Teresa was known as the lady with the golden voice but now, with age, she thinks of it as a being more like rust. The song collectors, however, got to hear Teresa’s golden voice and record her in May 2016. Teresa offered a broad repertoire of old songs, sharing the lyrics, tunes and singing some of the songs. What was wonderful to see and hear was that these traditional songs were clearly being transferred across the generations, such as to her young Grandson, David. The recordings capture both Teresa and David singing My Irish Molly O, The Rocks Of Bawn, The Boston Burglar and The Moving On Song. The old songs and ways of singing run in Teresa’s family, and she says that her daughters have picked them up too, as well as some of her grandchildren who sing in the old style, like David. She says there are other members of the family that sing, but not in the old style.
Teresa is connected to other Irish Traveller families who the song collectors collective have also worked with. This includes Teresa’s siblings, Kathleen Ward and Jaws Ward, from Galway. Teresa learnt her traditional songs from her father, who would have sung in the pubs, and at the fireside throughout his lifetime. Her father, in turn, would have learnt his songs from his parents, and his two sister’s were also very good singers. When meeting with Teresa, certain songs revived memories for her, such as London Town Big City, which Teresa recalls being sung by her father some seventy years ago. She has fond memories of how her father would sing for the children, who would then sing songs for him in return.
