As I sit on my veranda watching the autumn leaves stirred into a whirling blaze of red and gold by a cool, gusty wind, I reflect on the journey of our new album ‘Thirteen Notes’; a 2-CD album of 16 songs and tunes that was finally birthed in December on the day of the Australian Summer Solstice 2024.
In the past, we had always recorded in Adelaide, South Australia but by chance, we reconnected with our friend and talented music producer David Pendragon whose studio is in Canberra in the ACT. David offered to weave his magic to turn our writings into music, so in the Spring of 2023 we travelled between cities and states to begin our recording journey. Our collaboration with David was extraordinary – it took our music into new realms, and he presented us with a studio space that allowed us to challenge ourselves and move in musical directions that we had never previously experienced. We feel so blessed by his wisdom, creativity and dedication to craft this album!
King of the Birds
The title track of Thirteen Notes is a song that weaves together the legend of The King of the Birds with the traditional winter calendar custom of Hunting the Wren. The lyrics are drawn from the legend of how the wren, the druid’s bird, became king of the birds. A contest was held between all the birds to see who could fly the highest and of course the eagle thought he had it in the bag, but the clever little wren hid under the eagle’s wing because she knew the eagle could fly the highest. The eagle flew to heights where he knew that no other bird could go and then when he was sure he had won the contest and was out of puff, the tiny wren popped out from under his wing, flew above the eagle’s head and claimed ‘I am the king of the birds’. Wisdom won over strength!!
The origins of the tradition of ‘Hunting the Wren’ have been lost to the mists of time, but it’s believed to have pre-Christian roots, as so many of these wonderful calendar customs do. Still today in Ireland, the Isle of Man, Wales and England ‘Wren Boys’ dress in costume and go out between Yule and Twelfth Day to hunt the wren. Today, in modern times, this obscure and ancient ceremonial custom is re-enacted with a replica of a wren.
Thirteen notes between the winter and the spring
In the holly and hedgerow hear the druid bird sing
At the coming of yuletide, the hunt will begin
For the wren, King of the birds, King of the birds
As the musical production evolved and our collaboration matured, Thirteen Notes took on more meaning. It’s the number of notes spanning a perfect octave from the tonic up to and including the note with twice its frequency. And, as if by fate, all thirteen notes make their appearance on the album!
Man of Straw
I think of scarecrows as a symbol of death and rebirth for the plants in the fields, standing alone, keeping an eye on the crops, warning off hungry birds, melancholy figures slowly decaying. Mckenzie Crook’s version of Worzel Gummidge was the initial influence for this piece. A whimsical song that conjures up images of the verdant Spring into the dusty, golden days of late summer, stretching through harvest and the turn of the season to chillier months. And while the scarecrow slumbers, the magical crop circles appear…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJuVo_tIKNw
The Lays of Amerigin
This song is adapted from the ancient Irish poem ‘The Song of Amergin’ that is central to the Milesian legend and an important part of Gaelic mythology. The song is about how Amergin, the Milesian’s druid and poet, sang an invocation to the spirit of Ireland to calm a violent storm and bring their ship safely to land. He then stepped from his boat and placed his right foot on the shore of Ireland for the very first time. Over the years we have adapted the Round of Amergin in our rituals to reflect the place we are connecting with, a way of the spirit linking to nature for where we are at the time.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PB6ILkoaI6M
Seven Sisters
There are many stories and legends of the ‘Seven Sisters’ or the Pleiades Star Cluster, part of the Taurus Constellation, from Europe, Asia, through to Australia, and they all tell a similar tale. A story of seven beautiful sisters being pursued, trying to escape and being turned into stars. In the Southern Hemisphere they are visible from about October to April, during our spring and summer months. Seeing the sisters running across the clear summer night sky, I wanted to write a song about this beautiful blue star cluster. Usually, the guitar is the way we work out new songs, but the piano was calling to me, so I sat down and noodled the melody and backing on keyboards. On the recording, my dear friend and harmony singing sister Nicola laid down the piano lines.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AfrcdNnFoVE
Spirit of the Green
Whenever I look out of my window to the bushland opposite my house or go walking in the woods, immersing myself in the wild and magical places, I see and feel my Gods and Goddesses, they are there in nature. This song was first recorded on ‘The Green Album’, a compilation of Pagan artists to raise money for The Rainforest Trust, here it is re-worked and featuring the latest Spiral Dance band line-up.
https://www.youtube.com/watch? v=MzghjaUK2KY
Murrundi Song
The majestic Murrundi or Murray River is one of the longest navigable rivers in the world and is Australia’s longest river. The Ngarrindjeri are the Traditional Owners of the Lower Lakes, Murray Mouth and Coorong and along the River Murray as far north as Mannum in South Australia and we acknowledge and pay our respects to them. The river was created by the tracks of the Great Ancestor, Ngurunderi, as he pursued Pondi, the giant cod fish.
Murrundi is our lifeblood, connecting and sustaining us, and its health determines our own. Yet, the river has been exploited and reduced to a commodity, stripped of its living essence, and its survival threatened by colonial beliefs that deny its true value. We must come to terms with our responsibility as custodians, honouring the river’s past, present, and future for the well-being of future generations and the land itself. Here’s a link to a live video of us performing Murrundi Song at our CD launch:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sqjy6KN1Cs8
Swords of the Wayland
Many moons ago I visited Wayland’s Smithy in Oxfordshire in the UK. A walk along an old track to an ancient long barrow surrounded by a grove of beech trees. All was hushed and quite in this place, and I felt we were being watched from the shadows. This atmospheric burial site is associated with Wayland the Smith, the Saxon god of metalwork. Legend tells if you leave your horse at the barrow and a coin, then the magical smith will reshoe your horse while you are away.
This song first saw life as ‘Wayland’s Steel’ back in 2005, but I was never really happy with its original arrangement, so here it is, re-imagined and rebirthed with a new melody and chorus.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cLa-iX2hu0E&t=2s
To the Wild/Dancing Hare
‘To the Wild’ is a song of transformation and longing, born from visions during an initiation. I came back from my spirit journey feeling I had run with the wild creatures and could smell the earth on my skin. The chorus popped into my head straight away. I told Paul, Spiral’s wonderful accordion player, about my visions and he wrote a fabulous tune to go on the end of the song. Dancing Hare conjures visions of the Mad March Hare darting, bobbing and leaping in the Springtime fields.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7sB9zfAHu4
I’ve shared my musings on half the album here and leave the rest for another blog. If you’d like to read more, or delve further into the music of Spiral Dance, head over to our website:
https://spiraldance.com.au
You can also find our music on Bandcamp:
https://spiraldance.bandcamp.com
Bright blessings to you all!
Adrienne
Spiral Dance
For more information about Adrienne Piggot, including her collected articles here on Pagan Song, her bio, and links to her band Spiral Dance’s sites on the web, check out Adrienne’s author page here on Pagan Song.
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