Government Song Woman BBC Radio 3 Sunday Feature 5 March 2023 Available now on BBC Sounds

American musician Rhiannon Giddens investigates the fascinating life and recordings of the folk song collector Sidney Robertson Cowell. Travelling thousands of miles all over the US in the depression era, Cowell was willing to track down songs in unlikely places, once writing "I don't scare easily."

Listening to her recordings is like travelling back in time; they capture the voices of so many different nationalities that emigrated to the US, but she also made recordings on the Aran Islands in Ireland.


Songs for the Dead Saturday 20 Aug 2016 15:30 BBC Radio 4 Available now on BBC Sounds

Marie-Louise Muir explores the tradition of Ireland's keening women, who were once paid to cry, wail and sing over the dead at wake houses and funerals.