Trad musician Rosemary Lawton goes into the unknown for Untamed
Lawton records trad songs that empower Newfoundland women
Rosemary Lawton had a mission in mind when she searched for traditional Newfoundland songs to record for her new album, Untamed.
"It's all songs and stories about empowering women in Newfoundland," said Lawton.
Lawton started her project by consulting with veteran traditional music performers including Pamela Morgan, Anita Best and Jean Hewson.
They steered her to books of song collections at Memorial University's Folklore and Language Archive.
"These are the same books that Figgy Duff, Great Big Sea and The Once have all used," said Lawton.
"There's only so much room on people's albums to fit the songs, so there are still extras."
First-ever recordings
Many of the songs that Lawton chose for Untamed had never been recorded before.
Lawton also branched out into new performing territory on the album. In addition to playing the violin, she plays the viola, mandolin and bodhrán.
She is also tapping into her classical voice training to take on lead vocals on the songs.
"It feels like I'm reclaiming that side of myself," said Lawton.
And there's more…
Lawton's musical plate may be full, but she's got room for a second helping.
In October, she's putting out a second album of the songs she discovered in her research, and a songbook, consisting of the songs from both albums with simple guitar arrangements.
"No six-year-old is going to go into the folklore archives looking for songs about empowering women in Newfoundland," Lawton said.
"I would like for young kids to have access to these songs,"
Rosemary Lawton tells Weekend AM's Heather Barrett about her search for the songs on Untamed:
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