SeaScapes

Trailer - The Ballad of the Crocodile and the Underpass

Listen to our trailer to get a feel for our new podcast. ‘The Ballad of the Crocodile and the Underpass' - Stories of Washington New Town’, is a podcast ballad partnership between Washington Heritage Partnership, We Make Culture, University of Sunderland, Baseline Shift and Arts Centre Washington. Since April 2024 this partnership, podcaster and musician Grace Stubbings and the Washington community podcasting group have been working with people and organisations in Washington to collect and share experiences of life in a new town. Musicians Paige Temperley and David Brewis (Field Music) have been working with community members and young people at Arts Centre Washington to turn stories of Washington into songs. The songs, interviews, sounds and archive recordings have been woven together to create unique ballad podcasts. The group have been influenced by the radio ballad work of Charles Parker, Ewan MacColl and Peggy Seeger who made radio ballads about working class stories in the 1950s and '60s for the BBC. You can listen to Episode 1 immediately after this trailer. Subscribe now to hear episodes 2-5, which will be released in November 2024.

Seascapes: Sea Beats

Sea Beats took place throughout the summer months of 2022. Musicians Hannabiell Sanders and Yilis del Carmen Suriel (co-founders of Harambee Pasadia) worked with coastal communities and organisation Mental Health Swims across Seaham and Sunderland. Through a series of collaborative music making workshops, they helped foster new connections with the coastline through rhythm and percussion, storytelling, and music making with traditional instruments and objects found on the beach. In this episode, we hear from musicians Hannabiell Sanders and Yilis del Carmen Suriel, and participant and member of Mental Health Swims Seaham, Suzanne Green. Find out more about the project here [https://colabsunderland.uk/sea-air-sub-projects/whitburn-resonance]. Producer: Lottie Steele

Seascapes: Whitburn Resonance

Whitburn Resonance is a community project that focuses on the sounds of the medieval fishing village of Whitburn on the North East coast. The project aims to understand how the local soundscapes have changed over time by combining archaeological data and sonic research. The project emphasises connecting people to the area and encourages reflection on the coastal environment. Through participatory research and acoustic mapping, the goal is to foster a stronger sense of stewardship and appreciation for the marine heritage and seascape among coastal communities. In this episode, we hear from Professor Caroline Mitchell, Artist; Shelly Knotts & participants; Ian Bower and Elsie Ronald. Find out more about the project here [https://colabsunderland.uk/sea-air-sub-projects/whitburn-resonance]. Producer: Lottie Steele

Seascapes: Sound Mirrors

Soundmirror is a participatory artwork that listens to and reflects the soundscapes of coastal environments through the sites of First World War sound mirrors in the north east today. The online artwork created by Rob Smith invites people to add to a database of sounds and examines how ‘listening’ to the contemporary coastal environment can enable the site of the sound mirror to emerge from the intersection of technologies and shared histories. By questioning what the sound mirror’s continuing role in the contemporary landscape is, Soundmirror creates a space that can enable connections with the site of the mirror to expand beyond simply being an historic location. In this episode, we hear from lead artist; Rob Smith, Hannah Fishburn from OASES, Robin Daniels from Tees Archeology & Diane Stephens, manager of the Heugh Battery Museum. Find out more about the project here [https://colabsunderland.uk/seascapes-subprojects/sound-mirrors]. Producer: Lottie Steele

Seascapes: Sea Change Lab

Sea Change Lab is a series of creative workshops run by three different artists: Dawn Felicia Knox, Tracy Thomas, and Jo Howell. Sea Change Lab explored questions around personal connection to the coast with young people from Horden through sessions focused on visualising and looking in different ways using lo-fi, sustainable photographic techniques. In this episode, we hear from the lead artists; Jo Howell, Dawn Felicia Knox, Tracy Thomas and Seascapes co-curator; Amanda Ritson. Find out more about the project here [https://colabsunderland.uk/sea-air-sub-projects/sea-change-lab]. Producer: Lottie Steele