Saturday 28 August 2010

Traditional music events - September

From the Traditional Arts Team:

Hope you all had a good summer break and are looking forward to lots of music activities in the autumn!

On Sunday 5 September there's a free tune arranging workshop with Louisa Davies and Peter Churchill of the band Elfynn at the Bulls Head from 11am to 12:30pm. They will teach a simple tune and then look at ways of making it more interesting, exploring rhythms, chords, instrumentation and harmony. Suitable for all instruments including percussion - bring your instruments along! This is part of the Moseley Folk Festival but you don't need a festival ticket for the workshop.

On Sunday 12 September the Moseley Village Band will be playing from 2:00-2:30pm at the Waterhall Gallery in Birmingham as part of ArtsFest. This group of musicians meets twice a month to make music together and explore the style and repertoire of the English village music tradition. We welcome all musicians to our meetings at St Columba's Church Hall in Moseley at 7:30pm on the second and fourth Thursday of each month.

The next traditional music session will be at 8pm on Sunday 19 September at the Prince of Wales pub, Alcester Road, Birmingham B13 8EE, when all are welcome to enjoy playing and listening to English, Scottish & Irish folk music and song.

And if you like dancing to traditional music, there will be a ceilidh with live music from Cuckoo's Nest, caller Alex McClure at 8pm on Saturday 18 September at the Holy Name Parish Centre, 9 Cross Lane, Great Barr, Birmingham, B43 6LN. Tickets £6 from Val Comery 0121 358 2502

Best wishes - Pam

--
PAM BISHOP

Traditional Arts Team
19 Springfield Road
Kings Heath
Birmingham
B14 7DU

tel 0121 247 3856
pam@tradartsteam.co.uk

The Traditional Arts Team runs activities in the Midlands relating to traditional song, music, storytelling and dance, and publishes the Folk Monthly magazine. More info at www.tradartsteam.co.uk

Who is doing what, where and how in the Midlands folk scene? Make your views known via www.folkmonthlysurvey.info Reply early and be entered into a fabulous prize draw to win tickets to the Moseley Folk Festival!

The Traditional Arts Team is supported by Arts Council England

Sustainability Centre - official launch

The official launch of Leamington’s Sustainability Centre will be held on Saturday 11th September at 12.30. The centre and garden will be open to the public between 12 noon and 3pm that day.


The Sustainability Centre is at East Lodge, Jephson Gardens, Willes Road, Leamington Spa, CV32 4ER.

Thursday 19 August 2010

Acappella Songs to stir the soul

A singing workshop led by Sarah Pennington and Gilo

10:30-4:30, Sat 9 Oct, Unitarian Chapel, High St, Warwick (CV34 4AX)

A harmony singing workshop featuring beautiful sacred songs from different traditions and cultures around the globe: Shape note, Taize, Iona, Harmonic Temple, simple native chants, rousing gospel, and much more.

Gilo & Sarah have been teaching together since 2002 and have built up an enthusiastic following in Dorset and far beyond. They quickly create a safe and fun atmosphere and meld a group into a community of singers for the day. There will be plenty of gentle humour and a patient, sensitive teaching style. No need to read music or think of yourself as a singer: just bring your voice and a smile! The emphasis will be on harmony and simplicity, stillness and celebration, creating angelic sounds to summon up warmth and wonder.

All the songs and chants on this workshop will be taught “by ear”.

Cost for the day £24 Please bring some food for a shared lunch.
******* only £20 if full payment is made by end of August ******
Book by sending a cheque (payable to “Bruce Knight”), to 14 Kennan Ave, Leamington Spa, CV31 3HY. This will reserve your place. For more info, ring 01926 778454, or email bruceknight.voice@virgin.net Places are limited – our workshops normally sell out, so early booking is advised. Please include an SAE if you’d like confirmation and / or directions

Friday 6 August 2010

Small is... festival, 4th-5th September 2010

Dear Canalside Friends,

I would like to invite you all to Practical Action’s (www.practicalaction.org.uk) second Small is… Festival on September 4-5th 2010. The Small is… Festival is a celebration and evolution of the ideas of “Small is Beautiful”, written by our founder, E.F. Schumacher in 1970, but which still has profound significance today. The weekend event provides a space to share skills, learn about technologies, create networks, develop ideas and to be inspired about international development, sustainability and the planet. It is held in our beautiful, rural office grounds in Bourton on Dunsmore, the Leamington side of Rugby.

The first Small is… Festival in 2009 was a great success! We hope to recreate the wonderful participatory feel of last year, including the fun but productive atmosphere, the open debates, the lively networking and exchange sessions, and the international feel – but with local food and hospitality very evident. Some of the many things you can look forward to are:

· Keynote speaker: Andrew Simms, New Economic Foundation – a very interesting and entertaining speaker on why happiness is more important than economic growth, and what to do about it.

· Debate: What’s the best way to reduce carbon emissions – global, national or local strategies? With Mark Lynas (author of Six Degrees), Molly Scott Cato and Shaun Chamberlin (author of Transition Timeline).

· Workshops: make your own rocket stove; waste art activities for kids; wind turbine and micro-hydro demonstrations; learn about making tin can batteries; play interactive board games; find out about compost toilets.

· Networking and exchange: what are Transition Towns?; how to get a job in international development; who is doing what on sustainable building;

· Straw Bale Solar Cinema: films about Schumacher and much more…

There is overnight camping and great evening entertainment Friday and Saturday nights. So book your place now on our website www.smallisfestival.org (booking is essential so that we know numbers for catering and event licensing purposes).

If you would like to help out in any way, e.g. by offering to give a talk or run a workshop then that would be fabulous. Also if you have a spare marquee or large tent you can offer for the weekend we would be overjoyed! We are running the event on a shoestring and those things are really expensive to hire!

If you want to know any more or offer help then please get in touch with Canalside members Kath Pasteur or Steven Hunt at Practical Action (small_is@practicalaction.org.uk)

Thanks

Kath

Katherine Pasteur
International Programme Coordinator - Reducing Vulnerability
Direct tel: 01926 634465

Practical Action is an international development agency working with poor communities to help them choose and use technology to improve their lives today and for generations to come. www.practicalaction.org.uk

Practical Action
The Schumacher Centre for Technology and Development,
Bourton on Dunsmore,
Rugby,
Warwickshire, UK,
CV23 9QZ
Tel: +44 - 01926 634400
Fax: +44 - 01926 634401
www.practicalaction.org