Madge Bray on Keening and Community

Madge is a traditional singer whose family roots lie in the North East of Scotland, who was born and brought up in Argyll. After a life working in therapeutic work in the field of trauma, she went on to explore human harmony in sound and immersed herself in Georgian Polyphonic song and the keening rituals of the Svan people in the Georgian High Caucasus Mountains. The powerful and challenging Svan vocal styles now inform her interpretation of Gaelic laments. This long and fascinating process has brought her back to personal experiences as a young woman in the Hebrides, that hint at keening rituals in the Scottish Gàidhealtachd.

In this episode we explore holding transitions into and out of this life, intergenerational gifts with children and godsons, and the esteemed poet Robert Burns. How all of these things bring us deeper into our humanity and our relationships with each others.

Biography from http://www.keeningwake.com