FOR Canowindra singer-songwriter Nerida Cuddy, music has always been about telling stories.
She’s spent much of her life in regional New South Wales and has called Canowindra home for almost 25 years, becoming part of the community through her music, teaching, and her and her husband’s business, Perennialle Plants Nursery Cafe and Emporium.
“I think I’ve always been a storyteller,” Cuddy said.
Her love of stories began at home, listening to her father tell tales around the dinner table.
“He was a great storyteller,” she said.
Those early experiences have found their way into her songwriting, where people and place are a central theme to her lyrics.
Cuddy studied English literature and drama at university and initially planned to become a teacher in those subjects.
Instead, she has spent the past decade teaching music in Eugowra, introducing students to styles and compositions they may not otherwise have the opportunity to hear.
Her own music is generally described as contemporary folk with elements of country, although Cuddy said the term singer-songwriter suits her best.
For her, songwriting is about telling a story without giving the audience all the answers.
“People don’t want to be banged over the head with information,” she said. “They would much prefer to hear a great story that makes them think.”
One example is a song about Kate Kelly, sister of bushranger Ned Kelly, who died in Forbes.
The song explores themes of trauma, grief and loss through Kate’s story, allowing listeners to draw their own connections.
“I just think it’s much more powerful to have people think about Kate and then wonder about those things,” she said.
Cuddy has also taken her storytelling on the road, performing her Strength of Stories tour in towns across Outback NSW.
The tour came at a time when she was reflecting on the strength of small communities.
“I really wanted to affirm to them how much I admire their community,” she said.
That connection to regional communities is also reflected in her song This Whole Place is Home, which explores the sense of belonging that comes with life in a small town.
“We’re all in this together. We don’t face life alone. Living in a small town, this whole place is home,” the song says.
It’s a sentiment Cuddy knows well after decades of building connections in Canowindra and Eugowra.
She speaks warmly of the people who support her music and regularly attend her performances, whether at a local show or further afield.
She also encourages audiences to sing along.
“I love it,” she said. “It gets people breathing, and they kind of wake up again and keep listening.”
Cuddy performances range from intimate shows and community events to folk festivals, with her next performance set for the Galari River Arts Festival in Forbes.
After almost 25 years in Canowindra, the community remains one of her greatest sources of inspiration.
“I treasure the people that are here,” she said. “We’ve all seen each other through a lot of different times.”