In the early 1990s, a chorus and musicians rehearsed and recorded the album (or as it was then called, the "cassette") Let It Begin Now. Robin Dolan was part of the chorus for the recording.

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GF: What was the purpose of the Spiral Dance recordings – was it meant to be a "teaching tape," like the first Chants cassette??

Robin: It wasn't strictly a teaching tape. A lot of people wanted to know about the ritual we were doing in San Francisco and to be able to bring it back to their home communities or other pagan communities.

It wasn't as much a teaching tape like Chants was. People weren't expected to go to it and learn, oh, here's a song for my ritual. Chants was more like, here's a song you can learn in five minutes.

I also think [Let It Begin Now] was a recording of a moment in time. These are the things we're doing and we want to value them and treasure them.

GF: So in a way, you sit down and listen to the album and you're going through a ritual.

Robin: Yeah.

 

SINGING AT THE SPIRAL

GF:  Tell us about singing on the Spiral Dance album.

Robin: It was amazing – to be working with Starhawk, this person whose books I had read. The Spiral Dance was absolutely integral for me. Even when I was doing British Traditional Witchcraft, it was a life-changing book.

GF: How did you get involved?

Robin: I sang in the Spiral Dance chorus for the first time in 1989. I was dating somebody in a different magical community and I said I really want to sing. I studied voice in college and took voice lessons. And they said, do you know about the Spiral Dance? So I ended up singing and the rest is history. It was thrilling to be invited!

GF: And the recording grew out of being part of the chorus?

Robin: I think it was 1990 was when we started recording the cassette, which came out in 1992. Brook and Anne Hill and Starhawk produced it. All these amazing singers were there, including Suzanne Sterling and Susan Falkenrath and Thorn Coyle.

I sang on three pieces – the Elements song ["The Guardians Song"], "Let It Begin Now," and the "Devocation."

 

RECORDING 'LET IT BEGIN NOW'

GF: What do you remember about recording the song, "Let It Begin Now"? That song is such a core part of the ritual.

Robin: It was amazing. I was all wide-eyed and innocent the first time!

I did solos at the end of the "Year of Beauty, Year of Plenty" part. I don't remember if the instruments were playing with us, or what. There were probably eight or so singers who all jumped in and did a section.

My voice cracked slightly at the end – it still bugs me to this day. But it's very emotional, so it's good.

GF: Were you all singing together, or recording one person at a time?

Robin: It was all one recording, because it had to build. So there was this thing like, you're at the mic, now get out of the way and let another person get to the mic!

GF: What about the ritual itself? What was it like to sing in the ritual?

Robin: It was unbelievable. 1989  was the 10th anniversary. Brigid Lutrasong was the choir director at that time.

It was one of my first experiences of the group energy that Reclaiming is so good at. It's a different thing to do magic with a group of large people.

It was amazing, the creativity of the invocations, the dancing, the altars, the spoken word bits, the amazing physical work. It had so many creative elements.

Being in the chorus was a little overwhelming, because I think there were at least 30 of us that year. I didn't know the pieces as well as everybody else because it was my first time.

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RECORDING OTHER SONGS

GF: Tell me about Judy Foster's song, The Gates (written by Starhawk and Chorus).

Robin:  My impression in being in the room was that it was really important that Judy be the person to do the spoken part. Because she was such an integral part of the ritual.

As you know, Judy held the North Altar for so many years. I feel like she was one of the major hearts of that ritual, which was about honoring the dead. And she was the one who really wanted an altar where people could put photos up.

And so it was very important for her to do the poetry part.

 

GF: What about the Devocation song – No End to the Circle (written by Starhawk)?

Robin: It's a beautiful song. What I remember about recording it was that we had the opportunity to make each line distinct, so it's not just listing, listing, listing. Each line really had its flavor.

Different people sang the different parts. Ted, who sang [the God Song] sang the line, "The God who is tender yet untamed..." And the people who sang the Goddess Song sung those lines.

That's a song that's sung right at the end of the ritual, it's after the spiral, so there is a certain curious energy in the room. It's very up, and up energy, and also some people are leaving. So that song kind of has to wrap the energy up. It has to wrap the ritual up.

I don't always think it works! But I don't think it's the fault of the song. You've got to come back from the Isle of apples, and then the [invoking] dancers have to dance again. And the fae, the elements, blah, blah, blah – they all have to be devoked. Usually the song devokes most everything.

 

GF: Tell us about the Guardians' Song for the elements (written by Amber Khan-Engel). How did it end up being a jazz song?

Robin: I suspect it was Brook and possibly Starhawk's brother Mark who wanted to make it jazz. They wanted to bring something creative into it. It was mostly coming from the instrumentalists, because they were into just finding a different groove with it. It's interesting, but it's not what we usually do, and I don't think it's ever been done at the ritual like that.

GF: Did you sing on the Guardian song?

Robin: I'm sure I was in the chorus. I might have also been one of the elements. It was a little challenging. Yeah, it was a little challenging, getting a group of people to sing together on a song like that.

 

CHORUS, RITUAL, & COMMUNITY

GF: You eventually became director of the chorus – tell us about that transition.

Robin:  Brigid stepped down, I think it was 1994. And she suggested I be the choir director. It was a lot to get used to because there's a lot of elements to it. It's a mixture of community building and quality maintenance.

To me, it's more important that people feel included and supported than perfection. I think of it as a community experience. I gave people chances to sing whose voices were sometimes on the edge. They weren't always consistently perfect, I'll say.

But when they were good, they were really good. If people are singing from their heart, that is equally valuable.

I agree that the music should be of a certain quality. Absolutely. But I also think It's a ritual.  And if somebody makes a mistake, it's part of it. It's okay. I feel like we need to bring that attitude to the Spiral Dance.

It's important that it's a good, positive experience for people.

GF: It seems like the music director has to be in close contact with the ritual priestesses.

Robin: Definitely. One of the jobs of the choir director is to be synced in with the two people leading the [twin arms of the] spiral dance, and to know when to "call" the energy shift. It's very subjective. But it's a mind- and body-changing experience to feel that energy shift. And to direct that energy shift.

GF: What is your goal when you are directing the chorus?

Robin: I think the purpose of the chorus is to support everything else that's happening in the ritual, to accent it, and to respond to what happens. So if something happens that's "wrong," our job is to go with it. Improvisation.

I think the goal is for everyone to be empowered. Really everyone – the participants, the dragons, it's like a beautiful moment for all of us. It is a spiritual, magical event.

For me, it's not just about the music. The priority is actually engagement. Engaging people. There's a somatic component needed throughout it. It's really important to remember that it's a ritual and a spiritual experience.

GF: What has been the impact of having a recording of the Spiral Dance music?

Robin: I don't want to sound critical, but there's a risk that when something gets set into stone people start to think "this is how this should be done."

I get the impression that [in the early years of the ritual] people sang the litany differently – they made up what they sung each time.

Since the album was created, a lot of times people try to sing the parts the way they're sung on the album. I miss the creativity that people brought to it – the different note choices and different rhythmic and emotional choices.

The thing about Reclaiming, I believe, is that we are constantly creating. I think of Reclaiming as improvisation versus scripted theater – being in the moment and responding to what's happening in the moment. And if you're trying to recreate something, it puts you in a different headspace.

GF: Anything else you want to share?

Robin: I'm so lucky to have experienced this. It's such a gift. I feel blessed to have experienced one of the most amazing fucking things in the world!