LEAVING behind a career as a secondary school teacher to become a full time musician is a risk that has paid off for Louise Jordan.
 

When writing material for her second album ‘Florilegium’, Louise said, “I found the lyrics were much more positive” and puts it down to the happiness she has found in her new career, although she describes it as “more than a full time job.”
 

Hampshire-based Louise is very much a one-woman operation – writing, singing, mixing and recording her own material as well as booking and promoting her own shows.
 

“There are budgetary reasons why I do things myself,” she explained, “but there’s a lot to say for having complete control when you are starting out – it’s great to understand how the music industry works.”
 

Originally from a classical and choral singing background, Louise fell in love with folk music on a trip to Ireland at the age of 18.
 

Folk has an increasingly wide definition but for Louise it simply means ‘music of the people’.
 

“It’s music passed from one person to another by ear and it’s great to be a part of that.”
 

One of the songs on ‘Florilegium’, ‘I Know Where I’m Going’, is a traditional song which Louise has reworked with a modern context by making it about honour-based violence.
 

‘Florilegium’ is a Latin word meaning ‘anthology’ and Louise said the idea was, “to create a gathering of human experiences from the beautiful things that happen to the more difficult, unattractive things.”
 

Her first album was a 50-50 split between original material and traditional songs but with ‘Florilegium’ the balance shifts more towards her self-penned tracks.
 

“I started out wanting to make it entirely original songs but then a couple of traditional songs became important to me.”
 

“There was a Christina Rossetti poem that I really wanted to set to music, which I did on the first album with a Hardy poem.
 

“In a way that’s more of a challenge because you’re using someone else’s text and bringing it to life.
 

“I’m very interested in literature so it’s no surprise I enjoy using it with my music.”
 

Louise is playing at Ye Olde John O’Gaunt, Lancaster, on April 26, Mortal Man, Windermere, on April 27, Ireby Festival on May 23-4 and The Platform, Morecambe, on May 27.