Live performance at Talking Birds 'Hatched at the Nest' event on 24/11/23 
The night involved 4 performers (Izzy Hadlum, Bar Pandora, Lucifer Sky and Riizbo) who had previously undertaken artist residencies based around exploring electronic and experimental sound making. 
Back in July '23 I was lucky enough to do a residency with Coventry based performance company 'Talking Birds' exploring environmental sound art, deep listening and field recording. 
Each day I would take walks along the close-by Coventry Canal, listening, observing and recording. 
I was also reading a copy of Pauline Oliveros' 'Sonic Meditations' book in which she outlines her ideas around 'Deep Listening' and discusses particular meditative group listening exercises. 
In one section she talks about her fascination with drone - both natural and urban, and how the urban drone, or 'hum' has come to dominate our everyday soundscapes. This fascination particularly resonated with me during the residency, and it was an idea I kept returning to on my canal walks. 
The  Nest performance in part is an exploration of these contrasts, beginning with the seemingly perpetual and gentle tinkle of a brook; the constancy then mimicked by my use of looping pedals and hand cymbals. You're then taken to the humming sound of an electricity substation and a lyrical response to this mighty bit of hidden and mysterious infrastructure which keeps the city 'alive'. 
I should also credit foley sound artist Ross Davidson with whom I collaborated on one of the days of my residency.
 We had a very fun time using a whole host of different microphones (contact, geofon, hydrophone). We ended up not only 'listening' to the landscape, but also 'playing it', hitting different objects or debris along the canal. I even had a go playing a section of metal fencing with a violin bow, which prompted a resident in flats opposite to poke his head head out of the window 
 and ask what the heck we were doing... 
Thank you so much to all the team at Talking Birds for having me on board for a residency - thank you too for all the advice, support, lending of equipment, space and interesting conversation!