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Photo : Bénédicte Hubert-Darbois
Tradition meets Modernity,
Madness meets the Heart. "
It
is generally thought that Shamans did not exist in Brittany.
However, if we are to believe that a shaman is a healer, a mystic, or
a wanderer in both the spirit and the underworld, then he is truly part
of our tradition.
Rituals and magic arts are very much alive not only in family life but
also used by healers, witches and elders.
The collected evidence from the long and slow process of meetings, readings
and studying books of spells and codes, has brought to light traces of
extraordinary knowledge that was thought lost.
Brittany as evoked here through its myths is not the land of World Music
or folklore but that of everyday Bretons ; their relationship with nature,
their cultural changes, their strong links to rituals and ancestral practises,
all with their XXI° century attitude.
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Each piece of music is based on either a spoken or written ritual always in the Vannes dialect of the Breton language. This is the opening into the artists world, which is beyond the simple survival of the past. Pascal LAMOUR deeply feels these rites and brings them to life. Each and every one is a gateway : the musician opens the door between the different worlds, leaves his mark and stands out, through them, towards a gradual reconciliation.
How could he know, with his twenty-first century mind ? He never looks up to the sky, he knows not what happens there .
" We must hasten to listen to them before they go... "
Our Elders, the Wise, are weary of seeing their rites distorded, misrepresented, misunderstood, modified by those who do not understand.
"Magic bird, take us beyond seas, beyond time, beyond the living. "
In memory of Jean Marie Guéhéneuc whose melody definetly left it's mark when I was only a teenager. Totem animals, repetition leading to trance, dual message texts ; series are frequently to be found in the Vannes area of Brittany and often have an initiation value.
" The softer side of things does not lead to hell. "
Through thought only, our Ancestors have mastered the most incredible forces ; spells, bewitchment. Meetings with beyond have definetly forged the souls.
" Hallutinations, Magic or Dreams ? "
The Shamanistic characteristics
were at danger when came the Christian religion ; Breton bagpipes (biniou)
were considered evil, dances were banned by the clergy, healers were criticised,
ancient rites were considered pagan, stone motifs were christianised...
This extant text collected on the Ile aux Moines in the XIX°century
comes to prove their survival...
Here is the story of the hairy priest with ribbons on his shoes !
" My grandmother tells her story, the chidren are all eyes and ears. "
Breton sayings are
full of Shamanistic thoughts.
They are the roots of this piece and the strangest one says : " Cows
will speak at midnight ". Respected as they are, animals speak.
" Pain, leave my eye. "
In this piece the
Breton language is no longer used. This magic ritual of eye healing is
inspired from an original text in Gaulish language.
Until the VIII° century the magic Celtic Gaulish language was spoken
in parts of France.
" Is it at all possible to think one can hideway on a make-believe planet ? "
The wolf planet could be the fog headquarters, the fifth element for the Bretons. Even in my sweetest dreams, fog is a tremor that can not be withheld.
" To know how to say no ; this is no insult. "
Man is far more influenced than before by modern society and particularly the urban one. His consciouness must lead him to go further than the dominating trends. Beyond his image he will find his true self.
