Composers: Beck | Chris Watson | Danielle Lupi | David van Tieghem | Jana Winderen | Laurie Anderson | Loudon Wainwright III | Maki Namekawa | Mamadou Kelly | Michael Penn | Midori Hirano | Nick Cave | Philip Glass | Suzzy Roche | Tawiah | Yo Yo Ma
Tags: Birdsong | eclectic | Experimental | Folk | pop
Tonight we present the first of three editions of Popart dedicated to The Birdsong Project. Not, as you might expect, a collection of ‘pure’ field recordings, even though there are many birdsounds included in the music. For The Birds: The Birdsong Project is a collection of no less than 245 (!) tracks by famous as well as lesser-known artists. We made a selection for you.
The Birdsong Project started during the Covid-lockdowns. Randall Poster – Music Supervisor for directors such as Wes Anderson and Martin Scorcese – suddenly became aware of the birdsong around him and realized the threats the bird population faced. Together with his colleague Rebecca Reagan the Birdsong Project took its shape. They contacted many artists about this, with an overwhelming response.
It finally ended up being a comprehensive project, with not only albums of music and poetry, but also peripheral activities such as exhibitions, live performances, and artist-designed birdhouses. All proceeds from this project will benefit The Audubon Society – the US bird conservation organization named after the bird painter of the same name. In November 2022, the complete set was released, with a whopping 172 musical tracks and 73 poems! The whole thing was released in an impressive box set with no less than 20 LPs. From the 245 tracks, we made a selection that you can hear in three episodes of Popart. Part 2 will be broadcast on 10 May, and part 3 on 7 June (both at 10pm CEST).
Tracklist:
- (Introduction) Cosmo Sheldrake – Evening Chorus
- Nick Cave – Wood Dove
- Beck – Archangel
- Maki Namekawa – Etude No. 2 (Philip Glass) – Thomas Bartlett Remix
- Laurie Anderson – Before The World
- David van Tieghem – Birdbrain
- Weird Bird (Shel Silverstein), read by Bobby Canavalle
- Danielle Lupi – Pettirosso
- (Presentation) Chris Watson – Montezuma Orendopola
- Suzzy Roche – Why Does The Girl Bird Sing
- Loudon Wainwright III – Little Birdie
- Dawn Revisited, written and read by Rita Dove
- Midori Hirano – Intone
- Tawiah – Birdsong
- One Heart (Li-Young Lee), read by Christiane Amanpour
- Mamadou Kelly – Thirow Dio
- Michael Penn – Birds and Piano
- The Last Love Poem I Will Ever Write (Gregory Orr), read by Ann Beattie
- Yo Yo Ma – In The Gale
- (Presentation) Jana Winderen – Kría
All tracks taken from For The Birds: The Birdsong Project
Feedback? peter.van.cooten@concertzender.nl