There is but a small percentage of the population that will encounter the violence, tragedy and, yes, occasional necessity of war – but for each combatant, there are families. There are friends and loved ones who must build lives around the impact war has wrought on their returned family members; there are many who must reconstruct lives around their fatal absence.

In The Soldier’s Wife, Deb Suckling is helming a cadre of musicians who are shaping the stories of women affected by war into songs of posterity, with performers including Sahara Beck, Leah Flanagan and Bertie Page. So far, it has proved a long and inspiring road.

“Obviously we’re dealing with a very sensitive topic,” Suckling says. “In Brisbane, which is where the songwriters are based, Legacy have what’s called The Laurel Club. It’s held every week, and it’s a group of women aged from around 70 to 104. We went and spoke to them about the project, gauged how they’d feel about talking to us. There was obviously a lot of reluctance at first, especially with the older women. It’s keeping private.

“So we went in, played piano, we took guitars, and talked about day-to-day stuff. Their families, our own families. Slowly we built a trust. They started sharing with us, and then people started bringing in photos, telling the whole story, and it was just amazing to watch how that progressed. Seeing these women recognise we weren’t just there to get a story out of them, but that we respected them and would do the right thing in making their stories public.”

The stories of women whose everyday experiences have been touched by the shadow of war and grief are largely unheard. It can be a deeply private wound, and not readily exposed. Yet while there is no accurate measure of how many people have found their lives affected in this way, the number is surely significant. From World War II widows to young wives whose husbands are even now serving overseas, the individual stories are legion.

“In the beginning I didn’t have too great expectations,” laughs Suckling. “I don’t come from a military background at all, but I do know they can be quite closed groups. And there we were, this group of creatives and songwriters! It’s very difficult to expect people to share their innermost thoughts with you about things they haven’t deliberately spoken about previously. What we found definitely exceeded our expectations.

“But I guess the other thing that came out of it wasn’t just learning about their stories, but getting young women to spend time with older women. Theirs are stories of life and history, and it’s an amazing thing for younger women to learn. I’ve certainly fallen in love with spending time with these older women and getting their expertise on the world.”

While Suckling has never feared her project bit off more than it could chew, the scale of its vision and the incremental support from participants has been extraordinary. The songs that have emerged are evocative insights and recollections that form a vital part of Australia’s cultural and military heritage. Suckling’s own addition, ‘Sofa Down The Hall’, is outstanding (this and several others can be heard on The Soldier’s Wife’s SoundCloud profile). Yet while the project has met great support and encouragement, it is a far cry from Suckling’s ordinary life.

“I run an indie record label, I look after young artists in that world. To go from touring those artists, working with triple j, doing festivals, into a project like this, is huge. We use the artists who are on the label, but also other friends and songwriters who I really respect, and for us to be playing at the Opera House, it’s just…” She trails off, lost for words.

“It’s incredible. Even for the songwriters – from their perspective, it’s such a benefit to their own writing. Of course, we make sure that the songs we write based on these stories meet these women’s approval long before they go anywhere near the public. It’s a really consultative project, especially since it’s our privilege to have them share these stories at all. We take that really seriously.”

Nor will the project wrap anytime soon. So far, The Soldier’s Wife has only glanced across the innumerable stories that are waiting out there – future efforts will likely see the collective spread across regional Australia, and potentially abroad. But parallel to the cultural and historical value of these collaborations is the therapeutic element of women sharing memories; of expressing sadness and celebration that, for too long, remained buried.

“We’ve only just started, but just in the last 12 months we’ve seen so many stories,” Suckling says. “We’ve only just touched the surface. It’s not just the stories, it’s the emotional benefit it has for these women. Being able to share with a bunch of strangers who will then turn around and write a song about their experiences, record them, and maybe catch some of those things that they just weren’t able to talk about before. That’s the essence of the whole project. Putting stories into song, and then giving back something that might not be so painful to share, something they can say, ‘This is my story, here in this song.’ They can then play it for their friends rather than reliving it. It makes it that bit easier to share.”

The Soldier’s Wife is on at the Studio, Sydney Opera House on Friday August 7.

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