We invite you to step into the forest and explore the inner world of the trees.
Friday 22 – Sunday 24 September, 7.30pm onwards in Beechenhurst forest, Speech House Rd, Coleford.

An 8-channel soundscape, feathered, pink botanic, by acclaimed artists Jez riley French and Lau Nau will immerse you in a hidden world, revealing microscopic vibrations and secret sounds inaudible to the human ear. Discover the sounds of Beechenhurst’s trees, plant life, soil and insects. Listen deeply to how the forest interconnects and allow the sounds of nature to transport and stimulate your senses. Combined with lighting by leading artist Ulf Pedersen, The Secret Sounds of Trees invites you to experience Beechenhurst in a totally new way.

The Secret Sounds of Trees is a free, timed entry installation from twilight through the evening. Booking essential!
Please note: this event encourages a quiet, deep listening experience.
Duration: the whole experience lasts approximately 30 minutes.
https://www.sounduk.net/events/the-secret-sounds-of-trees/

Soundwalk
Let artists Jez riley French and Lau Nau take you on a self-guided journey of Beechenhurst Forest in this soundwalk.
Using headphones via your personal device, start the audio in your favourite part of Beechenhurst and take a slow walk through the forest. The route is entirely up to you.
Guided by Jez’s gentle narration you’ll discover the secret sounds of Beechenhurst’s trees, plants, soil and insects normally inaudible to the human ear.
Listen deeply and learn about the inner life of the forest and how it interconnects. Allow the sounds of this environment and music by Lau Nau to transport and stimulate your senses.
https://www.sounduk.net/events/soundwalk-secret-sounds-trees/
Field recordings, sound design & text by Jez riley French. Music by Lau Nau.

Jez riley French
Focusing extensively on sound as both material and subject, Jez riley French’s work involves installation, intuitive composition, scores, film and photography. Alongside performances and exhibitions, Jez runs workshops, gives talks and has developed a range of specialist microphones and techniques now widely used across sound culture, including recently on The Green Planet. He also works as a curator and publisher. Aspects of his work have been exhibited or performed in events and installations alongside that of Yoko Ono, Annea Lockwood, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Sarah Lucas etc, and at galleries including Tate Modern, Tate Britain and MoCA (Tokyo). www.jezrileyfrench.co.uk

Lau Nau, aka Laura Naukkarinen, is a Finnish composer whose music is imbued with an idiosyncratic, finely honed sound world. Her palette often consists of modular synthesisers, singing voice, traditional instruments, reel-to-reel tape recorders and field recordings. To date Lau Nau has released nine albums on record labels in Europe, USA and Japan. Lau Nau is also known for her music to films and multi-channel sound installations. In her role as a sound designer she won the Finnish State Prize for the Performing Arts 2021. She has toured abroad for over 20 years, playing in venues such as Super Deluxe in Tokyo, the Lab & Castro Theatre in San Francisco and Blank Forms & Issue Project Room in New York. https://launau.com/

Ulf Pedersen
Architectural in scale, Pedersen’s work transforms the act of looking into a physical experience. Through a kind of light-based alchemy, outdoor spaces metamorphose into something unique and magical. In addition to working closely with the raw materials of the site, he uses light and colour as his essential tools. He has shown his work at Arts Festivals in Sydney, Hong Kong, Hobart & Wellington, as well as at national gardens and historic properties in the UK including 5 years of successful consecutive solo shows at the Lost Gardens of Heligan. www.ulfpedersen.com

The Secret Sounds of Trees is commissioned and produced by Sound UK. Funded by Arts Council England, The National Lottery Heritage Fund and PRS Foundation. In partnership with Forestry England, Cinderford Artspace and Wilde Earth Journeys.

Thanks to Pheobe riley Law, Maureen French and Matthew Barnard (Hull University).