A Table for Three

I met Tanya Holst through my good friend and sister-in-law Maura McDonnell. Maura had worked on a cover for my first CD "The Celtic Drift," which was a compilation of original pieces composed over the last few decades. Tanya worked alongside Maura and one day asked her for a CD to play in her computer. It happened to be my own. Tanya was very much taken by some of the tunes and especially a hornpipe, "Between the Potholes." She asked Maura if I could be contacted and this led to our first and only midday meal at Pasta di Milano on May 18th. Thus began the first of three meetings each of which was swift and immediate, powerful and productive, but sadly all too brief. In hindsight, I realise that there are those people whom you may meet but a few times in your life but because of the quality of the contact, they remain with you forever. Such was my experience of Tanya.

Our second meeting took place at my home in Terenure almost two weeks later, on May 3st. Tanya was on her way to Rosie O'Grady's where she played with a Ceoltas Group and she asked if it was all right to teach them some of the tunes on the CD. I was hesitant: Firstly, because these were all my own tunes which I had seldom ever played in public: and secondly, I had given up playing publicly for quite some time. While I had come out of semi-retirement to record this music, I was apprehensive for a number of reasons about being pulled back into the pub scene. Undaunted, however, the ever-resourceful Tanya used both charm and praise, saying, "Is there any better compliment than having other musicians playing and enjoying your music?" Duly dismantled, any remaining objections I had were brushed aside by her winning smile. That was a key part of her personality. She had the ability to get to the bottom line fast and in a way that made sense. Where some might see this as a product of German efficiency I felt it was more a case of life's too short and there are so many things to be done. When I told her that all my original pieces of music were on old cassettes, she suggested that I get them transferred onto CD and even offered to undertake such a project. Seldom in the last twenty years have I felt anything like the surge of enthusiasm that shot through me at such a prospect. Her enthusiasm was infectious and I could feel the buried past coming alive. I promised to entrust her with all my cassettes on which these "old originals" were first recorded. She was chuffed but cautioned me ,"Be sure to make copies in case anything goes wrong!" This too was very much a part of her character viz. she never allowed her enthusiasm to cloud her care or concern for those things valued by others

Knowing that she was extremely fond of Irish Traditional Music and that she played the uilleann pipes, the flute and the tin whistle, I invited her back to my home in Terenure one Saturday afternoon, June 9th. She duly appeared, fully equipped. When I saw her assembling the pipes and heard some of the squeaks emanating therefrom I made the comment, "Getting those pipes up and running is like putting socks on an octupus!" which caused her to laugh loud and long. I told her that my follow-up CD, "The Leaves of Change" (all instrumental) was practically finished, except for "The Grain O' Wheat," a piece of music originally written to commemorate the two great Saints of Assisi, Francis and Clare. I suggested that she might join me on this piece playing an Uilleann Pipes track and maybe a harmony or descant on the flute as well. Thrilled to disbelief almost, she said, "Are you serious? You wouldn't have to use it if you didn't like it or if it didn't sound good!" When I said that it had first been a song, she added, "Oh! But I sing as well! Would you like me to sing it? Have you the words there?" Overwhelmed by her bubbling enthusiasm and knowing that there was no getting rid of this woman, I happily made the suggestion, It had been recorded in the key of D and was a little on the high side for singing. However, I added "Why don't you take away this cassette (of the song) and practice alongside it." Beaming from lug to lug, off she set smiling with her "octupus case" towards her left-hand-drive German car. Jokingly, I told her that Kyran O'Neill was not overly-sympathetic to the pipes and she joked back, "I suppose I'll have to use my charm on him!" Although we had planned to meet again this was our third and final meeting.

Tanya went to the Sound Foundry alone where she recorded about six different tracks (uilleann pipes, flute and tin whistle) on "The Grain O' Wheat." When I phoned her to say that she had passed the audition, she couldn't wait to hear her efforts on the mix done by Kyran and myself and was over the moon with the tape I sent her. I had been so looking forward to meeting up with Maura and herself on Oct. 24th, again at Pasta di Milano but sadly, she was killed the evening I flew in from Rome. Apart from the understandable shock and disbelief, a great void was left deep within me when I heard of her sudden, untimely and tragic death. I can only imagine what that volid must be like for those who knew her over a longer period of time. Such were some of the thoughts and feelings exchanged by Maura and myself as we sat at the same table without Tanya on Oct. 24th for the planned meal. Ironically, the one tune she recorded, "The Grain O' Wheat" is based on a line taken from the Gospel of St. John (12:24) "Unless the grain of wheat falls on the ground and dies, it remains only a single grain; but if it dies, it yields a rich harvest." "Enriched" is an accurate word to describe my experience of Tanya whom I met but thee short times.