What I’ve found surprising since undertaking this project is just how much music from Enya I have featured here and continue to do so. When I first started in 2019, I had about three songs ready to go, but her contributions have more than doubled since then as I’ve heard more of her music.
I know Enya is not everyone’s cup of tea because of how much her “sound” saturates the commercial landscape, but it’s typically those songs which aren’t so well known – mostly instrumental and musically simple – that draw me in. This leads us nicely to today’s featured piece, the piano-driven instrumental From Where I Am, which is about as elementary as Enya’s music gets. Sometimes less really is more.
When I hear From Where I Am it feels homely, nurturing, yet spiritual and renewing, akin to the feminine side. It is the fifth track and the second of three piano instrumentals from Enya’s fourth studio album The Memory of Trees (1995). The album is Enya’s first to be recorded entirely in Ireland. It became a worldwide commercial success, reaching No. 1 in Australia, No. 5 in the UK and No. 9 in the US.
In terms of mood and cadence, From Where I Am reminds me of another piano instrumental – the title track from her next record A Day Without Rain. In fact, I was so taken by A Day Without Rain that I used it to conclude a family DVD I created for my son’s third birthday, thirteen years ago.
Both of these pieces I hold dear, and I feel a sense of acceptance and gratitude whenever I hear them.
Enya Patricia Brennan known professionally as Enya, is an Irish singer, songwriter, record producer and musician. She began her music career with her family band Clannad, but left in 1982 with their manager and producer Nicky Ryan to pursue a solo career. She has sung in 10 languages; eight more than me. The commercial and critical success of Watermark (1988) propelled her to worldwide fame. You could describe her music as new-age Celtic.
References:
1. The Memory of Trees – Wikipedia
“The more I live, the more I learn. The more I learn, the more I realize, the less I know.”- Michel Legrand
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