Creative Paths participants recently had a great time meeting up in person in Aberdeen and Elgin to celebrate this project, funded by Creative Scotland’s Open Fund in partnership with Quarriers and Findhorn Bay Arts.
In Aberdeen’s Duthie Park Education Room, we were treated to hearing the songs we had all created online with musician/composer, Quee MacArthur being played live. As Quee sang and played double bass along with Charlie Grey on fiddle and Joseph Peach on keys, we all joined in our choruses with gusto!
No need for muting as we’d had to do online and no ‘lag’ in our tuneful tones. We laughed at some misunderstandings about words and were once again amazed and delighted with the results of each of our two group’s efforts. Although we had started with the same inspiration from being outdoors, we had created quite different tunes.
Over in Elgin, Quee was joined by Dave Martin on tabla, giving a lovely hypnotic element to our songs and, once again, we gave it our all and enjoyed the different songs. This is a recurring theme throughout Creative Paths, of exploring the same starting point and coming up with new interpretations.
We. Are. All. Uniquely. Creative.
After singing our songs, we were treated to hearing the musicians’ own tunes, made even more memorable by our collective understanding of how the musicians had gathered inspiration from the natural world, just as we had.
At both venues, we sat rapt, savouring live music once again and enjoying an afternoon together. It’s not all sitting listening though!
In Aberdeen, ducking out of the rain, Dance Artist, Dawn Hartley (me!) led us through the wonderful glass houses of Duthie Park where, in the words of one participant, “we attracted some very strange looks from visitors to the winter garden as we followed Dawn trying to copy her energetic dance moves!”. (Envy, obviously).
In Elgin, we set off around the pond, confidently moving in unusual ways and unphased by others’ gazes.
We rounded off each afternoon with collective visual art making led by Artist, Nicola Kennell, acknowledging how, throughout this project, we’ve celebrated our own creativity and supported one another in our explorations in visual art, song writing and movement.
We’ve grown in confidence, discovered new media, found fresh inspiration and taken the initial starting points to create surprising work.
We. Are. All. Uniquely. Creative.
About the Author
Dawn Hartley is a Dance Artist and former Head of Creative Learning at Scottish Dance Theatre. She co-created Sea Path with Quee MacArthur, informing and inspiring this new partnership project, Creative Paths, with Findhorn Bay Arts and Quarriers.
To find out more about Creative Paths, visit the project page.
