Celebrity Conservationist Chris Packham will join James MacMillan tonight, Tuesday, December 1, for the last in a series of online workshops from The Cumnock Tryst.
Chris Packham will lead the final workshop which is part of the A Musical Celebration of the Coalfield community opera project.
Chris Packham CBE is an English naturalist, nature photographer, television presenter and author, best known from BBC nature series Springwatch, Autumnwatch and Winterwatch.
At 7.30pm, he will join James for a discussion about his conservation work and passion for nature, outlining how those living in and around Cumnock and the Doon Valley could see their local environment through a new lens.
He will also discuss the impact that the abrupt end of the coalmining industry had on coalmining communities and used this to draw parallels with the current need for change in the farming industry.
Chris said: “The landscape and indeed soundscapes in and around Cumnock and Doon Valley will have changed significantly over the years and the A Musical Celebration of the Coalfields project is a fantastic way for this new environment to be reflected, perhaps even allowing locals to see it in a different way, so I am delighted to have been asked to be a part of it.”
The project, part of the Coalfield Communities Landscape Partnership for which East Ayrshire Council raised £2,220,500 through the National Lottery Heritage Fund, aims to create a musical celebration of the heritage, culture and environment of Cumnock and Doon Valley.
Following the Zoom workshops, individual participants from the local community are asked to send in their writing, video, sound or photography by December 11m which professional writers, film-makers and sound designers will then develop into four major pieces of sound and visual art to be presented at the Tryst’s Summer Festival, planned for June 2021.
Two major productions will then be performed in Barony Hall as a highlight of The Cumnock Tryst festivals in October 2021 and 2022.
Composer and Director of the Cumnock Tryst James MacMillan said: “This is a wholly inclusive project not only about developing musical and performing skills but also about providing opportunities that have a real and tangible outcome for those taking part.”
To sign up for one of the last few places, click here
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