DR Sweeney, Magnificent Ethno-musicologist, on the Radio

We're not just a bumbling bunch of beer-soaked blokes you know... No! We've got some right clever beer-soaked blokes too as well...

One such bloke is the marvelous DR Sweeney, one of our resident Ethno-musicologists, and he has been on the Radio to prove it.

You can find it at http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p047syv8 for a few days, or from listening below.

What a clever fella!

Giant Turnips celebrating local culture

Swindon and Wiltshire are much "under-known" in UK culture.  Both are often seen at best as cultural backwaters, or worse according to some sources, but in actual fact both are vibrant areas that have made immense contributions to national and international heritage.  Swindon was a fulcrum of the Industrial Revolution and despite misconceptions to the contrary is full of culture, boasting a lively music, film, fringe theatre scenes, including its own opera about the town, snappily entitled Swindon The Opera!

And recently one of our co-correspondents saw the above photo at Swindon (Old Town) Museum and Art Gallery where they are holding an exhibition of pictures (paintings, photos and postcards), 175 in all, to celebrate the 175 anniversary of the GWR Works in Swindon. 

To quote from the Museum's own website at http://swindonmuseumandartgallery.org.uk/

"Our Swindon in 175 Images exhibition shares the history of Swindon during the last 150 years.  With 175 rarely seen images from our local art, photographic and postcard collections, many original, it will show the variety and vibrant nature of life in Swindon, both urban and rural, at work and leisure, and major events and celebrations.

The exhibition builds on work carried out by the Heritage Lottery funded project ‘Hidden Potential’ and features works usually cared for in store.  As part of the Hidden Potential project dozens of volunteers have been working on cataloguing and caring for Swindon’s stored collections. This exhibition will showcase images rediscovered through the project and reveal some of Swindon’s hidden history!

Swindon175 is being celebrated across the town with a series of events and activities planned throughout the year. Swindon175 is a celebration for the whole of Swindon to be proud of our town’s achievements, heritage and future.

Swindon in 175 Images is sponsored by Friends of Swindon Museum and Art Gallery It's well worth a visit, and don't miss the Art Gallery, which contains some of the best modern art outside of London."

So get along there if you can and discover more than you might imagine.

Hoe, Hoe, Hoe!

Here we have yet another fine example of our Wiltshire agricultural heritage being preserved by our continuing interest in local songs.

Often these pieces can be lost as the generations pass unless they are actively preserved, such as the many songs written down by the likes of local heroes Alfred Williams and Ralph Vaughan Williams.

Hopefully our rendition of "The Turnip Hoer's Song", a.k.a. "The Vly" will preserve one particular piece for a while longer and we very much hope to explore some more in the coming year.

Over at Magnificent HQ, plans are afoot to incorporate pieces from these great collectors of local folk songs and who knows what exactly will emerge (or when!).

Here for you delectation in the meantime, is this photo parade of the collection of hoes that became misplaced from their not so careful owners one recent gig.  Thankfully we have not had to resort to naming and shaming the miscreants but we will insist that they are labelled in future.

Only remains to say that next time we have such a photo opportunity we will try to time it just a little better so as to be all the more seasonal when we say "Hoe, hoe, hoe, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year"!

The Vly

This time of year many of us rely on winter root vegetables to bulk out meals and yet the humble turnip seems to be somewhat overlooked as a nutritional additions to hearty eating.

Here, pictured left is a fine example of turnip but it being closely guarded by our very own "stage" Vly as fashioned by those fine yeomen of Stroud who grace our number.

Ever since the "Turnip Hoer Song" crept into our set amongst much excitement of discovering a real Wiltshire song, this pesky fella has been popping up on stages to terrify astounded ChoirMeisters and audiences alike.

Very much an integral part of the set now, we have wandered around with this remarkably life-like replica dangling from various pieces of wire, mainly via fishing rods, as it makes an appearance during the chorus of the piece.

Let's not give too much info away about this and other stage trickery of ours but suffice to say, it is part of a growing armory of items that help make one of our shows so "very unique".
 
You never know what is going to appear as part of the props for one of our pieces, which is part of the excitement of the shows, for us as much as the amazed audiences.  Here's to more in 2014!