{"id":15010,"date":"2022-02-22T11:42:19","date_gmt":"2022-02-22T11:42:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/?p=15010"},"modified":"2022-02-22T11:42:19","modified_gmt":"2022-02-22T11:42:19","slug":"scottish-singer-rachel-walker-marks-anniversary-of-cancer-diagnosis-with-charity-ep-in-aid-of-maggies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/scottish-singer-rachel-walker-marks-anniversary-of-cancer-diagnosis-with-charity-ep-in-aid-of-maggies\/","title":{"rendered":"Scottish singer Rachel Walker marks anniversary of cancer diagnosis with charity EP in aid of Maggie\u2019s"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"color: #333333;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-medium wp-image-15011\" src=\"http:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/files\/2022\/02\/Rachel-Walker-and-Aaron-Jones-300x278.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"278\" srcset=\"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/files\/2022\/02\/Rachel-Walker-and-Aaron-Jones-300x278.jpg 300w, https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/files\/2022\/02\/Rachel-Walker-and-Aaron-Jones-768x713.jpg 768w, https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/files\/2022\/02\/Rachel-Walker-and-Aaron-Jones.jpg 1000w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/>Exactly one year on from her breast cancer diagnosis, highly-lauded traditional performer <b>Rachel Walker<\/b> is set to release a <a href=\"https:\/\/rachelwalkerandaaronjones.bandcamp.com\/\">heartfelt new EP<\/a> with singer and multi-instrumentalist <b>Aaron Jones<\/b> in aid of the cancer support charity <b>Maggie\u2019s<\/b>.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #333333;\">Due for release on <b>Friday 25th February<\/b>, <a href=\"https:\/\/rachelwalkerandaaronjones.bandcamp.com\/\"><b><i>A Happy Place<\/i><\/b><\/a> is a collection of uplifting songs chosen specifically for their ability to invoke a spirit of hopefulness. The title itself is a reference to the healing power of music and the relief and joy of escaping cancer.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #333333;\">Rachel and close friend and collaborator Aaron wanted to pay tribute to the support and care Maggie\u2019s gave Rachel during this challenging time. From online classes and support groups to one-to-one help, the Maggie\u2019s Highlands Centre in Inverness was there for Rachel every step of the way.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #333333;\">Along with a selection of traditional Scottish Gaelic tracks for which Lochaber singer Rachel is renowned, the EP includes a brand new English composition, <i>Song of Hope.<\/i> Written together by Rachel and Aaron, the song is directly inspired by Rachel\u2019s personal experience of living with cancer and the support she received from Maggie\u2019s while undergoing treatment.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #333333;\"><b>Rachel said<\/b>: \u201cThis EP, and <i>Song of Hope<\/i> in particular, is a tribute to Maggie\u2019s and all the women I\u2019ve met at the Highlands Centre also going through cancer and its treatment. I have learned that we\u2019re stronger when we face this together and wanted this song to reflect this important sentiment that has got me through the last 12 months. The music is a thank you to all those who have helped me on my journey and the network of incredible women I met along the way. We hope it can be a comfort to others on a similar journey.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #333333;\">\u201cI will never forget the warm welcome I received at Maggie\u2019s, especially from cancer support specialist Eilidh Wilson who really took the time to listen and chat. Eilidh was at the end of the phone to listen to my worries and offer reassurance when I needed it and that support is truly priceless when faced with cancer.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #333333;\">\u201cRecording the EP was a slow process, as we could only work on it when I felt well enough, so it\u2019s feels all the more special to see it come together and to mark one year from my diagnosis with something so positive, focused on the healing power of music and its ability to help us escape to a \u2018happy place\u2019. We hope the release helps people talk about cancer and the support that\u2019s available, while raising some valuable funds in the process.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #333333;\">In addition to Rachel\u2019s lilting vocals, the emotive five-track EP features Aaron\u2019s vocals, acoustic guitars, electric guitar and cittern. Elsewhere, bodhr\u00e1n player <b>Martin O\u2019Neil<\/b> also lends his skills to the track <i>C\u00e0ite Bheil i ann am Muile.<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #333333;\"><b>Aaron said<\/b>: &#8220;Before and during the early stages of the pandemic, Rachel and I had struck up a very joyful and rewarding writing partnership which we had planned to develop and grow once we were able to get back together in person. When she received her diagnosis it seemed important to us both to maintain our regular writing sessions online to give us some escape. The power of music and the escape of creative flow has been an essential part, not only of Rachel&#8217;s recovery, but also my own journey through lockdown with a young family. We both felt very strongly that something positive should come from such difficult times and so releasing the tracks as an EP for Maggie&#8217;s was a no brainer.&#8221;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #333333;\">Maggie\u2019s helps people take back control when cancer turns life upside down, with professional support for anything from treatment side effects to money worries. They also provide support to families of those going through a cancer diagnosis or treatment.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #333333;\"><b><i>A Happy Place<\/i><\/b> will be available to download on BandCamp on Friday 25th February with all proceeds going directly to Maggie\u2019s. Visit <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/rachelwalkerandaaronjones.bandcamp.com\/\"><span style=\"color: #1155cc;\">rachelwalkerandaaronjones.bandcamp.com<\/span><\/a><span style=\"color: #333333;\">.<br \/>\n<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Exactly one year on from her breast cancer diagnosis, highly-lauded traditional performer Rachel Walker is set to release a heartfelt new EP with singer and multi-instrumentalist Aaron Jones in aid of the cancer support charity Maggie\u2019s. Due for release on Friday 25th February, A Happy Place is a collection of uplifting songs chosen specifically for [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":15011,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[9,37],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-15010","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-news","8":"category-newsletter","9":"entry"},"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/files\/2022\/02\/Rachel-Walker-and-Aaron-Jones.jpg","featured_image_src":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/files\/2022\/02\/Rachel-Walker-and-Aaron-Jones.jpg","featured_image_src_square":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/files\/2022\/02\/Rachel-Walker-and-Aaron-Jones.jpg","author_info":{"display_name":"simon","author_link":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/author\/simon\/"},"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pcv15g-3U6","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15010","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15010"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15010\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15012,"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15010\/revisions\/15012"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15011"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15010"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15010"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/projects.handsupfortrad.scot\/handsupfortrad\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15010"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}