The Quietness of Stones

Sometimes, the quietness of stone softens the air around you

Sometimes, while the stones breathe out around you, you put your palms flat to the wall, and breathe in cool holy stillness

Sometimes, your feet fall lightly and easily, taking you away from the trodden path into this thin place.

This long memory from more ancient space

This place remembers you

Sing me the song again, while the stones breathe out around me, speaking of calm solidity.

I thought of stone and my body stilled

I felt my feet on stone and my being stilled

I leant my back against the stone and the support of aeons.

Sing me the song again, while the stones breathe out around me. 

Sometimes you need the cold solidity of stones 

to remember your inherent place

in the order of things.

Sing me the song again, while the stones breathe out around me

Nothing can trouble, nothing can frighten me

The Quietness of Stones is a poem that my friend Jenny wrote for the project.

Before she began composing the poem we talked about how the location for the session was once used as a Munitions Factory and store during the siege of Gloucester during the 17th century. There are no obvious references in the poem, but that was our starting point. There was a line about “the vibration of dissonant battle roar” which we both quite liked, but she decided to remove it to make the poem lighter and it fitted my musical sketches better as a result.

I feel like the poem is gem or pearl like and gets to what I call the heart of things. It touches on the idea of the thin place and the resonance of historical events affecting how we respond to encounters with ancient places in the present.

The building is incredible and has an really inspiring environment. We got in there just before it closed for a year of restoration so it was all dusty and disused in there which added to the atmosphere. It was the first session and set the bar for all the others.

All of the sessions were special in their own way, but perhaps the combination of it taking place in November in the run up to Christmas and that it was lit by 500 tea-lights made it magical.

It was a incredible start to the series of sessions and, despite a few technical gremlins, we were able to document a live performance on film and everything fell into place. I love the part in the song when the bass and drums begin and Vicki and Sebastian sing their parts together.

Jenny Barton : poet

Vicki Field : soprano and choir leader

Sebastian Field : counter tenor

Tim Beck : acoustic guitar

Alice White : cello

Steve McDade : 1st violin

Manuel Norman-Guillén : 2nd violin

Eden Saunders : viola

George Moorey : keyboard and pre-recorded drums and bass

Spaces scratch choir : Ellie Grice, Ceri Joanne, Helen Maynard-watts, Annabelle Faulkner, Alice Orchard, Claire Weaving, Stephanie Harrison, Louise Wiggett, Jane Beckley-Cave, Hannah Marsden, Caitlin Wild, Geraldine Lane, Pat Roberts, Kirsty Winnan, Sue Trickey, Christopher Slemensek, Edward Markham, Chris Tweney, Paul Trickey, Andrew Marshall, Jon Hoyle, Lee Holder, Richard Nunn