Artist – Étáin Collins
She Sings Her Song in May
Dunmanway Day Care Centre
She Sings Her Song in May is a recording project created by Arts for Health participants at Dunmanway Day Care Centre with musician Étáin Collins. Over 8 weeks from April to June, the group explored songs, sounds, and stories of spring and summer. Setting out to capture the essence of life in Dunmanway as the days grow longer and brighter each year, Étáin started by asking the Thursday morning group a number of questions.
Have you a story from this time of year?
Can you think of a song that feels like spring or summer?
What does the world sound like right now?
From this jumping off point, the group began to chat about the swallows returning to Ireland, birthdays in May, life on the farm in spring, and sharing news at the creamery. The following week, conversations moved on to road bowling, bonfires at the crossroads, and playing football. One participant shared a rhyme about the cuckoo returning to Ireland, and spoke about how it signified the start of summer. This became the perfect title for the final audio piece. In between stories, participants sang together as a group or shared a favourite song on their own.
Recording Begins
At the mid-point of the project, Étáin began recording each participant’s story. It was important to ensure that everyone who wanted to share something had the opportunity to do so. Étáin said of one recording session, ‘After the main group session, I did one story recording with a man who I hadn’t got to record yet. He gave a very detailed, beautiful and calming account of his life in London and spending summer evenings with friends. I was touched at how much he was happy to share.’
After some discussion, the group decided together which songs should be included. Each song had a connection to spring or summer. Two songs were sang by participants with Étáin. The rest were sang by everyone, with staff joining in and adding their voices to the mix. On the final week, the participants discussed what spring and summer sounds should be added to the soundscape to bring it to life. Étáin edited the stories, songs, and sounds together to create a 10 minute audio soundscape. She headed back to Dunmanway later in the summer to play the final piece for the group.
You can listen to She Sings Her Song in May on the Arts for Health SoundCloud page or at the link below!
Timeframe
This project took place from April to June 2024.
Testimonies
‘You’re a little breath of fresh air on a Thursday morning.’ – Day Care Centre Staff
‘We enjoy it so much, it makes our day.’ – Participant
This project was supported by Arts for Health Partnership Programme, West Cork.