Dear friends,
I’ve been off the radar for a month, on a big family bike adventure through France and Spain. It’s something we do together every year, getting the ferry from Cork to Roscoff in Brittany and then hitting the velo-routes and hopping on trains to get further afield. I always find it so invigorating to have to live out of only the bags I can fit on the bike, keeping possessions minimal, but I find it opens up my mind and eyes to the wonders of the every day that we discover at out slow pace. My son brought his Olympus film camera and 4 rolls of black and white film so we’ve been busy in the darkroom since we’ve been back. I really enjoyed making some field recordings, which mostly centred around bells I heard; church bells, bike bells, cows with bells around their necks making generative music in the fields. A non-human orchestra!
Our trip finished in Bilbao in the Basque Country. Such a funky city! Arty, edgy, cultural, great design, a bit left of centre. Shout out to my old friend Harry Bird for giving us some insider’s tips for great places to eat.
BAREFOOT BAROQUE TOUR
In 2017 I had the hair-brained scheme of starting Barefoot Baroque with my friends cellist Tess Leak and harpist/violinist Katy Salvidge with the plan to bring baroque music back to real places and real people, rescue it from the stronghold of upper-class concert halls with expensive tickets and posh clothing! The tour was so fun and the following year we added , violist Gideon Wieck and Alto Camilla Griehsel to the band. We have been performing a summer tour of informal concerts in community spaces around the islands and towns of West Cork every summer since, with the aim to make classical music experiences accessible to young and old, in a relaxed and down-to-earth atmosphere.
Every year we have such an adventure together, travelling to the islands bringing instruments on ferries and boats, eating beautiful food together and meeting people with a twinkle in their eyes - its’ a highlight of our performing schedules, and it is always a refreshing and magical week of concerts for all. This year we are travelling to 4 of the islands, with support from the West Cork Islands funding. All concerts are free entry and open to young and old and a donation hat is passed around at the end of each night for the musicians.
If you’re in the West Cork area, do see if you can make it to a one (or more!) of the concerts - or maybe its the perfect excuse to come on a spontaneous holiday! This year we’ve been collecting and arranging loads of really groovy baroque dance music with a theme of ‘joy is a radical act’!
I’ll be collecting recordings and ‘behind-the-scenes’ footage on camera which I plan to release to my patreon community over at www.patreon.com/justingrounds
Shout out to my patrons! A wonderful interactive community of people who support my composing and music projects directly with the price of a cup of coffee per month. It means a lot to independent artists to have such financial support, and also the moral support of knowing there are people out there interested in the process. If you’re interested in supporting my work this way, and getting 'behind the scenes’ footage, new releases and all sorts of tips and ideas for creativity, do head over to the site.
Wishing you all a fun summer full of adventure and peace,
Justin