Calling All Angels :: Rónán Ó Snodaigh & Myles O'Reilly

I've long admired the work of Myles O’Reilly and Rónán Ó Snodaigh, both individually and collectively. Their first album was my go-to soundtrack for the lockdown. To get the opportunity to work with them was a gift. Particularly because the invite was 'come as yourself, no acting, no staging of shots—just be as you'd be.' It's a rare invite when someone is shooting; it summons a grace that extends beyond the people and their stories. Myself and Ro were free to do as we generally do when we spend time together. We discussed through movement the ways in which music and hurling are similar, what separates us, and what brings us back together. For me, it was a chance to bridge the divide that can be present between the creative and the structured, both in myself and in the game in general. Hurling is a fundamentally creative process, but as we continue down the path laid out by statisticians and sports psychologists, it's hard not to think that some outlet for our young men, in particular, is being lost—individual creativity suffering function and outcome. At the same time, it's a celebration of what the game is: a tonic, a community, our way of making sense of the fine line between battle and play—our game, played our way. Rò has been playing with the Katas of hurling from a young age, and we've been working on the footwork and movement native to the game to bring them to life. This is something we do when we get together without a specific aim in mind, but then along comes Myles with his camera, and the exploration finds a worthy outlet."