Everyone is welcome to Stroud Sacred Music Festival, whatever your background or ability. If money is tight, you can apply for a free ticket. Donations are also welcome.
The theme is “Finding Home in Two Worlds” which relates to people in migration or suffering from displacement, as well as the sense that while on Earth, we also long for Heaven.
It is taking place over the course of two days:
An evening of Acapella and piano-accompanied music with Get Gospel, the BBC Gospel-of-the-Year finalists. Come along for heartfelt spirituals, foot-stomping gospel & a-cappella Stormzy, with dancing and singing opportunities.
7.00pm Bells – a special peal of the historic bells of St Laurence’s Church.
7.30-9.30pm Get Gospel – Get Gospel acapella group from London will give a concert of soulful, uplifting gospel songs, including foot-stomping rhythms and singing along to familiar tunes.
8.15-8.45pm – interval with refreshments
9.00 – 9.45am Morning Singing for Children and Families – with Jo McAndrews, experienced choir leader and founder of Stroud Song Community choir.
10.00am – 1.00pm CHANT SPACE – Three hours of continuous chanting for all. No experience necessary. All songs will be easy to follow:
10am Taizé Christian Chants in Latin and other languages, including English
11am Songs for Earth, Water and Spirit
12pm Kirtan Devotional singing from different traditions
A coming together of musicians who have been displaced from their original home and are making their way now in the UK.
Soumik Datta Arts is a creative hub which brings new work into being by supporting new, up and coming, refugee musicians.
It’s founder, Soumik Datta, is a composer, producer, bandleader and TV presenter. He has been dubbed “one of the biggest new musical talents in Britain” (Vogue).
Soumik collaborates with refugees, mental health and climate change practitioners, as well as artists from disparate global traditions including Beyonce, Jay-Z, Nitin Sawhney, Akram Khan, Anoushka Shankar and the BBC Singers.
Arriving in UK, at first I felt an outsider and used music as a way of escaping the discomfort. But I soon realised this is what I wanted to bring into the world. I combine different disciplines, and with each project I get more curious about the human condition and the stories we tell. The Theme of “Finding Home in Two Worlds” speaks to the refugee experience as well as the challenge of living on earth, while sometimes longing to be in Heaven! – Soumik Datta
Soumik will be performing his pathbreaking piece “Borderlands”.
You can listen to Soumik Datta here.
The Green Room Collective is a group of artists from migrant and refugee backgrounds who create performances that blend music and spoken word to explore themes of home, displacement, and migration. Their work celebrates diversity and the power of collaboration.
Each one of these multi-talented, streetwise, transglobal performers of the Green Room Collective would be worth spending an evening with, experiencing their solo work. The fact that we have six of them collaborating so that we can witness the birthing of a new musical work of startling relevance is beyond value. They collectively weave music, songs, spoken word and film to produce a magnificent tribute to resilience. – The Revd Simon Howell, originator of the Festival.
Introducing the performers of the Green Room Collective:
The Green Room Collective includes three musicians with South Asian heritage and training in classical Indian music, alongside a Palestinian Oud player new to the lineup. Their performances are a fusion of cultures, showcasing a high quality of musicianship and emotional power. Through their art, they address issues of migration, displacement, political struggle, collusion, and privilege.
Héctor Manchego – spoken word
Hossein Mirzagholi – guitar and voice
Giuliano Modarelli – guitar and voice
Deeptarka Mukhopadhyay – tabla and percussion
Preetha Narayanan – violin, piano, voice
Saied Silbak – oud
Tickets can be bought by clicking here.
To apply for a free ticket (this also includes free tickets for refugees, asylum seekers and referrals), you can sign up or come along on the day and convey your situation to the ticket table.
