Working with the community is one of my passions. Creating spaces that elevate agency, ownership and empowerment through authentic processes that centre the participants over everything else is one of the pillars of my business. The challenges in working without a prescriptive outcome and being focussed on allowing the process to organically grow from the ground up.
Creating new anthems
Voices of the Valley (working title) is a project I’ve been dreaming on since 2020. Its core purpose is to raise the voices of groups of people to be courageous and step out of their comfort zones to create new anthems for the Gympie Region.
The physical outcome will be 12 new songs written by 12 different groups of people who create a song with a local music maker and a mentor songwriter from outside the region.
A greater sense of place
The capacity building is multi-faceted and allows for sharing between participants and facilitators that is powerful and has a rippling impact. We created the first two songs over three days at the AICM and have them professionally recorded, mixed and mastered.
Two groups of young people have come together and fostered closer relationships, a greater sense of place in the community and pride in their creativity. Because we didn’t put a theme or any boundaries on the song creation, the groups had to work together deeply to learn about each other, brainstorm, create trust and create space for all voices to be heard and valued.
The feedback is where the real gold is
Multi-award-winning country artist Felicity Urquhart worked with local Gar MacLemon – a prolific writer and festival performer – and members of the home-schooling community to craft a song that spoke of their belonging to their home and paying homage to the region’s rich history.
In another part of the AICM, The Waifs’ Josh Cunningham and music educator Kate Airey helped RockSkool young people write their song. The results are enriching. The songs are great, but the feedback from the facilitators and participants and their parents/carers is where the real gold is.
Hearing that a son or daughter has taken a massive step in their confidence by trusting in the process and really engaging is life-changing. That is where the real success lies as far as I’m concerned.
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