Beginning of a journey

The second year of the 'Nature Beats' programme has started with the delivery of the sixth course this week. The young people have been on their first day outdoors and have gathered today for their first indoor day that will introduce them to self development skills and music workshops.

The Sixth Course of Nature Beats has started with a downpour during the outdoor day. It rained all day long and added another dimension to the adventure that unfolds when a new group gets together and has to create a sense of community within the first hour, getting into the right gear for the day and upon arrival, setting up base camp. The process of setting up the base camp is an excellent ice breaker, where young people overcome their initial hesitance and resistance to being in a group. The sense of togetherness develops further with the fire making, cooking and acquiring a sense of warmth, eating warm soup and sharing stories around the fire. The staff and young people have together, created the tribe that will now begin the journey of self discovery in the weeks that follow. Being in nature and listening to sounds in nature enables the recording process that acts as 'eyes and ears' to the sounds that they have experienced instrinsically in tune with nature.

The indoor day started with slight apprehension that soon disappeared with the morning sharing circle and our 'Stretches' activity. Watching the film from the outdoor refreshed everyone's memories of what they achieved and how proud it made everyone feel. After introductory 'getting-to-know-you' activities, the group expressed their musical choices, inspirations and styles that they would like to explore as a part of the project. A list was made of instruments that everyone felt comfortable playing. They were off to find sounds as a part of an activity. These sounds were then mixed and edited with the natural ones collected on the outdoor day and the other half was introduced to world instruments. 

Find pictures from the workshop here: 

https://www.facebook.com/WildEarthUK/photos/a.612821402111847.1073741832...

For sound bytes from today's workshop: www.soundcloud.com/WildEarthUK

Quotes:

"It makes me want to play my guitar again." - Nick (He has 6 guitars but he hasn't played any instrument for over 6 years after an accident.)

"I enjoyed recording the zip open and close." - Ciaran

"I enjoyed experimenting with music on the computer." - Leyton