Soundwalk Walking piece details
| Language | English, Latin and Ikwerre |
An audio sound walk of Songs about Hope in all its facets.
After losing my sister in the pandemic, I found solace and hope in walking. I wanted to make an audio walk that looked at finding hope in challenging times linking to the landscapes around us, to make sense of the changing landscapes, touching on themes of migration, natural world and finding a sense of inner peace.
I was able to work with an array of collaborators who had in their own way helped me on my own personal journey through grief, and asked them to be part of this new work.
Set in two locations, Premiered at Tête – á – Tête The Opera Festival 29th Augsut 2023, starting at The Cockpit Theatre, and in the contrasting surrounding area incorporating local estates, Regent’s Park and landmarks such as London City Mosque.
This walk is also set within the rural landscape at re-wilding site “Wild Woodbury” which was once a derelict farm.
Part of Inside Out Festival Dorset 2023, the walk has been set to reflect each poem and create a soundscape for each location which enhances the landscape it sits in.
Recorded partly in rural Dorset, London, and Stockholm, EMS studios.
Composed in response to the poem “Hope is the thing with Feathers” by Emily Dickinson, composer Laura Reid has commissioned an array of writers from award winning librettists to best selling online authors to respond to the message of Hope explored in Emily’s poem.
Each has a unique perspective to the theme, and Laura’s music sets their words for soprano, piano, electronic cello, and strings. Laura seeks to challenge pre-conceptions around themes of Hope and Grief, and engage the listener with these themes.
The writers collaborating on this project are:
Oge Nwosu – Sustenance – about headlines, people facing huge challenges though circumstances beyond their control, featuring headlines of News articles about events around the world creating people to move and adapt to find Hope in despair.
“So, movement of all kinds. This lyric – if it can be called that – gives voice to headlines rather than people, and exists as much in its footnotes as in the sparsely sketched stories. The people represent a multiplicity of footnotes in recent history, each one at a liminal point between grief and hope, survival and erasure.” Oge Nwosu 2023.
Teresa Howard – Sacred Threads of Criniods.
“Emily Dickinson’s poem inspired me to write about Crinoids, one of the most ancient forms of sea life from the Echinodermata family, it looks like a bunch of feathers floating gracefully in the deep. Its presence in the sea, having outlived extinctions of other creatures like the dinosaurs, makes it a symbol of survival and hope. The poem is a prayer in homage to the ancient line of the Crinoid.” Teresa Howard 2023.
Katie Colombus Katie is the author of How to Listen and Pathways (Hachette) and has an extensive background in arts and wellbeing journalism.
“I remember when Julie first told us she was ill and that at some point in the near future she wouldn’t be here anymore, and it felt like it was going to be so hard. But she took control and made it the best possible ending of her time here, and that helped all the family in so many ways. She often talked about “the next adventure on the other side of the universe”; we went shopping for the brightest, most colourful dress we could find to wear at her funeral; she wrote letters and boxed up gifts for the future, and it all somehow softened the journey. Before she died we went travelling – we saw whales and dolphins, swam in the sea, hiked hills, walked in forests, and we all appreciated every moment, acutely aware of how precious that time was. It was in Kaikoura, New Zealand, that I had this dream about Julie being able to communicate with the whales in a secret language. It is my hope that this work will keep beautiful memories of a very special person alive.” Katie Colombus 2023.
Ahed Al Hamwi “You are the Hope” which is a personification of Hope. A writer based in the Southwest. Born in Syria, she also works as a translator.
Musicians:
Soprano Gweneth Ann Rand and piano by Allyson Devenish, both internationally acclaimed artists in their own right.
Credits
Oge Nwosu Teresa Howard Katie Colombus Ahed Al Hamwi
Soprano: Gweneth Ann Rand
Piano: Allyson Devenish
Producer / Composer / Cello: Laura Reid
Additional vocals Nwenende Horsefall
Images by Amy Reid and Heidi Steller http://www.heidisteller.co.uk/
Hosted by: echoes.xyz
