodies like this bring, a sense of connection to something wider. When I recorded this, we were still in the grips of isolation and lockdown. I felt a deep sense of solidarity to both our global human community and the natural world around us. The original title for this melody, ‘Fáinne Geal an Lae,’ is often translated as ‘The Dawning of the Day’—but it more literally means ‘the bright ring of the day’. This melody will always make me think of those dark days at the end of last February when I first performed this song. Snow still sat on the mountains around my home, and the first birds of spring were tentatively opening their mouths, and it felt like there was a bright ring of hope on the horizon. This simple melody was a signpost, showing us that we are not alone in this difficult situation.
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