There was an interesting programme on BBC Radio4 yesterday in the series "Soul Music" which looked at this song.Sinead O'Connor and others spoke eloquently of their feelings about singing it.There was a lovely story from a man who went into a hospital to visit a woman who had been traumatised in some way and couldnt speak.He held her hand and sang the song and she said "thank you" and began to communicate again.
The slight drawback to the programme,unlike most others in this series, was that they had clearly consulted no-one who really knew anything about the song and its history.They persisted in saying how "ancient" it was.As everyone knows, it cant be more than about 100 years old as most of it was written by Padraic Colum.There were precursors,like Paddy Tunney's "Eastersnow" but She Moved Thro The Fair is an obviously literary and poetic creation.
Its a song you hear a lot,of course - but terribly difficult to do well.To me,there has to be a kind of restraint.Its so often overdramatised and over-ornamented.Sinead O'Connor's version is pretty good though.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01qm2fw