Adleisiau (Vocal Echoes)
scents of coal, wool, sweat, farmland,
The South Wales Male Voice Choir recording,
4 speakers,
hand-felted fabric stones,
diffusers
The piece Adleisiau, meaning echoes related to voices in Welsh, explores echoes in time, echoes across different mediums and the spatial sound of echoes. It is the current culmination of a personal journey of grief and displacement that connects; family history, Welsh language, vocal traditions, stone circles, loss and land.
Lauren moved to South Wales in 2021 following the death of a loved one. During this time Lauren has tried to make sense of her displacement by reconnecting with her ancestral histories.
Lauren’s paternal grandmother was from a mining family in South Wales, who moved to England following the Great Depression in the early 20th century. The mining strikes of the 1980s under Thatcher once again disrupted working communities in a desperate bid to save themselves. Many of the union meetings were held at sites of stone circles; some were even created during these years for this purpose.
One of the oldest and largest stone circles is located in Wales, it was erected in approximately 3000 BC and is aligned on the midsummer solstice sunrise. Lauren has used the idea of a stone circle to connect the magical nature of these ancient histories with the political mining histories as well as the history of sheep farming. The seating of the installation resembles a small stone circle, however the stones are made of hand felted Welsh wool.
Sheep farming has been central to the Welsh way of life for a long time, and there are approximately 3 times the amount of sheep in Wales than people. Wales has a wet climate and is very mountainous which can make growing crops difficult, however this environment is suited to livestock. Sheep farming was introduced in Wales by Cistercian monks in the 10th century, mainly for the animal’s wool.
Lauren recorded the vocal sounds for the installation at St David’s Cathedral in Pembrokeshire, Wales. The vocal sounds are unedited apart from the dynamics. There are sour notes, they are sometimes synchronised and sometimes at odds, going from loud to soft to silent, and passing between speakers. This creates tension and release in the space, the sounds are active on a path to resolution. The male voice choir is a tradition that is more about politics, community and camaraderie in the face of perilous professions, than religion. Different choirs across Wales had different timbres depending on the work that particular community was involved in. It is said that coal produced the ringing top tenors of south Wales; slate the thunderous basses of the north and the poured molten metal of tin and copper contributed to the more mellow tones.
The scents within the installation echo Lauren’s strands of thought to bring the installation together. There is a blend to echo human sweat and animal hair, one that echoes the earth and land and one that echoes pollution and burning. These congregate and mingle in the space, creating different combinations and scents.
With special thanks to The South Wales Male Voice Choir for allowing the recording and distribution.
