pecq & Orchestra of St John's - Reaching Water
New electronics, field recording and string orchestra piece with pecq (fka Limpet Space Race) , a duo mishmashing pop, jazz, prog and diy electronics, and the internationally-acclaimed Orchestra of St John’s. 'Reaching Water' is the second in ‘We Are Water’, a series commissioned by Cayenna Ponchione-Bailey in collaboration with climate and water researchers.
The piece draws on water security research from University of Oxford’s Dr Catherine Grasham in Ethiopia’s Awash River Basin. Inspired by stories from her interviewees, Limpet Space Race’s composition explores the increasingly long journeys faced by many people around the globe, as climate change makes their access to water more difficult. The string orchestra interweaves with modular synth manipulation and a sample from one of Dr Grasham’s interviews with a farming community from Ethiopia’s Fentale District which translates ‘You have to travel long distances to find water, it’s very tiring’. The piece also includes samples of water sounds submitted in the response to the project, encouraging participants to think about their own water consumption, and the connection between climate change and global water security.
The piece was recorded and filmed with the Orchestra of St John’s and Limpet Space Race in July 2020 at OVADA Warehouse, a rare example of socially-distanced orchestral recording.
CREDITS
An Upcycled Sounds Production and Release
Commissioned by the Orchestra of St John’s
In collaboration with Dr Catherine Grasham, researcher for REACH: Improving water security for the poor, led by the School of Geography and the Environment at the University of Oxford
Composers
Limpet Space Race (Hannah Jacobs and Nicholas O’Brien)
Performers
Electronics, synths and field recordings - Limpet Space Race
Orchestra of St John’s:
Conductor - Cayenna Ponchione-Bailey
Violin - Jan Schmolck, Richard Milone, Rebecca Scott, Jessica O'Leary, Gregory Warren Wilson, Jake Rea
Viola - Christopher Pitsillides, Rachel Byrt, Emma Sheppard
Cello - John Heley, David Bucknall
Double bass - Lynda Houghton
Project Manager
Cayenna Ponchione-Bailey
Field Recordist
Alice Chautard
Producer
Toby Young
Post-production and Sound Design
Limpet Space Race
Mix Engineer
Upcycled Sounds
Sound Engineers
Mike Hill and Upcycled Sounds
Videographers
Siobhán Cox and Ross Harrison
Video Director and Editor
Ross Harrison
Lighting Engineer
Paul Allen
Set Designer
Samantha Taylor
Photographer
Siobhán Cox
Posted July 5, 2022
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