The Wake of St Brendan

From Deep Sea Vents (album), 2024.

Features: Bruce Hornsby (dulcimer, vocals), Alex Sopp (flute), C.J. Camerieri (trumpet), Rob Moose (violin), Nadia Sirota (viola), Gabriel Cabezas (cello), Mark Dover (clarinet)

From BruceHornsby.com: 

“Stemming from The New York Times’ obituary of Tim Severin, a sailor who re-created the arduous journeys of early explorers. His voice warped by electronics and teased by strings, Hornsby sings a hymn not just for Severin but for anyone who’s found an unorthodox way of existing, of following an obsession to the very ends of the earth.”

St Brendan

“Brendan the Navigator” is the patron saint of mariners, sailors, travellers and the U.S. Navy, who set sail with a band of friends in search of the Holy Island and the Garden of Eden. The prayer of St Brendan reads:

“Help me to journey beyond the familiar
And into the unknown.
Give me the faith to leave old ways
And break fresh ground with you.
Christ of the mysteries, I trust you
To be stronger than each storm within me.
I will trust in the darkness and know
That my times, even now, are in your hand.
Tune my spirit to the music of heaven,
And somehow, make my obedience count for you.”

See StBrendanNorthOlmsted.org for more.

Tim Severin

Tim Severin was a British explorer and historian who retraced the voyage of St Brendan. He documented his travels in The Brendan Voyage, charting his own dramatic journey across the Atlantic in a leather boat.