New Forest based singer and songwriter Louise Jordan will play songs from her new album, No Petticoats Here at St Thomas’s Church in Redwick on October 9
Now a familiar face on the acoustic scene, Louise has placed her classical music background and five years’ experience of touring arts centres, theatres, folk clubs and festivals in the UK and Europe alongside her early career as a secondary school history teacher to produce her album No Petticoats Here. Andy Howells recently put questions to Louise about the album.
What lead you to becoming a musician?
I used to work as a secondary school teacher and started visiting a local folk club –Havering Folk Club –which encouraged me to visit others. In 2010 I met producer Andy Bell through and he helped me record an EP in a half term holiday. Soon after I gave up my day job and went on to record my first album Tempvs and I started organising my own tours.
I have always played music –I learnt piano at a young age – but I never thought being a full-time musician was an option. Now, I can’t believe I had any other jobs!
How would you describe your genre of music?
I consider myself to be a songwriter and storyteller and I write the music which comes naturally to me. I am influenced by classical music and folk song collectors Ralph Vaughan Williams and Cecil Sharp as much as by other songwriters who tell stories –Natalie Merchant, Sandy Denny.
What inspires you as a musician/ songwriter?
I am hugely inspired by stories and history and one of my favourite parts of the job is sharing songs with live audiences and the interaction at the end of a performance. I really enjoy finding out what people will take away from a gig and remember and what they felt during the concert.
You’re releasing a new album entitled No Petticoats Here, can you give us a bit of background behind it?
No Petticoats Here tells the stories of remarkable women who lived during the First World War through song. Through writing and touring with Lovey Warne on my previous album Veritas, I became interested in sharing local history and particularly the stories of inspirational women. Finding out about the story of seventeen year old Dorothy Lawrence whose guardian lived in Salisbury Cathedral Close then led to an interest in women who lived during the First World War and through books, museums, libraries, research centres, historians, biographers, field trips to the battlefields of the First World War and even relatives of women who lived during the First World War I was able to find out about these incredible women’s stories.
Did some of the real life people who inspired No Petticoats Here change your outlook and attitude to life at all?
Absolutely! The women I have written about are all inspirational and whilst their actions were diverse they were all determined to contribute to society, bringing about change in the way women were seen. From fundraising women footballers to an inventor, ambulance drivers, an author and a spy these women showed extraordinary courage and ingenuity. One hundred years after the First World War there is still work to be done to achieve the changes many of these women fought for. Their determination and fearlessness continue to add fuel to my fire!
Your playing Redwick on October 9. What can people expect from the forthcoming show?
As well as sharing original, live music I tell the stories of the women I have written about, placing their remarkable achievements in the context of the First World War. The audience is very much encouraged to participate in the music –there’s a drinking song and a marching song as well as other choruses and I welcome questions so that people can take something away from the performance.
What are you enjoying listening to at the moment?
On Monday mornings I tune in to various folk radio shows so I can hear a range of songs and tunes –classics and new ones. There are some wonderful community radio stations with great folk shows and the presenters are certainly amongst the unsung heroes of the music industry. Right now I am listening to FATEA’s showcase album Mirage which is available to download free from their website.
Where can people find out more about your music?
My website is www.louisejordan.co.uk and there is also a website for the new album www.nopetticoatshere.co.uk with more information about the women I have researched as well as previews of songs and an introductory video about the project. I am on social media www.facebook.com/louisejordansings and on twitter @ljordanmusic @nopetticoats.
- For more information on tickets please contact 01633 889019 / lindajhall61@googlemail.com