TARA HUNTER
Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it.
Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. ~Goethe
Oh they say in California there is gold to be found
Laying right on top of the ground
And the man who travels there could be rich as any king
There’s plenty to go around
So I set out on a clipper by the name of Bonadelle
And I’m wishin’ I was never born
Oh why did no one tell me that the journey’d be so hard
Goin’ ‘round that devil Cape Horn….
   -   'Round that Devil Cape Horn

Scarlettdawn is going on hiatus from Letter of Marque as she serves Two(+?) Years Before the Mast – hopping a clipper ship and heading to Californ-i-a to seek her fortune. (Meanwhile, Tara Hunter will be sailing a desk in Los Angeles, transferred by her work.)

She looks forward to returning to the port of Baltimore (hon’) to hoist a glass, tell tall tales of adventure, and raise a song with her old shipmates as often as possible.

Fair winds, friends. May our voyages cross again soon.

Surprisingly, I came to chanties through television specifically the Due South episodes which featured Stan Rogers' "Barrett's Privateers" and "Northwest Passage". When I went tall ship sailing onboard HMS Bounty in 1999, my shipmate "Big Steve" was kind enough to sing "Barrett's Privateers" over and over and over again for me (by the way, this is VERY annoying to many chanteymen). He also introduced me to some other chantey "chesnuts". Also while on Bounty, I had a fortuitous run-in with a bunch of singing pirates from Maryland. Little did I know that our paths would cross again .

After I moved to Maryland from my little landlocked hometown in Southwestern Virginia, I eventually found and joined the maritime living history group Ship's Company. It took me THREE YEARS to get up enough courage to sing at their Open Chantey Sing in Wheaton. I wanted to. I just physically couldn't get past my shyness. My voice teacher/ "musical therapist" Rita is to credit/blame for the transformation. Since then, I've sung with the caroling group Joyefull Noyse, as an occasional guest with the Ship's Company Chanteymen , as a guest with maritime-folk artist Don Stallone, and with my friend Barbara as the maritime duo Handsome Cabin Boys.

Back to television, my day job is in documentary film production. My goal in life is to produce a historical-based documentary that allows me to hire all my maritime friends as extras, include some chanties, and have a big historical dance sequence. I can dream.

Favorite maritime song: Northwest Passage by Stan Rogers

Non-maritime musical influences: Bonnie Raitt, Alanis Morissette, and Annie Lennox

-Tara

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