LAND SEA AND SONG!

Kelsey Michael has been creating and developing her repertoire of nature and folk song for group singing workshops in West Cornwall snce 2011.

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Her latest workshop 'FOLK SONG NATURE SONG'  offers the experience of learning nature rich traditional folk songs from Cornwall and across England, Ireland, Northumberland, Scotland and Wales. A second version of the workshop teaches original contemporary acapella nature and folk songs composed by Kelsey. These songs are sometimes written with singing groups and almost always in the field.

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Kelsey started out in 2012 sharing seasonal and growing related songs with a group of volunteers helping on the land at Bosavern Community Farm near St Just, and then went on to form her first Land and Sea singing group at community hub The Knut in St Just. A Penzance group followed. Open to all and with the aim of encouraging unconfident or rusty singers out of the woodwork, these groups have kickstarted life long love of singing for many people.

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 Kelsey believes in the 'natural voice' approach to singing championed by Frankie Armstrong and other leading members of the groundbreaking UK Natural Voice Network (NVN). Singing is our birthright, everyone can sing and for many people of all ages it is incredibly important to have singing in their lives with the camaraderie and feelings of well-being it brings.

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Kelsey's focus has always been on singing nature,  celebrating the turning year with songs of flora and fauna, creatures, moors, ocean and sky.

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Performance has not been the main aim of this community singing, however Land and Sea, and 'Parkinsons Sing for Fun' (see below) have given inspiring informal community performances at Golowan and Montol solstice Festivals in Penzance, Lafrowda festival St Just, Morvah Pasty Day, Polgoon vinyard, St Levan School, The Miners chapel St Just, Sennen Farmers market, Mayor's Sunday St Just, Bosavern Community farm, Growing Links (Penzance Street food project garden, feeding ), Jubilee Pool, at Transition Penwith events and many other special places at the heart of the West Cornwall community. A highlight was singing at the welcome concert given for Langa methodist choir from Capetown in St Just Miner's Chapel.

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During the pandemic Kelsey led singing groups and taught singing lessons weekly beginning a prolific  new era on zoom. Singing also moved outside and became a small group affair around a fire. She developed further her repertoire of Cornish carols and folk carols, making sure that singing was still at the heart of Christmas and offering performance and public carol singing where possible.

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Kelsey has pioneered clifftop and shoreline singing walks in Cornwall, a new area of wok which grew out of singing experiences in the landscape at indoor/outdoor venues. Singing in nature is a profound and uplifting experience which connects us on a deep level to the ecosystems we belong to and each other. With songs of rain, wind and mist at the ready, the walks can be an all weather experience or tailored (as much as possible) for farir-weather loving singers.

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Inspired by the life-changing experience of one group member with Parkinsons disease who had come to Land and Sea to help preserve his voice, Kelsey worked with Parkinsons UK in West and mid Cornwall to bring a regular singing session to people with Parkinsons in 2013. The group was extremely successful, creating a singing community, life long friendships and running alongside voice therapy work and physical excersise classes to offer holistic support to Parkinsons sufferers. Kelsey led Parkinsons 'Sing for fun' from 2013 until 2021.