Hi Honey, I'm Home!

Hi honey I'm home!

Well, my body is, not so sure about my heart!

I've been a Musician in Residence at an orphanage in Belarus with an AMAZING Youth Work team who have been facilitating a Summer Playscheme via Leaves of Hope, a wonderful charity founded by Val Cousins:

http://www.leaves-of-hope.co.uk/

It was a very emotional time where tears of joy merged with those of despair ... but it gave me time to relect; reflect on me as a person, on humans, on childhood, on the universal language of song and in those quiet hours before sleep, to reflect on Fusion Inspire: The dragon tree. Thoughts about how I am going to structure it now that I enter into the second half of the mainline grant and how to infuse it with love and meaning.

I have been listening today to my draft tracks and thinking about the way forward and will be buckling down to the final phase of tying the loose ends together for the story line, before rehearsing the musicians and getting ready for the performances/tour after Christmas.

Time is quite literally whizzing by!

Studio Days, Puppies & PJ's

How utterly and gorgeously fabulous to have this opportunity to use my studio for ME!!!

I know it sounds ridiculous but I quite honestly can not recall the last time that I was in my studio with an engineer with enough time to experiement and get comfortable. If I record my stuff usually it will be inbetween or slipped in after other people's work, community work, favours.

My Individual Mainline Grant has enbaled me to take the time to sketch songs in the studio which means I can carefully think about which musicians I want to join me on this creative journey ...

It enables me to have an Engineer to work with

on my own material!

And most importantly it gives me the luxury of sitting crossed legged on the floor of my studio, with my uke and my puppy, still in my PJ's getting down my ideas.

In these shots we're recording 'Mad Man' which is the track based in St.David's when Dafydd our main character will be stumbling to the Cathedral for guidance.