Abbey’s on song to maintain folk tradition
SHE may only be 13 years old – but the tuneful voice of Abbey Tilley echoes with hundreds of years of Northumberland history.
Abbey, from Wark, near Hexham, wants to help keep traditional Northumbrian folk music alive with her performances.
She’s been learning about the centuries-old local style for just over a year, ever since a family friend suggested she join forces with celebrated Northumbrian smallpipes player Kathryn Tickell.
Her singing has gone from strength to strength, and earlier this month won three prizes at the annual Morpeth Northumbrian Gathering, an exhibition of the area’s music and arts.
Northumbrian folk music is seen as a distinctive style, which shares elements of Scottish and Irish folk music but has its own particular regional quality.
The Queen Elizabeth High School pupil said she feels proud to be maintaining a local tradition which has waned in popularity over the years. Abbey said: “It’s just a different style from everything else. It’s quite a unique type of music and not many people sing it.
“The songs are about this area and there aren’t many people here who still sing them any more, so I feel like I’m keeping that tradition going.”
The unusual style has attracted plenty of attention for Abbey, who also enjoys musical theatre, leading to concert performances and the chance to open the Bellingham country show.
She was even recruited by a film crew shooting a new film about Captain James Cook, appearing as the famous explorer’s wife as a child, singing traditional folk songs in a pub.
Abbey said: “I’ve been really busy since I started this new style of music. I’ve had so many opportunities because it is unique.
“One of the things I really enjoyed was being asked to sing for people with dementia at the Chrysalis charity in Hexham.
“That was really fun because you could see that people recognised the songs.”