Collecting Together Images That Relate To The Crystal Palace Of 1851 In Hyde Park And In Sydenham/Penge

Bonfire Night Session Plan

November 2016

Hello again,

I have been doing plenty of writing to describe the music sessions that I lead in L'Arche and so I thought it might be useful if I share the format that I use for them.

The sessions usually last about two hours with a twenty minute- half an hour tea break in the middle.

I am going to share the Bonfire Night session plan....

To continue from my previous blog entries... the session before the bonfire night one was about the rural work turning more to the towns and cities with the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. Elements included watching the Pandemonium section of the London Olympic Opening Ceremony. We beat on large metal and plastic flower pots and used glass nuggets to represent money in a noisy way....

I write the plan beforehand but then add any adaption I make (hence different tenses) - and there are often plenty of on the spot ideas!

As always I have many thanks to give to my fellow colleagues for taking part in the session.

Where you see the * and ** and *** you can see the ideas I learned from Emmie Ward. In particular her use of the Big Mack as a musical instrument and for recording voice. Emmie also has great techniques for the inclusion of people's vocalisations and interests into songs.  I also learned the songs for this session from Emmie. I'll ask Emmie to share more about that at some point as she has lots of great techniques :)

Bonfire Night  3

rd

November 2016

Attention Grabber Activity: Firework App on IpadFirstly just me taking it around before the hello song... everyone else got a turn in the soundscape

Soundscape: Bonfire Night Ssss of a Fizzy drink being opened, crackling of popping candy with water, firework app on ipad, sliding whistle, (rain maker (firework falling sound), crackling paper, bang of the drum (we said 1, 2, 3, bang - everyone has the opportunity to hit drum on the word bang) peoples vocal sounds on Big Mack to play (integrate their interests) *

Activity: ‘We’re all walking along to the fire’  song – action: we poured salt through a flower pot into a small washing up bowl and said it was gunpowder for the gunpowder plot and listened to how it made a quiet sound and we needed to be quiet… can say shhh –

Activity (Contd.): I then said let’s listen to find out if the plan worked! – I asked: Will there be the sound of Big Ben chiming or the sound of an explosion? We counted down and then… heard... yes big ben chiming (iPad) so the plot failedName activity: (soundabout) beat X 4 then name three times and move on. (we did one name and then another) This sort of connected as if naming the names of the conspirators pouring gun powder. (could link this more to the plot or being part of something in future) **

Rhyme: Remember, remember, poem call and response (I actually did this later in storytelling)

Rhythm: Boom Whackers – continue ‘hit, rest, rest, rest’ activity, with everyone having a chance to play them. We stamp feel throughout to keep a beat and i renew the rhythm in-between every person, but anyone can play any pattern they like as it all fits... I play it on the low red one, but again anyone can do anything... The stamping and me doing it in-between seems to help people to create a connecting rhythm.

Vocal Warm Up:Included Do re mi.

Songs:

London’s Burning

Ring of Fire (after singing through we repeated burn burn bit and people took turns to move the fire poi) ***

Great Balls of Fire (added peoples own endings to ‘Goodness Gracious) ***

Victoria Park Memoryscape Trail

Victoria park - and the journey there…. some extracts of my thoughts….

I see an appropriately named pub, which lets me know I am at least in the right area…

I passed lots of green spaces on the way

An interesting looking church, of a style I don’t recall seeing before…

It’s muggy

It feels like another zone of London from where I live and I link it with Leytonstone, not too far away, where a friend lives, something about the open green spaces and the natural association I make.

A larger building - Victorian in style but higher than I am used to in Crystal Palace.

Wow Victoria (Park) has an impressive lead up - roundabout and impressive gates.

Trendy cake and coffee type cafe (which looks like it does proper food too) with a vibrant atmosphere - I enjoy a conversation I overhear by the people working there - it helps add to the happy atmosphere there! I also liked the fact a bottle of water cost £1 and not more as it often does in cafes!

The sun shines on the lake as if on time to see the sculptures and the pretty fountain in the lake looking splendid. It reminds me of what I think Crystal Palace Park (CPP)nneeds - a fountain as a reminder of Paxton and those he had installed in the park – I have not thought about before, which surprises me, but I hadn’t thought before that there are no fountains in CPP.

I see the long park roads – a cyclists paradise and my thought turns to Hyde park or even Prater in Vienna - which in the summer I quite often cycled through to work, as well as over the Danube – all in a half an hour cycle…

The audio trail is really enjoyable and I like the talk about the myths of the dogs and hearing the different opinions – leaving it open to interpretation with us.

The narrator is someone who has lived in the area of Victoria park for nine years I think it was – and this draws you in by knowing that the person clearly has a relationship with the park.

No one person speaking for a long time – it’s nicely broken up with different voices. It’s a good clear recording and the speaking is calm and nice to listen to.

It’s am amazingly surprising beautiful evening, having set out with it being much duller – it’s a beautiful route – and the canal an added bonus for me.

I felt a bit out of place to begin with - but now I feel at home as if I am walking near me in the evening - doesn’t feel like a Sunday evening in some ways to be so far away from home but it others it does with the calm atmosphere

I made some more sound recordings and have decided to do at least one on every project related trip out.

Background sounds create an atmosphere. It’s hard to differentiate some times between the sounds on the recording and the sounds in real life! I looked around when I heard the sound of the loud canal boat on the mp3 file while walking down the canal. I wondered if this kind of thing would annoy me, but I love the playfulness of this, I think it makes me more aware ….

I’m inspired to listen to some of my own favourite tracks in between listening to the trail mp3’s and this as well as making the sound recordings and listening to the trail really helps me listen to the sounds around me.

The trail map is easy to use and follow.

The trail encourages you to interact in the sense of inviting you go and get a drink and find somewhere to sit and listen to the trail.

Cafe owners talking on the trail too – it seems they are talking about what they wanted to achieve and also about the visitors they have.

I wonder what happens when trails get really out of date. They are still a memory of the point in time when they were made, but maybe something needs to change?

I did about half but not half of the distance. Will happily return to do the rest….

I like the feeling of travelling when navigating streets and journeys alone. There is some level of fear of being far from home, but also a feeling of freedom and anticipation. Sounds obvious I know, but true!

New volcanoes and earthquakes gallery at the natural history museum! Only got a quick look today at work but looked interesting and as if it might be quite holistic in its approach (for want of a better word!)

Today's NYC outing was a visit to the Tenement Museum - a guided tour and a self guided walking tour

Waiting for the bus to open its doors when the roads were shut off in Brixton the other night too...

Hoxton  and the Geffrye to Bunhill Fields

South London Botanical Institute - Victorians through trade and and empire - one of three rooms for the  workshop - here year 4 our children were learning about Marianne North and her art. It is near the end of the hlf funded project. The children drew and wrote accompanying labels.  I was helping out on the day.

Unicorn tapestries & plants at The cloisters

Next stage in project: mini wind jammer has arrived! Next to test it out!!

Beautiful newly comissioned wallpaper at the South London Botanical Institute