With haunting vocals and the soaring sounds of an electric violin, Kendall Dean took full advantage of the superb acoustics of the Old Walpole Meeting House on the evening of Saturday, June 24.
Dean played on a raised stage in the heart of the building with the carved pulpit rising behind her. An intimate crowd seated themselves in the grid of box pews that were once filled by families whose names still resonate in the county: Johnston, Sproul, Nickels, Faucet, and Hiscock.
There is no electricity in the historic building, and a single portable light bathed Dean in a saffron glow. The doors of the meetinghouse stood open to the evening air, still fresh from recent rains. A handful of lanterns and pillar candles were distributed around the perimeter and the rest of the space slipped into soft shadow as twilight fell.
Dean, a classically trained violinist who lists Celtic music as inspiration, particularly the songs of Enya and Loreena McKennitt, recently returned from Hawaii to Lincoln County, the place where her musical journey began.
Dean grew up in South Bristol and started playing violin at the age of eight after seeing a performance that featured the instrument. She was fascinated by the physical beauty of the curved wood, and by the quality of music it produced.
She honed her skills with local orchestras and participated in musical productions at Lincoln Theater. Dean credits vocal coach Beth Preston with recognizing that her path to a career in music might come through her vocal performance as much as through her instrumental skill.
She trained with musicians like Ferdinand “Dino” Liva of the DaPonte String Quartet and developed a love for the music of Ireland and Scotland.
“The traditional genres of music hit home,” she said. “It feels like I’m connecting to generations past.”
Connecting with the past is part of the magic of the Old Walpole Meetinghouse. Erected in 1772 before the separation of church and state, the building functioned as both a place of worship and a place for local politics.
The building is maintained by the Old Walpole Meetinghouse Association, a nonprofit that raises funds for repairs like those needed to preserve the original double-hung sash windows that line the walls. The windows are rumored to have cost the price of a cow when they were installed and are still expensive, with an estimated cost of $2,300 each to repair the exterior putty, according to Mary Hunter Bowers, president of the association.
The Society of Architectural Historians named the meetinghouse among the oldest in Maine, calling it a rare example that still stands in its original location and possesses its original form.
That form may well have been designed with acoustics in mind. An ornamented sounding board at the back of the pulpit was built to reflect sound back into the space, and the raised box pews seem to direct sound upward and inward, filling the center of the chamber with music.
Dean took full advantage of those acoustics during her performance. She used a looping system that can hold up to 100 tracks to build layers of instrumentals and vocal samples, adding even more depth to her sound.
In a brief interview before the show, Dean said she was cautious using technology. “I want you to hear me,” she said. “I want my rawness to be there. I don’t want it to sound perfect.”
Dean’s bow sighed across the solid body of her electric violin as she began her last song of the night: a cover of Phil Collins’ “In the Air Tonight.” She plucked the strings, adding notes within the looped beats.
Her voice as it filled the space was almost cinematic, not surprising since she counts film scores among her musical influences. With her vocal strength and purity of tone, it is easy to imagine it ringing out across wild moors or open oceans.
After more than 12 minutes, the looped track that built the rhythm behind the song fell silent, leaving the final flourish of Dean’s violin to drift for a moment, unimpeded in the reverent air.
Dean performs at Anne’s Book Bistro in Damariscotta Thursdays, 5:30-7:30 p.m., and during Sundays noon to 2 p.m. She has upcoming shows planned at venues in Freeport, Boothbay Harbor, and Portland.
For more information, go to kendalldeanmusic.com.
