At home on stage

Date Published: 31-Oct-2008

FOR many people, the thought of getting up on stage and performing to others is daunting. For the more shy and retired, the prospect must be terrifying. But for one Galway singer songwriter who is self described as “always being in the background”, it was the most natural thing in the world to take to the stage and belt out her songs.

Stacey Nolan is quiet and unassuming, yet when she sings her self-penned songs, her confidence exudes as well as her dolce tones. It was by accident, though, that she was ‘discovered’, having spent most of her free time growing up locked away in her bedroom playing her guitar and singing and only performing in school concerts and Masses where her song writing talents were rarely exposed.

Growing up with a mother who sang regularly, it was only natural that a love of music would be instilled in the Bohermore girl at a young age.

“I had a tiny guitar when I was two and I wanted to learn more than anything else, it was a child size guitar. I was heartbroken when it was broken when I was four or five and then I had to make do with pretending to play on a tennis racquet,” laughs Stacey.

It was at eight years of age that she eventually got a ‘real’ guitar and she took lessons for a year before she began teaching herself how to play and rather than reading music as such, Stacey generally picks up songs by ear; “People often say I have an unorthodox strum, it’s not technical.
Because you’re playing by ear and you know what song it is, you can pick it up because you know what it sounds like. I play what it sounds like to me.”

Never too fazed by performing to large crowds, outside of her music Stacey has …