Female sexuality gets new take in trad song
The Bird in the Bush is the new single from Headford-based singer Pauline Scanlon. It’s from her upcoming album, The Unquiet, to be released in April.
The West Kerry singer has long been lauded for her traditional sensibility which is infused with her own unique style.
The Bird in the Bush is a traditional song of female sensuality and Pauline has put her own stamp on it. Folk and trad songs dealing with female sexuality often end up with the woman coming to a bad end, she explains. She describes her version of this ballad as “a playfully strident traditional song that expresses female sexuality, untouched by judgement or shame. It is light, sensual and unapologetic, with agency and ownership”.
The official video, created by videographer Laura Sheeran, features a sensual, emotive performance by dancer Siobhán Manson.
As a founder of FairPlé, a group that aims to achieve gender balance in all areas of Irish traditional and folk music, the role of women in the arts is central to Pauline’s creativity and something she’s very vocal about.
Her song can be streamed on tinyurl.com/BirdintheBush.