Music has taken me into churches, forests, community centres, schools, recording studios and historic buildings. Along the way I’ve worked with professional musicians, young people, artists, writers, volunteers and local communities.
Although the projects vary in form, they are often connected by similar questions.
- How can music help us understand the places we inhabit and the people we become within them?
- What happens when stories, memories and lived experience become part of the creative process?
- How can collaboration help us see ourselves, one another and the world differently?
My work sits somewhere between music production, artistic collaboration, community practice and creative exploration. Sometimes the result is an album. Sometimes it is a performance, a workshop, a print, a recording or a shared experience.
The process matters as much as the outcome.
photo: Shane Young
- How can music help us understand the places we inhabit and the people we become within them?
Music Production
I work with songwriters, singers and musicians to develop recordings from initial ideas through to finished releases.
My approach is collaborative and flexible. Some projects begin with a simple demo. Others emerge from conversations, archives, interviews or long-term creative partnerships.
Collaborative Projects
Many of my projects bring together groups of people around a shared idea, place or story.
These collaborations have involved musicians, visual artists, writers, schools, local communities and cultural organisations.
I am particularly interested in projects that create opportunities for people to contribute creatively and meaningfully.
photo: Shane Young
Community & Education
Alongside my creative work I have spent many years supporting people to engage with music through workshops, mentoring, teaching and community projects.
I believe creativity grows through participation, curiosity and relationships. Some of the most meaningful musical experiences happen when people feel able to contribute rather than simply consume.
photo: Shane Young
Visual Art & Printmaking
Alongside music I create original prints and visual work inspired by landscape, place and observation.
These projects often begin outdoors and develop through processes of collecting, making and experimentation.
The relationship between visual art and music continues to inform both practices.
photo: Chris Watkins
TRACKS
An album created through conversations with older members of the community whose memories inspired a collection of original songs exploring place, work and everyday life.
Role: Producer, composer and collaborator
Link: Explore TRACKS
SPACES
A large-scale collaborative project inspired by Gloucester’s history, architecture and cultural heritage, bringing together musicians, writers and artists to create new work connected to the city.
Role: Producer and creative director
Link: Explore SPACES
photo: Shane Young
The Powdered Earth
A long-term songwriting and recording partnership with Shane Young exploring stories, landscapes and human experience through original music.
Role: Composer, musician and producer
Link: Visit The Powdered Earth
Photo: Shane Young
Wired
A youth music project that supported hundreds of young musicians through live performance, recording opportunities and creative development over many years.
Role: Founder and project lead
Photo: Tom Oldham
Current projects include music production, collaborative recordings, visual art and explorations of how emerging technologies may support creative practice.
I remain interested in the relationship between human creativity, process and meaning, and how new tools can be used thoughtfully without losing sight of the people at the centre of the work.
Photo: Shane Young
