Listen to Jessica speaking on BBC Scotland Outdoors about Stories of People and Trees
A reflection from Jessica
Now that the recordings of our new music are online, the stories have been shared and the QR codes are winging their way to woodlands and tree sites for display, Stories of People and Trees should be coming to a close. Instead, it feels like a beginning! It has been a huge privilege listening to people speak about their personal connection to a tree or trees, and I’m grateful to every one of them for sharing their story. It has equally been fascinating and enriching meeting those who work with trees, in community woodland settings or professional roles - and great fun to hear from so many children about their growing love for trees! And what a gift, to be able to work with seven composers and my fellow Glisk chamber musicians and through their collaborative approach, to start to understand how indeed we were to express the stories of human connection to trees through music.
The connecting threads of attunement to nature and of companionship with the more-than-human living world are woven through this project, thanks to the beautiful contributions of everyone featured in it, and of course the trees themselves. My joyful discovery of the strength of these threads continues to feed my musical exploration, drives me to learn more about the incredible world of forest ecosystems, and energises me to work in community with others to make a close connection to nature accessible to all.
I think I may well continue collecting stories about people and trees for life!
Stories of People and Trees invited your stories of connection to trees, and has become an online home that records these important narratives of attunement to nature for everyone to access and enjoy.
Interaction with the project is very welcome! There are not currently any plans for further new musical commissions, but if you have a tree story that’s ready to go and you’re keen to share it with this collection, do get in touch and we can take it from there! Take a look at the Explore the Stories page, or use the Contact page if you’d like to request a QR code for your local woodland, or to get in touch about anything else.
Jessica was out and about in 2022 visiting community events around Scotland, chatting to people and collecting stories - see the Events page to see where the story collecting took her.
In 2023, a selection of the collected stories formed the basis of a new musical suite for string quartet and for solo cello, with composers taking their inspiration from the people and trees in the stories. This was written for and premiered by Glisk - Glasgow southside based contemporary quartet made up of Helena Zambrano Quispe and Kirsty Orton violins, Shelagh McKail viola and Jessica Kerr cello. See the Glisk and Composers page for more information on our commissioned composers.
Visitors to trees and woodland sites are now able to link to the project online, to listen to the stories and musical responses whilst in the company of the trees themselves. See the Contact page if you’d like to host a QR link at your tree site.
Stories of People and Trees is a project created and produced by Jessica Kerr, and made possible through the support of Creative Scotland.
About Jessica
Jessica lives in Glasgow, UK, and is an established musician and teacher embedded through her work in the local communities of Pollokshields and Govanhill. She is cellist with Glisk, Kentigern Quartet, GRIT orchestra, and freelances with orchestras in Scotland. She teaches at Big Noise Govanhill, immersed in this musically and culturally rich neighbourhood of Glasgow.
Jessica is exploring how musicians and other artists can contribute towards communicating and tackling the climate emergency, through artistic work that is open and engaging to all, firmly rooted in place and holds space for conversations that reveal new possibilities. In Stories of People and Trees, Jessica seeks to engage in a listening and story collecting process, inviting people who live in Scotland to share their stories of trees that are important to them in some way, before responding to these stories in a new suite of music for string quartet. Through Stories of People and Trees, Jessica looks forward to engaging in conversation with individuals and communities, to hearing the experiences of others, and understanding the ways in which trees are valued by us in our current social and cultural context. Most of all, celebrating the incredible gift of trees in our lives with a wide audience through stories, music, performance and conversation.
If you are a performance venue or community group and would like to host a performance from Glisk and Stories of People and Trees of our new suite of music inspired by the stories, please get in touch using the contact page.
Logo design by Alices Illustrations | Alice's Illustrations | Glasgow Scotland
Photography by Theodora van Duin Photography with some informal additions by Jessica Kerr