SAY A SONG PROJECT le Doireann Ní Ghlacáinn

Sean-nós (literally old style) singing is an ancient Irish tradition that goes back as far as we do as a people, but what can it tell us of the modern Irish experience? In the sean-nós singing tradition when someone is asked to sing a song the request is to ‘Abair Amhrán’, ‘Say a Song’. The emphasis is on the storytelling, narrative aspect of a song and what it can tell us of the singer’s life. Before there was a literary tradition in Ireland, or indeed an English language tradition, there was a rich oral practice in which the spoken word, sung or intoned, was central. These songs are hundreds of years old and were passed from generation to generation aurally. Singers and composers made and carried songs through time. They expressed their own emotions and life experiences within its metrical patterns. These songs open windows into the past lives of Irish people in a specific time and place.

They tell us much about the social, economic and personal tribulations and joys of those who created and recreated them. Although in some cases, many hundreds of years have passed since a song's composition, elements of the human condition remain constant. The songs speak to us through time and, for avid singers and listeners, remain central in our contemporary oral repertoire. The Say a Song Project, an exciting immersive multimedia exhibition, is a bold reimagining of the sean nós singing tradition. For the first time ever, some of Ireland’s richest and most ancient poetry is accessible to English speaking audiences as Ireland's top writers, artists and sean nós artists re-imagine the ancient tradition of sean nós song and explore what they can tell us of modern Ireland.

This immersive exhibition, with a total running time of 27 minutes, weaves together a captivating soundscape, dynamic short film projections, and evocative oil-on-canvas displays to create a multi-sensory experience, inviting audiences to ‘step inside the song’. Featuring ten iconic songs from the tradition, the exhibition takes us on a grand odyssey across the length and breadth of Ireland, traversing its rich cultural landscape and drawing respectively from the traditions of Munster, Leinster, Connacht, and Ulster. Our featured writers bring a fresh perspective to the epic tales of sean nós songs, translating and reimagining them from Irish to English for contemporary audiences, bridging the past and present in a vibrant celebration of Irish cultural heritage