KATHRYN TICKELL AND THE DARKENING AT CHILDERLEY HALL
Beautiful , ethereal- looking Kathryn Tickell is like a fairy princess on a quest from her Northern fastness, here to charm dullard Southerners who know little of her wild natural country.. She captivates an audience. Her voice has a soft Northumbrian lilt, like Geordie but more musical and her stage presence exudes charm.
Her band is outstanding. Amy Thatcher, the youthful - seeming veteran of folk bands from the Balkans to Portugal creates a confident partnership with her accordion and a sequence of instruments deftly switched between songs. How do these lasses look so young? Is it more of that magical North eastern air ? Or a life devoted to joyful generosity of their creative gifts. Mind you, clog dancing as demonstrated by Amy certainly looks tricky enough to keep anyone super fit - and the audience yesterday loved it.
Childerley Hall barn is a difficult enough venue. Surrounded by lovely gardens its setting is delightful and part of our ticket urged us to view its Jacobean landscaping and lovely setting. But the slim rectangular shape of the performance makes the view rather long for some seats. Nevertheless there were no complaints as the beer flowed free and the atmosphere transformed into a chorus of clapping and singing. A great achievement .
The Darkening also features a rumbustious rhythm section headed by Joe Truswell His energetic talent added depth and delight to the sound - as did Kieran Szfiris mostly on guitar/mandolin, he was still dancing at the end of the day . His sturdy masculine energy complemented the lovely lyrical singing of Josie Duncan and indeed Kathryn and Amy too. Theirs is an art that never fails to change and add to its tune- horde . On a Galician jaunt to perform, Kathryn and her team recorded some admired percussion only to find it arrived when recorded with the whoops and shouts traditional to that part of Spain. Unlike many Kathryn is a wonderful story teller and in her unhurried calm and lovely voice tells the tales in a way that soothes the spirit as much as her gorgeous songs uplift it.
Songs can cover any topic - they ended the set with a strange collection of children’s songs, they mostly centre on the beautiful world of Northumbria, possibly the last true open space in England. And her solo compositions are amazing. She described the hills of Northumbria and took us on a tour of the imagination where curlews call from one mountain top to the next and the haunting wind whispers of the past generations of proud Northumbrians who have inhabited those now empty realms. Rendered on the pipes, this was magical, one could almost see the birds of prey wheeling above the purple heather where the ruined royal castle no longer visible once stood .
