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the artists
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The Artists
Nick Hennessey is a harper and wordsmith particularly drawn to the stories, ballads and music of Northern Europe. As a child he was inspired by a love of music and the stories of Alderley Edge, the sleeping king and a mysterious guide who leads the way through Iron Gates deep into the heart of the hill. In the mid-90s these passions combined and as a powerful performer, Nick forges and twists together the song, the poem, the note and the spoken word into a bridge broad enough for all. As both a singer and storyteller his interest is to bring out the song in the story and the story in the song, something that has taken him to West Russia to research epic songs of the Finno-Ugric people and to Finland where he won the 2000 World Championships in Kalevala epic-singing, the only international entrant ever to do so. Nick’s latest CD release is A Rare Hunger, featuring songs he has written himself, some which are traditional and three written by others, including one from The Twisting Field. His latest solo story is ‘The Ruined House of Skin’ premiered at the Leek Arts Festival and subsequently performed at the Barbican Festival. Amongst his repertoire of stories is The Kalevala, epic mythology comprised of stories up to 5,000 years old, stories of creation, the birth of song, origin of fire, all unfolding in an ancient world rich in spirits of forest, sea and sky. Simon Heywood was first bitten by the folk bug in his teens, playing floor spots at Market Deeping Folk Club and sitting in with the Waggonload of Monkeys Ceilidh Band. He played with numerous bands leading up to and during completing his PhD on contemporary storytelling at Sheffield University’s National Centre for English Cultural Tradition in 2001. He currently lectures in folklore, storytelling and creative writing at Derby University, while also performing as a solo storyteller and musician. His songs and tunes have been recorded by a growing number of bands and storytellers as well as being shouted raucously during ant-war protests and on national No-Shop Day. Simon wrote the music and lyrics for The Twisting Field in 2001 and it was premiered at Festival at the Edge that year to much acclaim. The piece was conceived as part one in a trilogy of song cycles about Lugh, ‘Light of the Long Hand’ and following on from The Middle Yard, the final piece of the planned trilogy is The Plain of Towers. |
