One of the more surprising musical discoveries in the last months, even if there are many I can’t introduce just for lack of time, is paradoxically (the paradox can lie in the fact we’ve mostly focused on experimental kinds of music along our days!) a record whose roots deeply lie in the traditions of Scottish music and culture, am ground where the talented Skye native smallpipes player Brìghde Chaimbeul found a fertile ground for awesome musical experiments. “Carry Them With Us” (launched in the middle of April by Glitterbeat Records) is her second album, which sounds like a feat of entrancing atmospheres, pipes-driven drones, and hooks to folk memories, where there’s also a mark left by the acclaimed Canadian saxophonist Colin Stetson on one track. Let’s get deeper into it with the answers of Brìghde!
Chain D.L.K.: Hi Brighde! How are you?
Brìghde Chaimbeul: I’m very well, thank you!
Chain D.L.K.: Firstly, I’d like to thank you, as listening to your sounds brought my mind back to one of the best journeys of my terrestrial life. I departed to Edinburgh to reach your astonishing island, Skye, passing and crossing Highlands and surrounding areas. I guess your connection with your native place played and keeps on playing an important role in your artistic, musical, and personal growth. Is it so? Any moments that are somehow related to Skye that you want to share with us that are somehow relevant?
Brìghde Chaimbeul: I think my connection to the Gaelic language is what is strongest through the music, and I guess with that comes a certain sense of place. Many Gaelic songs and stories talk about landscape with regard to a person or character belonging to an area. I would say that Pobaireachd Nan Eun has a strong relation to Skye. The track is inspired by a song called Guth an Fhithich Guth an Ein which is said to have been sung by a swan at Loch Chaluim Chille in the North of Skye. The loch was drained in the 1700s, but the footprint of it is still visible.
Chain D.L.K.: You also reprised the tradition of Scottish small pipes in your music. How did you start playing them?
Brìghde Chaimbeul: I played the Highland pipes since I was very young, and started playing the smallpipes around age 15 when I met Hamish and Fin Moore, renowned exponents and makers of the instrument. The initial revival of the Scottish smallpipes is down to Hamish Moore.
Chain D.L.K.: Any word about your masters and sources of inspiration?
Brìghde Chaimbeul: My main inspiration and starting point is most often field recordings and archive material of traditional songs and music, particularly from Gaelic heritage. I also feel strongly about passing on something which has lasted this long through history. I feel there is a depth to it that is so rich and valuable.
Chain D.L.K.: I read you earned prizes and performed on prestigious occasions. Do you think your “mission” of spreading these fascinating sounds accomplished yet?
Brìghde Chaimbeul: I don’t think I will put a limit on what can happen in the future.
Chain D.L.K.: You described your way of piping by mentioning droning and melody. Can you explain it in your own words?
Brìghde Chaimbeul: I like to arrange my music concentrated around the drones of the instrument. It is what makes the pipes unique and creates a trance-like atmosphere that brings out all the rich frequencies of the instrument. A lot of the time I choose melodies that I think bring out the best tone from the drones.
Chain D.L.K.: When you perform piping, what is the more critical aspect of reaching the best result: mind, soul, memory, or breathing?
Brìghde Chaimbeul: I think soul is important so that I can share the emotion of the music with the listeners, as well as express a part of myself in the performance.
Chain D.L.K.: Let’s get deeper into “Carry Them With Us”. Firstly, what’s the meaning of the title?
Brìghde Chaimbeul: The phrase Carry Them With Us comes from South Uist’s Iain Sheonaidh Smus, a man who was able to recite all the old tales from memory. If someone asked for one he didn’t want to tell at that moment he would say ‘I didn’t carry it with me’ – it’s the idea of carrying all the stories, the songs, the memories, and the people with us through time.
Chain D.L.K.: Get ready, as I’ll ask the meaning of many unknown aspects (mostly related to language!), to satisfy the intellectual hunger of our readers, as far as we can! Your album was described as an album of stories. For instance, I saw there are two tracks – “Crònan” and “Uguviu ” – that have been tagged as ‘i’ and ‘ii’. I surmise they are parts of one story/composition. Any word about that?
Brìghde Chaimbeul: I think a good way to describe it is two parts of the same story. Uguviu is inspired by the songs that were sung by mermaids in old Gaelic folklore to lure sailors and put them in a trance. Crònan is the Gaelic word for the sound of a drone. I think the drone is very effective in creating a trance-like atmosphere and so the perfect introduction to Uguviu.
Chain D.L.K.: The first time listeners can meet your voice on the album is on the entrancing “Pobaireachd Nan Eun”… this beautiful song is somehow related to swans, isn’t it? Also, your way of singing is an attempt of emulating them?
Brighde Chaimbeul: The track is inspired by a song called Guth an Fhithich Guth an Ein which is said to have been sung by a swan at Loch Chaluim Chille in the North of Skye. Often in folklore, the swans only sing before they pass away.
The vocal part of this track is based on “vocables” which imitate different native birds heard in Uist in the Outer Hebrides. I got this from an archival recording by Dmhnall Allan MacQueen who heard this from his father, who got it from the piper Dmhnall mac Iain ig. I wrote the melody I sang to use the vocables in the track. I wanted to use my voice as an added texture, as well as a nod to the longstanding connection between song and pipes.
Chain D.L.K.: Your music got labeled as experimental Celtic music… do you agree with such a way of describing it?
Brìghde Chaimbeul: Traditional music and material connected to my Gaelic heritage will always be a starting point for me, a major inspiration, and is where my roots are. I would say this is the Celtic part of it, as well as the roots of the instrument.
I like the description of experimental, I would say I will continue to explore as much as I can, including genres, collaborations, and composition.
Chain D.L.K.: Despite more or less experimental, one of the moments that immediately grabbed my mind was maybe one when a more traditional approach is evident – in the first part at least -, “S Mi Gabhail an Rathaid – I Take The Road”… any word about this song? Am I wrong in considering the first part closer to tradition?
Brìghde Chaimbeul: Yes, the melody at the beginning played with the Irish uilleann pipes is a combination of two old melodies which I got from a manuscript written in the 1700s of tunes gathered in the North Highlands of Scotland. The track is very much inspired by the uilleann pipes and thus the connection between Scotland and Ireland. The foundation of the track is carried by the regulators – a keyed part of the uilleann pipes which harmonizes with the melody. A pattern that initially starts with the regulators is then carried through to the end within Colin’s solo and the harmonium in the background.
Chain D.L.K.: I didn’t reveal in the second question that it was listening to the opening “The Call of the Redshank” that immediately pushed my mind back to that nice memory! Is it a potential reply to that call? Jokes aside, why did you decide to put that song as an opener?
Brìghde Chaimbeul: I think this track encapsulates the overall atmosphere and inspiration of the whole album. Also, tuning is a fundamental part of playing the pipes and even when I play live this is a part of my performance, so to open with a sound based on tuning I think makes sense!
Chain D.L.K.: A prestigious and widely appreciated musician like Colin Stetson joined the making of one of the most impressive songs of the album! Any word on it? Are you going to keep on collaborating in the near future?
Brìghde Chaimbeul: Working with Colin was amazing, I learned a lot, he is an extraordinary musician and if anyone has seen him play live you will know what I mean!
Chain D.L.K.: Are you going to bring your music on live stages in the forthcoming summer?
Brìghde Chaimbeul: Yes, I am playing across the UK, Ireland, and various European spots; all updated on my website and social media.
Chain D.L.K.: Any other work in progress?
Brìghde Chaimbeul: Yes, keep your eyes peeled…
Visit Brìghde Chaimbeul on the web:
https://www.brichaimbeul.com/