Sunday Saw One Of The Initial First Brainstorming Meetings For What Will Be A Crystal Palace Fun Palace

Unicorn tapestries & plants at The cloisters

May Day Music Sessions

May 2017

Hello! So having had a break from blogging and sharing of ideas, I decided that it is time to share again! My current sessions are based on the theme of May Day and I and sharing them with groups of adults with learning disabilities.

I have devised three session plans but each with the possibility of being repeated and extended upon. Thanks goes out as always to the people who probably have as much to do with these ideas and plans as I! So firstly to my colleague Emmie Ward - together we led joint sessions with a May Day theme around this time last year. Since then I have had 'Unite and unite, let us all unite!' on my mind! Emmie needs to get her own blog up and going :) Also credit to the English Folk Dance and Song Society - who have a fantastic online resource bank. (I really must add some more links to this website).  For now just type in EFDSS Resource Bank and you'll find a plethora of resources including info on May Day. I used that as my main source of research in terms of the the things that take place on May day.

I found some rhymes in a lovely and very small old book that I have from my family and I have made up simple tunes to them. The Padstow May Song and Hal An Tow (A Helston song!) are both great and very catchy and with interactive possibilities. I couldn't really find a version to listen to of the Mayers Song, (despite googling to the best of my not always the best googler ability.) However, I like it as a rhyme too - as I first found it.

Looking at my plan below I can already see the elements that I have not actually carried out yet. Either because I decided to simply and repeat or to adapt to the different people in the group. I hope it is of some interest/help to you. I am still finding my way in the sessions I lead, especially when newer groups, however, this theme does make me happy :)

Extra songs/activities:

The Trees Grew All Around/We are Beating the Bounds

I can see clearly

Somewhere Over the Rainbow/What a Wonderful World

Singing in the Rain/Raindrops keep falling on my head

Story/script ideas

Use a tone chime or similar – this time I used a triangle to set the tone/scene

Explain that the next few sessions are going to be on the theme of May Day and the May Day celebrations that have taken place since a long time ago!

Session 1

-Sing the hello song – allowing people to smell the scent of real blossom/flowers

-Say that it is the evening/morning and House name is getting ready for May Day.

-Say the individual names of people there who are getting ready.

-Introduce the soundscape and any related items.

-Then for session 1 for example, say persons name is collecting flowers/leaves for the May garland. Then go through everyone individually with different items to addand build hoop with them. Say that house name is trying to make the best garland in the whole of town name. (In an excited way!)

-Also prepare the horse with e.g. wooden clapping mouth and decorate with bells

Rhymes and Songs

A May Day Rhyme

{C} Good morning, Missus and Master,

I wish (up) you a happy {G} day;

{C} Please to smell my garland,

Be {G} cause it’s the {F} first of {C} May.

The Mayer’s Song

We’ve been a rambling all this night,

And sometime of this day;

And now returning back again,

We bring a branch of May.

The Mayer’s Song (Final Verse)

The moon shines bright, the stars give a light

A little before it is day,

So God bless you all, both great and small,

And send you a joyful May

The Cuckoo

The cuckoo’s a bonny bird, he whistles as he flies

He brings us good tidings, he tells us no lies;

He drinks the cold water to make his voice clear,

And when he sings cuckoo the summer is near;

Sings cuckoo in April, cuckoo in May;

Cuckoo in June, and then flies away.

May Gosling and ‘May Goslings past and gone. You’re the fool for making me one’! 

Hoxton  and the Geffrye to Bunhill Fields

a few words symbolise my evening

ethics, consent and project information forms....

reading and the lack of it

Worried about my lack of reading, I think i shall take the train a bit earlier to my course - in the aid of getting me reading.... too much time sending emails and organising and not enough getting down to it! I think I may need to take many a train journey in the next few months - not only to research psychgeography - but also to have a good place to read!

Psychogeography: The study of the specific effects of the geographical environment, consciously organised or not, on the emotions and behaviours of individuals.

From Internationale Situationniste #1, Knabb, pg 45 in 'Psychogeography' by Merlin Coverley, 2010

Behind the mask activity…. We worked up to this by learning describing words and writing words about each other. Then the kids could choose what they wrote about themselves…

A few years old but very interesting article about the time when there were four cinemas in Crystal Palace. At the moment the long ongoing campaign to bring back just one cinema continues with a dedicated team - Found on Twitter as: @picturepalace … They also posted this article on Facebook as ('Picture Palace Campaign') … Another worthy heritage cause that would have a present and future impact!

Check out my sister blog about Norwood Fun Palace which I curated in October 2014

Collecting together images that relate to The Crystal Palace of 1851 in Hyde Park and in Sydenham/Penge from 1854-1936. Do you know where any of the statues are? Got any memorabilia at home? Lets start collecting it all together in one place! Web links and photos alike all welcome :)

My new experimental project…. Only pinned one photo so far! Would be great to bring together all Crystal Palace artefacts in one place and see how far they have spread. I heard that I think it was Big Crosby was amongst the people to buy one of the statues in the big sell off….. Wonder where it is now?!