Folk Song from our Story Tree Tent

A fabulous Folk song from our Story Tree Tent before we release our edit from 8 hours of fascinating stories.

Jasper in the Company of Others

Our Collecting Stories tent was a HUGE success at Southwell Folk Festival. Being situated opposite the beer tent had its advantages with festival goers gaining confidence to record their stories after a tipple or two.

Thanks to the AMAZING tech team at Micro-Video, we recorded almost 80 hours of footage over the three days, which Charles and Heather, expertly (and very kindly) edited down to a mammoth 8 hours of stories, told by 70 members of the public aged between 5 and 75 years young.

We were extremely lucky to gather stories and songs from some of the exceptionally talented musicians performing at the festival. So to wet your appetite we have an exclusive acoustic song, performed to our Story Tree, by Jasper in the Company of Others.

or click here to watch https://vimeo.com/69251256

Follow Jasper on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/jasperinthecompanyofothers

Keep an eye on our Blog for more songs and stories to follow or come and see some of them for yourselves at our Collecting Stories sharing evening, Friday 12 July, from 6.30pm at The Minster School Theatre, Southwell.

Story Tree at Southwell Folk Festival

Come and see our Story Tree at Southwell Folk Festival and tell us a tale...or three! Watch our 3 min film here...

Or click here http://vimeo.com/67716128

If you have an interesting story about where you live; the trees and the breeze and the earth, landscape or raked fields. Talk to our Story Tree and record your folk story for our project funded by the Heritage Lottery.

Or Email podblogcollectingstories@gmail.com with a sentence or three. 

Your story might feature in our event on Friday 12th July, 2013 at The Minster School Studio, Southwell, Nottinghamshire at 7pm.

Story Tree

Come and see our Story Tree...

The world famous Folk Festival live from sunny Southwell, plays host to our Collecting Stories tent, where we bring the outside in and invite you to tell a tale or two. 

Phil weaves the willow

           


We worked with fantastic local artist Carole Beavis to create our Story Tree out of willow and wood (pictured above with Richard)

Our Story Tree will be sat proudly in our Collecting Stories tent at Southwell Folk Festival on Friday 7 and Sat 8, June 

http://www.southwellfolkfestival.org.uk/

If a tree grows for 300 years, lives for 300 years, then dies for 300 years; What in that time could a tree see? If it had ears what would it hear?

Our Story Tree is ready to listen and record your stories of Southwell, tales from the Trent or natterings of Nottinghamshire. We want your folklorical knowledge of local heritage, stories rooted in the trees and leaves of Newark and Sherwood. 

Be it fairy-tale, fact, fable or fiction, just relax in the arm-chair of our outdoor living room and spin us a yarn or two and we'll digitally record your local story, which may feature in our celebration event at The Minster School studio, Friday 12th July, 7pm. 

If you would like to email us a story and arrange an appointment for us to record it, please email a few sentences to podblogcollectingstories@gmail.com

Rhythm of Life

Musician and artist Biant brought twelve Djembe drums to Collecting Stories and taught us all to tune in to our natural life rhythms.

As we tapped our hands on the drums the smiles grew bigger and the sound grew louder and taps turned in to beats and rhythms.

Biant told us all about his heritage of India and how his family came to live in Nottingham. He spoke about home and traditions and the stories his family would tell.

Did you know that the very British story of the Green Man is found all over the world with Green Men in Egypt and India?

We wonder if our stories might be heard and even told in other countries.

Biant’s story inspired us to tell our own stories of how we came to live and work in Southwell in Newark and across Nottinghamshire.

A chance to share our own intriguing journey and give an audience an insight in to who we are.

 
 

Potwell Dyke Tour

We had a FANTASTIC tour of Potwell Dyke on a rather windy but sometimes quite sunny day of May.

Robin and Mandy were our fabulous tour guides. Here's Mandy introducing us to the day...

We learn't about all the different (in some cases rare) flowers, plants and even poisonous weeds. 

Robin introduced us to many varieties of birds tweeting from the trees (none of them were face booking though :)

We learn't about the different names for flowers and how they came about and we held a plant which had a square stem and a green shoot that came in several removable sections. It was fascinating to uncover what we don't notice is right underneath our feet.

Do you know how a cow slip got its name? The lovely yellow and on occasion red flowers grow where cows graze and we all know what cows produce a lot of...and pats are quite slippery - hence the name 'cow slip'.

Our trip inspired Creative Producer Tracy to forage for and cook some really tasty nettle soup.

Extremely Healthy!

Exceptionally Tasty!

Maypole Dance Fusion

This week we have been getting our groove on! Learning some traditional maypole dance moves and adding our unique twist with some Bee Gee's/Bhangra Nights cultural fusion.

Unanima Theatre's Creative Producer - Tracy, creates a make-shift rehearsal  maypole with red wool and masking tape...it's like Blue Peter in here!

Ricky, Ali and Rachel busting some 'Staying Alive' moves around our rehearsal maypole.

Anthony and Laila enjoying the comedy dance moves

Laura and Support Worker Keely working out some steps alongside Ricky and Sarah

Moving to the beat!

Phillip and Laila - smiles all round

Some contemporary dance moves mashed up around the traditional maypole. 






Ali speaks about the maypole dance session on a rather busy road in Southwell.