Famous North prison inspires ballads project
STORIES BROUGHT TO LIFE IN SONG
Hexham Old Gaol, below, has inspired modern-day border ballads by Matt Stokes, left, and Richard Dawson CHARACTERS from the oldest purpose-built prison in England will be brought back to life in a film and song venture.
Hexham Old Gaol in Northumberland and some of its historical inmates are the inspiration behind a project featuring modern-day ballads created by Gateshead-based artist Matt Stokes in collaboration with musician Richard Dawson.
Drawing on traditional border ballads, “This Liberty” consists of five new songs, each telling the story of a different character associated with the 687-year-old building.
Matt said: “Each ballad will be sung by a person representing the contemporary equivalent of one of the people who had links with the gaol – for example, a song about Hexham’s first gaoler, who was a barber by profession, will be sung by someone embodying a present-day barber.”
The characters whose stories are told through the ballads are John de Cawood, the first gaoler of Hexham who took up his post in 1332; a petty criminal, typical of many who were imprisoned there; a wealthy prisoner based on notorious border reiver Gerard “Topping” Charlton who was imprisoned in the 1530s; a local citizen who visited the gaol and gave money or food to poor inmates; and a priest who looked after the spiritual needs of the prisoners.
Visitors to Hexham Old Gaol, now a museum and one of four managed by the Woodhorn Charitable Trust, will be able to see the ballads performed within a cinematic film and audio presentation from August 22 until October 31. Janet Goodridge, museum officer at Hexham Old Gaol, said: “The ballads are composed using Matt’s research into the gaol and its collections, including the Border Library collection and music archive, which contains many examples of traditional border ballads.
“I hope everyone who experiences this music will be intrigued and will connect with the characters they are hearing about. “
Matt said: “Each song will tell people about something that happened within the prison walls. Hexham Old Gaol itself is a very strong and imposing building, but the richness comes from its stories, many of which are hidden away.”.
The project is part of Meeting Point2, a year-long project led by contemporary art agency Arts& Heritage, in which artists have partnered with 10 museums in the North to produce artworks inspired by their collections.
Rowan Brown, chief executive of Woodhorn Charitable Trust, said: “This project has been a wonderful opportunity to use ancient musical traditions to draw out some of the gaol’s fascinating stories.”