The sound of the Corncrake has disappeared from the English countryside as the hay meadows it depended on have gone.
People Need Nature is releasing its “Meadow Sounds” soundscape today on National Meadows Day.
Charity People Need Nature celebrates National Meadow Day (1st July 2017) by releasing a specially created soundscape evoking the lost Wildflower Meadows of England.
97% of all wildflower hay meadows in England have been lost since 1945. Just a few thousand hectares remain.
People Need Nature Trustee Keith Datchler had the idea for a meadow soundscape at the launch of the Queen’s (Coronation) Meadow in Green Park, London, in 2016.
“We were standing next to Hyde Park Corner, with all the traffic noise, and I just thought wouldn’t it be fantastic if people visiting the Coronation Meadow could escape from the London hubbub for a few minutes and enjoy the sounds of a wildflower meadow.”
People Need Nature worked with composer Matt Shaw to develop the Meadow Soundscape. Simon Emmerson of Afro Celt Sound System produced the mix, with Charlie Moores from Lush Radio providing voice-over. Mark Constantine and Magnus Robb of The Sound Approach recorded the bird samples used in the Soundscape. The Soundscape was generously sponsored by Agrifactors (Southern) Limited.
Miles King, Chief Executive of People Need Nature said:
“Music has always been inspired by the sounds of nature. There are very few wildflower meadows now left in England. By listening to our Meadow Soundscape, anyone can enjoy the sounds of nature in a wildflower meadow wherever they are.”
The Meadow Soundscape can be downloaded from the People Need Nature website
Corncrake photo via Wikimedia Commons. By Richard Wesley – http://www.flickr.com/photos/balvicar/5480680608/, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=17725668
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