Spring is definitely in the air at home in Central Scotland and I find myself thinking back often to the wonderful research period I spent in Morvern two years ago in late spring with composer Lisa Robertson, so this seems like a great time to announce our tour around Perthshire this summer of On A Wing and A Prayer – Reflections on Morvern’s changing habitats.
When Lisa and I worked together in Morvern, I was struck by the lushness of the environment: the vibrant greens of new leaves on the trees, the incredible variety of shapes and forms, some really quite bizarre, of the lichens and also by the presence all around of water, be it the freshwater high mountain streams or the sea that connects Morvern to Mull and Oban and provides work for the fishermen. Most of all I was impressed by how this resourceful and positive community harnessed the power of water in as environmentally friendly way as possible.
All of our venues on this tour have been chosen for their proximity to native woodland and bodies of water that have, at some point in time, been harnessed for the power they provide.
Performances
7th June – Weigh Ahead Gallery, Dunblane. 6pm and 8pm
12th June – Strathearn Arts, Crieff. 7:30pm
14th June – Birnam Arts 2pm
Additionally, in Birnam we’ll be partnering again with the wonderful Orla Stevens, who will be delivering an art workshop in and around Dunkeld and Birnam on drawing to sound. This will take place from 10-12:30 on 14th.
Why not come for the whole day and take advantage of Birnam Arts’ special lunch and concert deal?
Click here to find out more about all these events and to buy tickets.
Music from the Atlantic Rainforest
On A Wing and A Prayer Morvern is centred on the Atlantic Rainforest on the Morvern Peninsula in the West Highlands of Scotland. During our research week, Lisa and I met with local expert Alasdair Firth, who taught us about the Atlantic rainforest around his croft and in particular about the lichens that grow there. This was a real eye-opener for me and I became fascinated by these small organisms that grow in so many varied forms. Our piece A’choille-uisge/The Rainforest, which is semi-improvised using images of lichens as a graphic score, was the direct result of this visit.
We also met with to Steve Hardy of the Scottish Wildlife Trust who told us more about the Rahoy Nature Reserve, its woodlands and birdlife as well as the pressures on this precious habitat. I’m particularly pleased to include Oakwood, End of May by Steve in this programme, where it will provides a moment for peace and reflection.
The Power of Water
Another topic we explored was how the abundant supply of water in Morvern has been harnessed to the benefit of the local population and the environment. This is a topic very close to Lisa Robertson and her family as her father, Angus, was involved in the design of the Ardtornish hydro scheme, and her mother, Jenny, provided archaeological advice on the area affected by the scheme.
The resulting commission from Lisa, ar lùths (our power), is thus a very personal response to the watery habitats of Morvern. We’re especially delighted to also be presenting on this piece at the 7th International St Magnus Conference at UHI Perth this April.
Our music is presented alongside video of the rainforests from our residency and Kathleen Jamie’s poetry from The Green Room. This was also inspired by Morvern and was an extra stimulus and inspiration for us. We’re very greatful to Kathleen and Clutag Press for allowing us to use these texts.
Icelandic Reflections
Of course, no Nordic Viola programme would be complete without an eye on Scotland’s link to its North Atlantic neighbours and in this programme we turn to the music of Icelander Anna Thorvaldsdóttir. Reflections is a string trio that we chose to complement Lisa’s compositional style, which uses the string trio as a textural palette. In our programme, Reflections serves as a transition from the bleak picture of climate change to the more hopeful stewardship of nature that we experienced in the Morvern community.
On A Wing and A Prayer – Deeside travels south
In addition to touring with Lisa Robertson, I’m delighted that On A Wing and A Prayer – Deeside with Pete and Joe Stollery will be travelling down to Sheffield, close to the village where I grew up. We’ll be performing as part of Sound Junction – a weekend of events covering ambisonics, electroacoustic, audiovisual and field recordings.
In this programme, Aberdeenshire composers Pete Stollery and Joe Stollery and I explore the changing ecology of Deeside, exploring the aftermath of Storm Frank around Glen Quoich as well as the changing ecology of our woodlands and wetlands.
Our music was created through improvisation, composition and field recording and celebrates the beauty and diversity of this wild place and its ability to adapt and renew itself in the face of severe weather events. The programme also features -the new forest- by Scottish-Icelandic composer Charles Ross. This is one of the pieces I have performed most over the last couple of years and it’s proved exceptionally popular with audiences at Nordic Music Days in Glasgow and Myrkirmúsikdagar in Iceland.
Our recording of this programme has proved really popular, so if you can’t make it to Sheffield, you can always buy our digital album via Bandcamp.
Would you like to bring On A Wing and A Prayer to your community? Our three existing programmes explore island, mountain, woodland and river environments and we’re always open to exploring new habitats around Scotland and the Far North as they evolve with our changing climate. If you’d like us to work with your community, contact us here
Additionally, you can keep up to date with all our activities by subscribing.
Discover more from nordicviola
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
