to answer peg's question: "But how does one pronounce (while singing) a word that is spelled in its dialect form?" i can only say that it is a matter of choice...

in many irish songs, for instance, the word: "Amerikay" comes up all too often. i never use it. it sounds weird to me - after all, i'm american - i call my country "america" and to call it amerikay just isn't legitimate for me as an american singer. sometimes i wreck the rhyme by singing "america" but i'd rather do that than compromise what i feel is the natural interpretation of the song. for me.

one of the greatest lessons i have learned since i began to perform traditional music is: in order to find the essence of a song & to convey that essence to listeners, as a performer i have to make the song my own. i bring it into me and then pass it to the audience. in making it "my own" i feel obligated to interpret, edit and pronounce in my personal, natural way.

~bleedingheart