Subject: FAQ [alt.music.enya] Frequently Asked Questions (Monthly Posting)
Date: Tue, 2 Apr 1996 23:15:07 GMT
Summary: Frequently asked questions, and their answers, about the Irish
. musician Enya. It should be read by anyone considering posting
. questions to alt.music.enya.

Posting-frequency: monthly
Version: 28

+---------------------------------------------------------------------------+
|  Enya - Frequently Asked Questions         Issue 29         3 April 1996  |
+---------------------------------------------------------------------------+

Too many people to mention individually have contributed information or ideas
to this FAQ either directly or via Usenet or mailing list postings. To all of 
you: many thanks.

For those with World Wide Web browsers, an HTML version of this FAQ is
available via the Enya home page at URL:

   http://www.bath.ac.uk/~ccsdra/enya/homepage.html

Please send any new material, comments, corrections, and suggestions you may
have to:  D.R.Allum@bath.ac.uk

Enjoy,
Dave Allum.

FAQ ARCHIVE =================================================================

The most recently posted issue of this FAQ can usually be obtained from:

Anonymous FTP
  rtfm.mit.edu:/pub/usenet-by-group/news.answers/music/enya-faq

Email
  Send a message to mail-server@rtfm.mit.edu with a blank subject line and
  "send usenet-by-group/news.answers/music/enya-faq" (without the quotes) as
  the only text in the body of the message.

QUESTIONS ===================================================================

* = New           Changes in the text from the previous issue are marked with
+ = Updated       change bars in the right hand margin.

Background
----------
  1.1  Is 'Enya' her real name?
+ 1.2  When was she born, where does she come from, what's her background?
  1.3  Was she ever a member of Clannad? Did she record with them?
  1.4  And after Clannad?
  1.5  What was her 'big break'?
  1.6  I keep hearing that 'Enya' is three people. What does this mean?

Records, Videos, Songs, Etc.
----------------------------
  2.1  What records and videos have been released?
  2.2  Is there a more detailed discography available?
+ 2.3  Are there any books of her music?
  2.4  Some of her songs aren't in English. What other languages does she use?
  2.5  Where can I get translations?
  2.6  Have I heard Enya at the movies and on TV?
  2.7  Apart from Clannad has she appeared on any other artists' records?
  2.8  Is Storms In Africa (Part II) on _Watermark_ or not?
+ 2.9  Can you tell which Book Of Days is on a copy of _Shepherd_Moons_?
  2.10 When is her next album coming out?
  2.11 Who is Ridley Scott and why is Aldebaran dedicated to him?
  2.12 Who are Rob Dickins and Ross mentioned in Orinoco_Flow?

Other Information, Clannad, Etc.
--------------------------------
  3.1  Does she tour?
  3.2  How many records has she sold?
  3.3  Have any articles or interviews been transcribed?
  3.4  Any news of Clannad and the rest of the family?
  3.5  Are any Enya posters available?
+ 3.6  What's her address? Is she on the net?
  3.7  Are there any fan clubs?

Miscellaneous
-------------
  4.1  Is a font of the _Watermark_ artwork script available?
  4.2  Some say Enya sings in Irish, others say Gaelic. What's the difference?
  4.3  Are there any Enya sound files available?
  4.4  What other artists make music similar to Enya's?

Finding Out More
----------------
  5.1  Which Usenet newsgroups discuss Enya?
  5.2  Is there a mailing list?
  5.3  Where is all this information archived? What else is available?
  5.4  I don't have access to FTP, WWW, etc. Can I get things by Email?
  5.5  Which music papers or magazines have the best Enya coverage?

ANSWERS =====================================================================

1.1  Is 'Enya' her real name?
                              ,       ,
     Her real name is Eithne Ni Bhraonain, an Irish name which translates to
     Eithne Brennan in English. Eithne is pronounced 'Enya' and she chose to
     use this pseudo-phonetic spelling professionally so that she could be
     known by her own name but avoid the inevitable pronunciation problems.

1.2  When was she born, where does she come from, what's her background?

     Eithne was born on May 17th 1961, the fourth youngest of nine children:
     Maire (1952), Ciaran, Pol, Deirdre, Leon, Eithne (1961), Bartley, Olive,
     and Bridin. She comes from the small village of Dore (Dobhar in Irish)
     in the Gweedore (Gaoth Dobhair) region of County Donegal in the
     northwest of the Republic of Ireland. She now lives in Killiney, a
     coastal district on the southern outskirts of Dublin, and in London.     |

     The family is very musical and her parents played in a family dance band
     before settling down.  Her father Leo owns a local pub - Leo's Tavern in
     Meenalech (Min na Leice) - and her mother Baba taught music in the local
     school.
                                ,     ,               ,             ,  , ,
     In 1968 elder brothers Ciaran & Pol, and uncles Padraig & Noel O Dugain,
     formed the band An Clann As Dobhar to perform traditional Irish music at
     festivals etc.
                                                            ,
     Changing their name to Clannad, and recruiting sister Maire in 1973, the
     band have gone on to international success performing both their own and
     traditional material. They have recorded a number of albums.

1.3  Was she ever a member of Clannad? Did she record with them?

     After leaving school she joined Clannad in 1980 and, credited under her
     real name, provided keyboards and (mostly) backing vocals.  She appears,
     uncredited, on their 1980 album _Crann_Ull_, and, properly credited, on
     _Fuaim_ (1982).

1.4  And after Clannad?

     In 1982 Clannad split with their long time manager and producer Nicky
     Ryan. Eithne, apparently frustrated with being left in the background,
     left at the same time and in response to Ryan's belief that she had
     talent in her own right, moved to Dublin to live with him and his wife
     Roma and develop her own musical career.

     The first real fruits of this collaboration came when film producer
     David Puttnam heard some demonstration tapes sent to him by Roma Ryan.
     He commissioned Eithne to write music for his film _The_Frog_Prince_
     which was released in 1985. In the end only a couple of her pieces were
     used and these were arranged and performed by others. The film was
     released as _The_French_Lesson_ in the US.
                                                           ,       ,
     The titles on _The_Frog_Prince_ credit music to Enya Ni Bhraonain and
     the transition of Eithne to 'Enya' had begun.

     In 1986 BBC-TV began work on a six part documentary series charting the
     history and continuing cultural influence of the Celts. Enya was signed
     to write and perform music for the series. _The_Celts_ was first shown
     in 1987 and a selection of its music released under the title _Enya_
     giving the artist her first album, largely unnoticed at the time.

1.5  What was her 'big break'?

     This really began in 1987 when she was signed by Rob Dickins, head of
     WEA Music UK, after he had heard and been entranced by the _Enya_ album.
     Reknowned as one of the most arrogant men in the business, Dickins has a
     talent for promoting 'difficult' artists - no matter how long it takes.

     WEA's backing made the recording of _Watermark_ possible and the album
     was released in 1988. Although no singles were originally planned, it
     was the release Orinoco Flow that brought Enya to public attention and
     resulted in an unexpected chart number 1 in several countries. The rest,
     as they say, is history...

1.6  I keep hearing that 'Enya' is three people. What does this mean?

     Although fronted by Enya herself, the music released under her name is
     the result of a collaboration between Enya (music/arrangements), Nicky
     Ryan (production/arrangements) and Roma Ryan (lyrics). Enya has said in
     several interviews that without any one of them 'Enya' could not exist.

     ------------------------------------------------------------------------

2.1  What records and videos have been released?

     Albums:
        1987  Enya
        1988  Watermark
        1991  Shepherd Moons
        1992  The Celts (Remastered reissue of _Enya_)
        1995  The Memory of Trees

     Some pressings of _Watermark_, including the current US Reprise issue,
     have Storms In Africa (Part II) as an extra track.

     The original release of _Shepherd_Moons_ featured Book Of Days with
     an Irish lyric.  Pressings from mid-1992 onwards have replaced this
     with the English lyric version used in the film _Far_And_Away_.

     _The_Celts_ is the same as _Enya_ except that Portrait is replaced
     with an extended version of itself.

     Singles/EPs:
        1987  I Want Tomorrow
        1988  Orinoco Flow / Evening Falls...
        1989  Storms In Africa / 6 Tracks / Oiche Chiun
        1990  3 Tracks EP
        1991  Exile / Caribbean Blue / How Can I Keep From Singing?
        1992  Book Of Days / The Celts
        1994  The Christmas EP
        1995  Anywhere Is

     The singles dates refer to the first release of the title.  Many have
     been issued in several track combinations and a number contain tracks
     that are not featured on any of the album releases.

     Videos:
        1991  Moonshadows (Orinoco Flow / Exile / Storms In  Africa /
                           Evening Falls... / Caribbean Blue)

     Promo videos have also been seen for How Can I Keep From Singing?,
     Marble Halls, Book Of Days, The Celts, I Want Tomorrow and
     Anywhere Is.

2.2  Is there a more detailed discography available?

     A fuller discography is available from ftp.uwp.edu (see 5.3) in
     directory /pub/music/artists/e/enya:

     File     Maintainer                                Current Issue
     ----     ----------                                -------------
     discog2  Dave Allum     (D.R.Allum@bath.ac.uk)     7 (03 Jul 95)

     For those with World Wide Web viewers, an indexed HTML version is
     available via the Enya home page at URL:

        http://www.bath.ac.uk/~ccsdra/enya/homepage.html

     A book has also been published: _ENYA_A_Beginning_Discography_ by Matt   
     Hargreaves (apparently a private publication bearing neither publisher's 
     imprint nor ISBN). It is a 126 page, illustrated softback book detailing 
     worldwide releases up to early 1991. _Shepherd_Moons_ and later material
     are not covered.                                                         

2.3  Are there any books of her music?

     Watermark (1988, ISBN 0-7119-1771-X)
        Available in Europe from Wise Publications (order number AM73883) and
        from Hal Leonard in North America (order number 00308160).

     Shepherd Moons (1991, ISBN 0-7119-2903-3)
        Available in Europe from Wise Publications (order number AM88030) and
        from Hal Leonard in North America (order number 00308133).

     The Best Of Enya
        Contains twelve songs in simplified arrangements for the piano. It is
        available in North America from Hal Leonard (order number 00306039).

     The Memory Of Trees (1996, ISBN 0-7119-2903-3)                           |
        Available in Europe from Wise Publications (order number AM88030).    |

2.4  Some of her songs aren't in English. What other languages does she use?

     Enya's non-English songs are generally sung in Irish which is her first
     language.  Of the others, three are sung in Latin (Cursum Perficio,
     Afer Ventus, Pax Deorum), one is in Welsh (Dan Y Dwr), and one in
     Spanish (La Sonadora).

2.5  Where can I get translations?

     Daniel Quinlan (quinlan@bucknell.edu) maintains an excellent indexed
     hypertext set of translations on the web at:

     http://www.bucknell.edu/~quinlan/enya/index.html

     These are based in part on a compilation of material put together by
     Lyle Corbin (lylec@microsoft.com). Copies are available in both plain
     text and Word for Windows 6 formats from ftp.uwp.edu - see 5.3.

2.6  Have I heard Enya at the movies and on TV?

     Several of her pieces have been used in films:

     1990  Green Card        -  River, Storms In Africa, Watermark
     1991  L.A. Story        -  Epona, Exile, On Your Shore
     1992  Far And Away      -  Book Of Days (English lyric version)
     1992  Sleepwalkers      -  Boadicea
     1992  Toys              -  Ebudae
     1993  Age Of Innocence  -  Marble Halls

     A number of her tracks have been used in TV commercials and also as
     incidental music in numerous shows and documentaries.

2.7  Apart from Clannad has she appeared on any other artists' records?
               ,    ,
     1983  Mairead Ni Mhaonaigh & Frankie Kennedy / Ceol Aduaidh
           Synthesizer on track An Clar Bog Deil. The duo later formed the
           folk band Altan.

     1985  Christy Moore / Ordinary Man
           Keyboards and backing vocals. Also credited as one of the album's
           arrangers.
              ,
     1987  Sinead O'Connor / The Lion And The Cobra
           Spoken passage from the Bible (Psalms 91:11-13), in Irish, on
           track Never Get Old.

     1991  Terry Reid / The Driver
           Recorded at London's Sarm West studios at the same time that the
           Enya team were there mixing _Shepherd_Moons_.  The album features
           several uncredited guest artists with Enya providing a typical
           multi-tracked backing vocal on The Whole Of The Moon. Any other
           contributions from her are less obvious.

2.8  Is Storms In Africa (Part II) on _Watermark_ or not?

     Yes and no. The original issue of _Watermark_ (1988) did not feature the
     track which was first released as a single in 1989.  The 1989 reissue of
     the album added the track but most current pressings, with the exception
     of the US Reprise issue, have now reverted to the original format.

2.9  Can you tell which Book Of Days is on a copy of _Shepherd_Moons_?

     Unless you get the store to play it for you then, generally, you can't
     tell as the numbers and copyright dates on the sleeve are generally the
     same in both cases.  However it is unlikely that any of the original
     pressings are still on general release.

2.10 When is her next album coming out?

     1999? 2000? With her latest album, _The_Memory_Of_Trees_, released in
     November 1995, we could be in for a long wait.

2.11 Who is Ridley Scott and why is Aldebaran dedicated to him?

     Ridley Scott is a British film director with _Alien_, _Blade_Runner_,
     and _Thelma_&_Louise_ among his better known works.  The dedication
     is believed to be the result of Roma Ryan (Enya's lyricist) being a
     big fan of _Blade_Runner_.

2.12 Who are Rob Dickins and Ross mentioned in Orinoco Flow?

     we can sail, we can sail...
     we can steer, we can near with Rob Dickins at the wheel,
     we can sigh, say Goodbye Ross and his dependencies
     we can sail, we can sail...

     Rob Dickins is the head of WEA Music UK and was the executive producer
     of _Watermark_.  Ross Cullum was the album's engineer, and also its
     co-producer with Nicky Ryan and Enya.

     ------------------------------------------------------------------------

3.1  Does she tour?

     Not yet. She is on record as wanting to put her music on stage but, not
     wanting to sit surrounded by tape decks, would have to rearrange it for
     live performance.

3.2  How many records has she sold?

     Prior to the release of _The_Memory_Of_Trees_ Enya's worldwide CD sales
     topped 20 million. With 18 million album sales, this places her second
     only to U2 among Irish artists.

     Earnings from these sales have reportedly put Enya among Ireland's top
     hundred richest people.

3.3  Have any articles or interviews been transcribed?

     A number of magazine articles and TV and radio interviews have been
     transcribed, mostly by Peter Warburton (pwarburt@ibmpcug.co.uk), and
     posted as the Enya Papers. Copies - 26 papers were posted - are archived
     at ftp.uwp.edu and are also available, along with a collection of other
     transcriptions, on the World Wide Web (see 5.3).

3.4  Any news of Clannad and the rest of the family?

     Clannad have continued to perform and record. Their most recent album,   
     _Lore_, was released in February 1996.
      ,
     Pol left the band in 1989/90 and has recorded with the trio Trisan, who
     have released an eponymous album. A solo album for was due for release
     last autumn.
      ,                                    ,
     Maire has released two solo albums, _Maire_ (1992) and _Misty_Eyed_
     Adventures_ (1994).
                                    ,                      ,
     Sisters Deirdre, Olive and Bridin feature on both of Maire's albums, and
     Bridin has also toured and recorded with Clannad as a backing vocalist.

     Olive married in 1994, now lives in London, and will be moving to
     Australia this year. Her former job as manager of Leo's Tavern (see 1.2)
     has been taken over by her brothers Leon and Bartley.

3.5  Are any Enya posters available?

     The only posters seen so far are those used in record promotions. It's
     worth checking out the advertisements in music and record collecting
     magazines. In the UK a small selection is usually available from:

     Push Posters,
         PO Box 327, Clydebank, Dunbartonshire G81 3HE, U.K.
         Tel: (+44) (0)141 951 4460 / Fax: (+44) (0)141 951 4464

     A list is available and the company will take international orders.

3.6  What's her address? Is she on the net?

     The best way to write to Enya is via her record company: WEA in most of  |
     the world and Reprise in the USA. The address for Aigle Music previously |
     listed here is no longer valid.                                          |

     As far as we know she is not on the net.

3.7  Are there any fan clubs?

     ESTONIA
        Contact:
           Henry O'Possum (henry@raadio.vil.ee)
        Address:
           Henry, Viljandimaa Post, P.K. 25, EE2900 Viljandi, Estonia.

     NETHERLANDS
        Contact:
           Reinder van Til (281165r@xs1.xs4all.nl)
        Address:
           The Dutch Enya Fanclub, Reinder van Til,
           Thomas van de Dijkweg 13, 9801 EK Zuidhorn, The Netherlands.
        Details:
           Send a self addressed envelope and an International Reply Coupon
           for further information.

     ------------------------------------------------------------------------

4.1  Is a font of the _Watermark_ artwork script available?

     A TrueType font similar to the _Watermark_ script can be obtained via
     anonymous FTP from various archive sites. For example:

     System     Location
     ------     --------
     Apple II   ftp.cco.caltech.edu:/pub/apple2/addons/truetype/Enya.shk
     Macintosh  sumex-aim.stanford.edu:/info-mac/font/tt/enya.hqx
     Windows    ftp.cica.indiana.edu:/pub/pc/win3/fonts/truetype/enya.zip

     Please check (e.g. using archie) for the availability of these files at
     more local archives before downloading from those above.

4.2  Some say Enya sings in Irish, others say Gaelic. What's the difference?  
                                                                              
     Irish belongs to the Goidelic, or Gaelic, branch of the Celtic family of 
     languages. This branch consists of Irish, (Scottish) Gaelic and Manx.    
                                                                              
     Irish speakers refer to their language as 'Gaeilge' (i.e. Gaelic), but   
     the English word 'Gaelic', unqualified, normally refers only to Scottish 
     Gaelic. So when using standard English to describe Enya's native tongue  
     it is correct to say 'Irish' or 'Irish Gaelic' but not simply 'Gaelic'.

4.3  Are there any Enya sound files available?

     Short samples from _The_Memory_Of_Trees_ are available on Reprise
     Records' Enya page at:

     http://www.repriserec.com/Enya

4.4  What other artists make music simliar to Enya's?

     None! However a number of artists' names come up regularly as worthy of
     the attention of Enya fans. Given their familty connections, Clannad and
     Maire Brennan are obvious choices although their music is distinctly
     different. There are two Clannad pages available on Web:

        http://140.148.1.16/clannad/clann.shtml      (Charles Turnbull)
        http://www.empire.net/~whatmoug/clanhome.htm (John Whatmough)

     A Clannad mailing list is also available. To subscribe send a message
     to clannad@listserv.law.und.nodak.edu with the word "subscribe" (less
     the quotes) in the Subject line.

     More in keeping with the Celtic ambient, New Age, style are artists such
     as:

     Loreena McKennitt
        Mailing List  : old-ways-request@lists.mindspring.com
        World Wide Web: http://www.demon.co.uk/quinlan/index.html

     Sarah McLachlan
        Mailing List  : fte-request@yoyo.cc.monash.edu.au
        World Wide Web: http://www.ccs.itd.umich.edu/~hubt/sarah/

     Jane Siberry
        Mailing List  : majordomo@underground.irhe.upenn.edu
        World Wide Web: http://malletp.psyc.queensu.ca/siberry/

     ------------------------------------------------------------------------

5.1  What Usenet newsgroups discuss Enya?

     The newsgroup alt.music.enya is dedicated to Enya. There was previously
     a group called alt.fan.enya but this has now merged with alt.music.enya
     and all postings should be made to the latter. Sadly not all sites take
     the alt groups. Enya is also discussed occasionally in rec.music.newage
     and rec.music.celtic.

5.2  Is there a mailing list?

     Yes there is. It's run by Tim Hunter and you can subscribe by sending
     mail to majordomo@cs.colorado.edu with the following as the only text
     in the body of the message:

        subscribe enya Your-Email-Address

     Remember to replace "Your-Email-Address" with your own Email address.
     To remove yourself from the list, send mail to the same address with
     the following in the body of the message:

        unsubscribe enya Your-Email-Address

     An partial archive of the list is available for anonymous FTP at
     refuge.colorado.edu:/pub/enya/archive.

5.3  Where is all this information archived?

     A lot of Enya information is available from the UWP Music Archive run
     by Dave Datta:

     FTP - ftp.uwp.edu:/pub/music/artists/e/enya
     WWW - http://archive.uwp.edu/pub/music/artists/e/enya/

     This archive is a goldmine of material on a wide range of artists and
     is well worth exploring. It is always very busy and you may find access
     to one of its mirror sites more convenient:

     FTP - mirrors.aol.com:/pub/music
     FTP - music.wit.com:/uwp/music
     WWW - http://music.wit.com/uwp/music/

        Various Enya related documents, including this FAQ, a discography, and
     HTML versions of the Enya Papers are available on the World Wide Web on
     the Enya Unofficial Home Page at:

        http://www.bath.ac.uk/~ccsdra/enya/homepage.html

     Reprise Records have started an official Enya web page at:

        http://www.repriserec.com/Enya

     Another useful ftp archive for those also interested in Celtic music and
     artists in general is the Celtic Music Archive run by Gerard Manning at:

        http://celtic.stanford.edu/ceolas.html
        ftp://celtic.stanford.edu/pub

5.4  I don't have access to FTP, WWW, etc. Can I get things by Email?

     Most Internet services including FTP, WWW, and Usenet can be accessed
     by Email via a gateway server. Bob Rankin (BobRankin@MHV.net) maintains
     an excellent FAQ on the subject including plenty of server addresses.
     For a copy send an Email message to mail-server@rtfm.mit.edu with the
     following as the only text in the body of the message:

        send usenet/news.answers/internet-services/access-via-email

5.5  Which music papers or magazines have the best Enya coverage?
                                                                              
     The best coverage, by far, has been in the Irish fortnightly music paper
     _Hot_Press_. A couple of its articles have been transcribed and posted
     as part of the Enya Papers series (see 3.3). An online version of the
     magazine - _Hot_Press_on_the_'net_ - is available on subcription at:

        http://www.iol.ie/hotpress/

=============================================================================

