Timber - music and more

I've already written an introductory overview to my weekend at Timber, and about the enlightening, inspiring side of the festival; today's the turn for the entertainment - and what a lot, in so many guises, there was. 

Field Notes tent 

First up - music. You can't have a proper festival without it. There may be some out there who try - food and drink festivals, those dedicated to fast cars - but a real summer festival needs to have live music.

Star from Ivy on the amazing Elemental stage

There were a couple of changes from last year at Timber. The large Nightingale stage had gone, combining forces with the Field Notes tent as a large stage with undercover seating during the day and raised sides giving the audience space to spill out onto the grass. The smaller Eyrie stage remained as before, hidden amongst the trees, and these were joined by a new, tiny stage - Elemental - a marvel in itself as it appeared to be a converted horse box or lorry which opened on one side to reveal mics, speakers, etc




I'd spent a couple of days beforehand planning my festival trip - who I would see, and when. Of course, it didn't quite pan out that way. Listening to a talk, eating lunch, browsing the stalls, I'd hear music coming from a nearby stage and wander off to investigate. I think it's probably a better way to fully immerse oneself in the festival mood, but it did mean I missed some acts I'd intended to catch.

Thom Ashworth on the Eyrie
stage

For some reason this year I found myself drawn towards the folkier sounds on offer. I started the weekend by catching Thom Ashworth on the Eyrie stage singing traditional songs,

Bella, Polly and the Magpies

and found myself drawn back there for more artists - Bella, Polly and the Magpies with a mix of traditional and newly written songs, Alison Cooper, playing as Maghupi, with original work inspired by Lancashire folk tunes,

Rishii Chowdhury and Roopa Panesar

and Lucy Steven's musical response to the dawn chorus performed by Indian classical musicians Roopa Panesar and Rishii Chowdhury on sitar and tabla, respectively.

The Trials of Cato

I saw a lot of acts on the big Field Notes stage but my favourites were the unexpected 'finds' - three-piece folk band, The Trials of Cato, with Irish jigs, and songs in Welsh and English, but especially their all-purpose protest song (good for any number of things you might be angry about), Muha with a blend of Ukrainian folk and Indian Kathak sounds, and Another Sky with haunting lead vocals from Catrin Vincent.

Daudi Matsiko

Wandering past the Elemental stage, Daudi Matsiko's slightly melancholic sound caught my attention and I stayed to listen. On Sunday I headed back there drawn by the heavier rock sound of Star from Ivy.




Nearby was a curious audio visual installation - Seams - inspired by the coal seams which run beneath Feanedock forest. The recitation of the names given to the geological make-up - stony bind, black bat, dark clunch - acquired a strange other-worldly quality, mesmerising and meditative.

Sophia Thakur

Another 'find' was poet Sophia Thakur. I was just exploring the Canopy area of the festival site while she was performing on the Eyrie stage. If someone had suggested going along to a poetry session, I probably would have said no, but her words drew me in.

The Baghdaddies

In addition to music on stages, there were 'strolling' musicians - Rimski and Handerchief with their pedal-powered piano and double bass, The Baghdaddies providing musical accompaniment for the Cardboardia procession and a band playing Appalachian flat-footing jigs.









One of the highlights of the weekend was Lost in Translation's production of Baron in the Trees which combined dance, acrobatics, trapeze work, and juggling. It isn't easy to describe, and my photos certainly don't do it justice, but the audience, from small tots to oldies, was completely mesmerised.

Appalachian toe-tapping
music

I'm not going to attempt to cover everything on offer for the smallest festival goers, although I did try some of the 'children's' activities - the huge marble run, and finding my way through a maze of living saplings -  and I don't imagine anyone would have stopped me if I'd wanted to spend the whole weekend learning circus skills, listening to campfire stories, discovering wacky science (I caught the end of an experiment involving, I think, exploding custard), or playing with the huge board games.

Something I didn't get to see at all was the outdoor cinema (I'd particularly fancied watching The Blair Witch Project in a dark forest) but, to be honest, by the time evening came around we were exhausted. We had a wonderful time though, and you can't do everything!

Muha