Tickets on sale for music show that is inspired by book

Horsecross Arts is selling tickets to a music show in April inspired by the best-selling book,‘The Lost Words’commissioned by the Folk by the Oak Festival.

Tickets are going fast for the musical performance on Wednesday, April 15 in Perth Concert Hall, which will feature greats from the contemporary world of folk music.

Karine Polwart, Julie Fowlis, Kris Drever Seckou Keita, Kerry Andrew, Rachel Newton, Beth Porter and Jim Molyneaux will all perform in what is billed as“a magical musical response”to the bestselling book, The Lost Words.

In 2018, Folk by the Oak Festival commissioned Spell Songs, a musical companion piece to The Lost Words by author Robert Macfarlane and artist Jackie Morris; a celebrated‘spell book’rich with poetic rhythms and imagined birdsong that naturally invited a musical response.

Spell Songs gathered together eight remarkable musicians whose music engages with landscape and nature, to respond to the creatures, art and language of The Lost Words.

Most people will know of Gaelic singer Julie Fowlis and the prolific Karine Polwart, but many will be happy to get to know some emerging world artists at this Perth event.

Seckou Keita is an exceptional and charismatic musician, arguably the most influential and inspiring Kora player (22 stringed West African harp) of his generation.

And Beth Porter, who is a well-known cellist on the UK folk and acoustic scene and is one half of The Book Shop Band, who write songs inspired by books that are frequently performed at book shop gigs.

Another find is Jim Molyneux: a prodigious talent in many instruments, with an ear for a variety of genres from folk through to jazz and hip hop.

Spell Songs allowed these acclaimed and diverse musicians to weave together elements of British folk music, Senegalese folk traditions, and experimental and classical music to create an inspiring new body of work.

A bonus of this performance in April will be seeing the acclaimed and award-winning artist Jackie Morris, one of the authors of the original Lost Words book, painting live on stage during the performance, conjuring magic with ink and brush.

Ticket prices for Spell Songs are £27.50 or £17.50 for under 25s (inc £1.50 booking fee per ticket) from Horsecross 01738 621031.