Sloes Song
Coo-ee, here's a little insight into one of the songs I'll be sharing in The Singing Forager Experience - where we'll be learning about the seasonal plants through songs, facts, stories, touch, sight and taste. Not that I recommend tasting sloes raw, though that could be the words for another song...
As autumn has begun to take hold, I found myself writing words about Sloes/Blackthorn (Prunus spinosa) and finding a basic tune to hum it to. Sharing this with the infamous, though highly talented Hazel Thompson (performer, singer-songwriter and choir leader) the song developed. As we sang and sang it, joined by friends and colleagues, the harmonies and rhythm both morphed and solidified. We're rather proud of the result.
The Singing Forager Experience is for anyone who enjoys listening to songs, tapping their feet or singing. Offered as an extra layer to a 'normal' foraging course, it seems to quicken the learning process about the plants, with a bit of fun thrown in. I'm neither a professional singer, nor a musician, though I do enjoy singing together and that is basically what this experience is about.
Feel uplifted by songs
As the light fades and the cold seeps in, we'll be singing to keep our spirits strong, to lift our hearts, to smile more, make mistakes, forget the words, maybe create new words and come together. Each singing forager experience will introduce 6-8 songs about the seasonal plants available in the area we'll be walking through. The autumn experience will also culminate around a warming fire; a perfect and traditional way of sharing songs.
How these songs came about
Sometimes when I'm in nature I sing. It just happens. Other times I concentrate on the plants and inquire into their qualities; picking them with care, questions and interest. Over the years I have got to know a wide (and wild) range of plants through their colour, shape, texture, smell and taste. I have read about them, picked them and watched them through the seasons and different landscapes. I have carried them to my kitchen and explored through freezing, chopping, cooking and infusing, - this hands on part of my research is my favourite.
Initially I started a collaboration with singer songwriter Kelsey Michael, and was inspired to write songs about the plants I knew. Creating songs about plants seemed to make sense; after all, songs were one of the ways we shared knowledge, anecdotes and cultural traditions in the past. Somehow the sloes song has an old, melodic feel to it, yet I've only just created it in 2019! Here's to bringing together old and new traditions and celebrating plants through songs.
Finally, having already credited Hazel for her input, it's worth mentioning that we were both attending a song writing course with Stephen Taberner where we met and created this tune. Inspired by Stephen, each other and the natural environment of Cae Mabon in North Wales where we all met - I offer you the Sloes Song.
Follow #singingforager to hear or find out more.
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Tags: blackthorn, contemporary song, foraging song, Prunus spinosa, singing forager, sloes, wild singing
[…] In my first book Wild Food Foraging in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly I share a couple of classic recipes with sloes – sloe gin and sloe gin chocolates. A couple of winters ago I shared my proud, new creation for a Sloe Treacle Tart, you can find the recipe here. I’ve even written a song about sloes which I share on the Singing Foraging Experience. Here’s a taster of it – the Sloes Song. […]