In my campus commentary, I will discuss one of Scotland's most skilled folk music groups: Breabach, and their performance at Duke Family Performance Hall in Davidson College on February 23rd. The band comprises the following members playing these instruments, who each shared some of their extensive instrument-playing experience and inspiring energy with the crowd. Megan Henderson, fiddler and vocalist, serenaded us with her powerful voice in Gaelic and English; James Lindsay, playing double bass and vocalist, brought a catchy, ongoing stable beat to the music with the bass. Additionally, Conal McDonagh and Calum MacCrimmon enthralled the crowd with their collective bagpiping and whistle skills. Finally, Ewan Robertson on the guitar brought a rhythmic light mood throughout the songs with the chords played.
Throughout the performance, the artists constantly referenced the release of their latest album Fàs, which means development and growth in Gaelic, and played multiple songs. They touched on the effects the pandemic had on them and Scotland and how they spent countless moments outside in the embrace of nature, which inspired them to include elements of it in their progressive pieces. Their main goal throughout the performance was to display how music can truly bring communities together, despite their race, ethnicity, and gender of choice. It can be used, as they did during covid, as an outlet and a way to express oneself as well as raise awareness for what they support and believe, which in this case is climate change and the effects of a constantly growing society that may forget to at times, find themselves in this changing world. Therefore, their message encouraged the audience to stop momentarily, take a breather, and enjoy life while living in the moment for a sustainable and fruitful future.
Their cheerful demeanor and how they expressed themselves by using music as means of joy and inspiration in their concert radiated throughout the audience. During many times of the performance, the group constantly engaged with the audience, encouraging them to clap to the beat, and afterward, based on many conversations I overheard on the way out of the room, the concert brought upon an atmosphere of peace, glee, and reflection amongst everyone, including myself.
This experience was the first of many more in the future that had to do with me watching a live performance and, in general terms, any live music concert. Throughout my life, I've been presented with folk music through many mediums, whether it be embedded in the soundtrack of a movie or tv show like for example, Braveheart, Anne with an E, and Lord of the Rings or written about in books. Seeing now firsthand how music affects not only the individual but collective communities as well is genuinely inspiring and give me hope for the impact it will leave on people in the future. Being in the same space as Breabach was a treat since one could feel the good intentions of the musicians playing the instruments being emitted within the crowd. It's also interesting to me the way in which people relate to music lyrics based on personal experiences, and as I listened to this group, it definitely gave me the chance to do so. Gaelic songs, upon doing more research, are very closely related to nature and its direct, yet indirect, correlation with the human spirit and its intricacies. In addition, it is also said to have many hidden meanings, but what makes it even more remarkable is the fact that the rhythm and lyrics may have a completely different significance varying by the individual and what experiences led them to have that particular interpretation of the song. The song "Birds of Passage" touched me since it concerned birds and their humble search for a sanctuary. I saw parallelism in the song in that all, if not most humans, spend our lives looking for sanctuary, our future home. Whether it be a physical, mental or metaphorical one, the journey in finding a home and oasis or more than one in one's lifetime, is what makes life worth living.
