Music, readings and more at LitSoc’s Songs of Ice and Fire

LitSoc give new life to some of our all-time favourite books at their highly anticipated event, Songs of Fire and Ice

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Tuesday evening saw the Literary Society’s event Songs of Ice and Fire take place in the GMB. To say it was ‘lit’ would be an understatement. The plush sofas of the room made for the perfect environment to listen to the readers and the musicians perform.

The evening of music and literature began when Sadbh Kellett came forward and introduced the event and the first reading, Lord of the Rings which was captivating and eloquent. Following the reading, Concerning Hobbits was played by Deirbhile and Sadbh Brennan. The sound of their violins rang through the room and swept the audience away to the world of the Hobbits.

Next, Brid Nolan read from The Hunger Games, the section following Rue’s heart-wrenching murder. Like Kellett, Nolan’s reading was pleasant to listen to; it took me back to my first time reading The Hunger Games and learning of Rue’s terrible death. With Deirbhile and Sadbh accompanying her on violin, Nolan sang a chilling rendition of The Hanging Tree from the movie adaptation of the book.

Outlander was read by David Donovan followed by The Skye Boat Song sung by Kellett. Both the reading and the acapella were wonderful to listen to, with the song standing out as the better of the two. Nonetheless, Donovan’s reading captured the audience.

In the run up to this event, I was most excited to hear Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone read aloud and Hedwig’s Theme played. As a massive Potter fan myself, the only complaint that I have is that this rendition was too short – I needed more than thirty seconds!

Following this, both Sherlock and Les Misérables were read, followed by A Dream to Dream and On My Own played by Fergus Tremar Menendez on the saxophone. I thoroughly enjoyed his music- it was both moving and calming. So much so, that I was in danger of falling asleep! One of my personal favorites was the reading of Pride and Prejudice, read by Gillian Kiely. At first I couldn’t quite place what I liked most about it, but then I realized that something about the way she read the words reminded me of Elizabeth Bennet herself!

Following Pride and Prejudice was Chris Joyce’s reading of The Great Gatsby. Joyce did an amazing job of reflecting Daisy’s melancholy monologue about her wishes that her daughter be a “beautiful little fool”, and the accompanying rendition of Lana Del Ray’s “Young and Beautiful” played by David Donovan was eerie and chilling- just as Ms Del Ray would have wanted it. Last but certainly not least was Jacob Woolf reading A Storm of Swords by George R.R. Martin. Woolf’s love for the novel was evident in his enthusiasm and his changing voices for each character.

Overall, Songs of Fire and Ice was a wonderful literary event and all who were there thoroughly enjoyed it. I noticed many happy and relaxed faces when leaving the GMB. It was the perfect end to a Tuesday evening and one that will hopefully take place again in the future.