Classically trained Irish singer Myjyn has released the video for her new single, Amhrán na Leabhar, and plays The Cobblestone, Dublin on 31 July. We asked her the BIG questions . . .
The windswept video was filmed on the little beach at Red Rock in Sutton in Dublin on a cold March evening earlier this year.
Myjyn released her debut single, Dark Is The Colour, in 2024, followed by Communion.
The name Myjyn is a modernised version of the Irish word "Maighdean" for mermaid - "since exploring her sonic depths is like swimming in the ocean, at once natural and mysterious".
Amhrán na Leabhar is part of the Sean Nós singing tradition and is a lament/poem by Tomás Rua Ó Súilleabhán (1785-1848), a poet and teacher, who at some point moved from Derrynane to Portmagee in West Kerry to teach in a hedge school - where children and young people were taught Irish language and culture secretly in Ireland during the Penal Laws.
We need your consent to load this Spotify contentWe use Spotify to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences
Ó Súilleabhán had a great number of precious Irish language books, which he decided to transport via ship to the town of Portmagee, with himself travelling by road.
The boat carrying the books, however, shipwrecked on its journey and all of the books were lost to the sea. On finding this out Ó Súilleabhán fell into despair and mourning for the loss of the priceless books and the precious culture they held, now lost forever.
Tell us three things about yourself . . .
I love pistachio croissants (and I know where to get the best one in Dublin). I have a keen sense of smell, and I'm so happy for the summer to be here again as I just spend ages in the garden fervently smelling all the plants.
We need your consent to load this Spotify contentWe use Spotify to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences
I love languages. I love learning them, speaking about them, comparing them. I love figuring out etymologies of words. I think everyone should learn more languages. I feel grateful to be a Gaeilgeoir and to have learned Irish from such a young age. It has helped me learn other languages much easier. Languages are more than just words. They shape our entire experience of and perspective on life. Who wouldn’t want to have as much of that as they can?
How would you describe your music?
Contemplative. Enchanting. Ethereal but genuine. There’s a story to be told through it. It’s mostly folk/traditional with a twist. Being primarily a vocalist, I love experimenting with my voice and creating intricate vocal harmonies. I’ve been using a loop pedal for my live performances and this has also been a cause for inspiration for me. I’m trying to follow where that takes me.
Who are your musical inspirations?
There are honestly so many it’s hard to list, but I would have to say Clannad’s Moya Brennan for one - I’d been listening to her voice since I was quite young. Others would be Cocteau Twins vocalist Elizabeth Fraser, Joanna Newsom, The National, Kate Bush, Lisa Hannigan and Rachael Lavelle.
What was the first gig you ever went to?
The Coronas in The Olympia in 2008 (I think?). I was obsessed with them at the time. I had grown up going to lots of musicals, ballets and pantos but I remember thinking 'I can’t believe this is my first gig’.
What was the first record you ever bought?
I can’t quite remember exactly what the first one was, but I think it could have been James Vincent McMorrow’s Early In The Morning. Growing up I had endless albums of my parents that I made my way through, but I distinctly remember being 16 or 17 and walking into HMV with a view to picking something completely new and random to me and it was that. I still love that album.
What’s your favourite song right now?
I’m on a bit of a Fontaines D.C. buzz at the moment, listening to their new album a lot (I’m always a bit behind the crowd). This week in particular I’ve had Kneecap and Grian Chatten’s Better Way To Live on repeat.
Favourite lyric of all time?
Very hard to choose just one. But a lyric I love that I have stuck up on my bedroom wall is: "And you said something like ‘all you want is all the world for yourself’, but all I want is the perfect love, though I know it’s small, I want love for us all", from Sufjan Steven’s Impossible Soul from his album Age of Adz. I’ve considered getting a tattoo of it
If you could only listen to one song for the rest of your life, what would it be?
God forbid that would ever be the case but probably something classical. Most likely ‘Chi il bel song di Doretta’ from Puccini’s La Rondine. It’s been my Spotify wrapped most played song two years running now. Puccini is a master of emotive music, it’s hard not to cry listening to his music and this aria to me is just pure romance, ecstasy and love. Sung by Kiri Te Kanawa, of course.
Where can people find your music/more information?
The usual spots: Spotify, Bandcamp, Soundcloud and all major streaming platforms. You can also follow Myjyn on Instagram, Facebook and (most recently) TikTok for the latest info.
Alan Corr
