Dear Nature by John Newling
New music for solo cello by Sally Beamish and Lisa Heute links letters from John Newling appealing for a closer relationship with Nature
John Newling Dear Nature
Sally Beamish composer
Lisa Heute composer
Reece Straw film maker
Eighty-one letters written over 81 consecutive days. Letters that confront our ongoing relationship with Nature; letters that question, confess and address. Socially engaged artist John Newling’s letters to Nature form a poetic manifesto for our relationship with the natural world. Part impassioned plea, part exercise in truth and reconciliation, they are written frankly and intimately as if to a loved-one, attempting to forge a closer, more fruitful relationship.
Now, in a thought-provoking co-commission by Brighton Festival, composers Sally Beamish and Lisa Heute have linked a selection of these letters using a series of pieces for solo cello. The letters, read by members of John’s community, are juxtaposed with Reece Straw’s mesmerising images of nature and live performance of the new solo cello works. An appeal for a new state of mind for the future, rooted in hope, balance and respect.
Sign up to Octopus Energy and raise money for your favourite arts charity
Octopus are a new kind of energy supplier, committed to the future of the planet. 100% of their electricity comes from renewable sources, and their prices are some of the most competitive on the market. As part of their People Power Brighton scheme, sign up to Octopus Energy via this link and they will donate £50 towards Brighton Festival’s community programme and you will also get £50 credit on your new Octopus Energy account.