The Goo 1
ADHAMH O’CAOIMH Interview MAR-APR 24 It took me a
long time to realize I could just do it myself . To have the confidence to do that. A surprisingly simple answer, but it’s why Mary Barnecutt, noted educator, composer, curator and cellist put together the unique and enchanting Like Water. This is an awful thing to say. I was playing with a male singer/songwriter who had a lot of self confidence and I just thought, I could probably do that. But there’s a huge difference between having an idea to do something and actually creating the time. A creative project is almost more difficult psychologically than anything else. Particularly if you have a classical background, I think, as that kind of upbringing can be very critical, and it’s quite difficult to do anything creative when you have that critical voice in your head. Tell me about the recording of ‘Like Water’. Was it all written out beforehand or in the moment? I read you tracked the bulk of it in Sonic Studios, in Stoneybatter. With Ber Quinn, he produced it! He’s fab. I love him. I had a great time with Ber, he’s very open and experienced. I could say things like “I’d love a French Horn on that part”, and he would suddenly provide one. Brian Walsh [Inni-K] played drums and percussion. I love his work. It’s completely different, making little sound worlds in the corner. I was enthralled with what he did. My sister, Kathrine Barnecutt, played viola, she’s a really great improviser and player. Aisling Ennis is a phenomenal harpist. You can throw anything at her and it will sound beautiful. And how did the process for composing the material begin? I wrote most of these songs on my cello. Just improvisations that I liked, that I would record on my phone. Life is quite hectic, so once a year I try to take a week to myself to bring together everything I have in my notepads, and on voice memos. These are the challenges when you’re working, or when you’re a mother, or trying to do lots of things at the same time. It’s a rare and beautiful thing to have that ability that comes from lifelong learning, paired with the curiosity and bravery to express yourself creatively. It’s making for very compelling music, but fiercely individual. I see it more these days, in contemporary composers like Zoë Keating, Naomi Berrill, and Abel Selacoe, the latter of whom you’ve had playing at the Spike Cello Festival. Can you tell me about that? Maybe we’ll get to the point where the cello is just another accompanying instrument. I founded the Spike Cello Festival in 2016 with Lioba Petrie. It’s very much a two person operation. We were both noodling around doing forms of cello, and we had a little chat one day in Simon’s Café and we thought that it would be really nice to get all these people together for a weekend, try and bring a couple of people over. We’ve held six festivals over the past 8 years. I found the lyrical content of the album incredibly beautiful. What inspires you, and who have you been reading? MARY & THE PIGEONS For me, it’s about the sound of words as well as their meaning, and how that fits together. Paula Meehan, who I did a class with, is a huge inspiration as a person, as a poet, as a human being. The way she reads is incredibly musical and lyrical. And the incredible shows you run at the Hugh Lane Gallery, how did you get involved in those? That’s one of the jobs I really love. It’s been running for around fifty years, and I’ve been programming the music for the past six. I worked for the previous programmer for fifteen years, so I would be the person on the ground every day, meeting the artists. I got to know how to work in space, and to some extent what people want to see. It’s such a beautiful venue, and such nice people to work with, and it’s free! You just book on Eventbrite, and then it’s free, or chance your arm and rock up. It seems like you’ve provided a lot of spaces for people to express their ideas, and to have a voice. I hope so. It’s that thing of there being many routes into music. Music can feel very exclusive and it isn’t. It’s just a bunch of noises, it’s for everybody. Mary & The Pigeons new album Like Water is out now. PAGE 31