Biographical note

Robert Macfarlane is the author of prize-winning and bestselling books about landscape, nature, people and place, including Mountains of the Mind: A History of a Fascination (2003), The Wild Places (2007), The Old Ways (2012), Holloway (2013, with Stanley Donwood and Dan Richards), Landmarks (2015), The Lost Words: A Spell Book (with the artist Jackie Morris, 2017) and Underland: A Deep Time Journey (2019). Jackie Morris is a British writer and illustrator living in Wales. She won the prestigious 2019 Cilip Kate Greenaway Medal and The Shadower's Choice Awards. Her illustration of The Lost Words was recognised by UK booksellers who voted it the most beautiful book in 2017. She is a recipient of the Tir na n-Og Award. Her books include The Lost Words: A Spell Book (w. Robert Macfarlane, 2017), The White Fox (2016), The Seal Children (2016), The Snow Leopard (2017), Queen of the Sky (2015). Kerry Andrew is an astonishingly perceptive musician, whose Wren Song composition inspired us to pursue the idea of a musical companion piece to The Lost Words. Her love of nature and folklore combined with her innate musicality are key reasons why we are delighted that she accepted our invitation to join Spell Songs. Kris Drever is one of Scotland's finest and most prolific songwriters. He is a fiercely talented guitarist; rated among folk's best, and a singer whose voice is rich with both clarity and resonance. A key collaborator within the multi-award-winning trio Lau and a sought-after solo artist, Kris' presence in Spell Songs is highly valued and gladly welcomed. Julie Fowlis often sings in Scottish Gaelic and is deeply influenced by her early upbringing in the Outer Hebridean island of North Uist. Her crystalline and intoxicating voice fills this project with genuine beauty and her Gaelic heritage brings another layer of language and experience into the Spell Songs ensemble. Seckou Keita’s solo work reveals his exceptional skill on the kora and his collaborations leap over cultural barriers, discovering unforeseen affinities. He is counted among the most influential contemporary kora players. He himself is a source of great inspiration with generations of musical history informing his playing and we are overjoyed that he is a member of Spell Songs. It is not only Jim Molyneux's prodigious talent in so many instruments and his experience as a producer that made him so important for the Spell Songs collaboration; we were also impressed with his mastery of many musical genres from classical and folk to jazz and hip hop. Rachel Newton was a member of one of our previous folk music collaborations - The Elizabethan Session, and we were thrilled when she accepted our invitation to join Spell Songs. An exceptional harpist, singer and composer, her generous creativity reverberates through her collaborations and her sensitivity to word and music shines through her solo work. Robert Macfarlane picked out Karine Polwart's script for her award-winning show Wind Resistance for The Guardian's BEST BOOKS of 2017. The appreciation of each other's work is mutual and, naturally, we were eager for her to be a part of Spell Songs and overjoyed when she accepted our invitation. To add depth and range to the ensemble we invited Beth Porter, a superb cellist and singer. We were drawn to her work on numerous collaborations from a variety of different musical genres as well as her involvement in The Bookshop Band where she expertly turns literature into song. A sensational cellist with a timeless voice.