Morning Chorus
06 April 2008
People flocked to Bishop Declan’s garden at the break of dawn today. He extended an open invitation to a special event which is part of Clifton Cathedral’s year-long series of environmental events - Sound of Many Waters. The Bishop hosted a dawn chorus - in his back garden as part of series of activities throughout the day.
The event was open to all. It saw people rise with the larks as it began at 5.00 am. To wake people up and keep them going teas, coffee and croissants were laid on.
Top naturalist Chris Sperring MBE of the Hawk and Owl Trust led the event. He was on hand to explain the sights and sounds of this wonderful springtime sonic experience.
Bishop Declan said, “The dawn chorus was part of Sound of Many Waters - which Clifton Cathedral has organised to explore our need to care for our environment. It’s a way of helping us find out more about the natural world on our doorstep.
“I’m delighted Chris Sperring was with us. His enthusiasm and insights really helped us enjoy the dawn chorus.
The Bishop’s garden also hosted BBC Radio Bristol and Radio Somerset. Trevor Fry’s ‘Sunday Starts’ came live from the garden from 6.00 am to 10.00 am. The programme began just as a snow storm hit Bristol. The opening of the programme came live from the roof of the Bishop's house. Take a look in the image gallery on the right to see the snow and many other images from the dawn chorus.
Bishop Declan read a poem on the programme. It formed part of his talk in Clifton Cathedral in the evening. The poem is entitled 'Praying' by Mary Oliver. It is in her book 'Thirst' (ISBN 9780807068960).
It doesn’t have to be
the blue iris, it could be
weeds in a vacant lot, or a few
small stones; just
pay attention, then patch
a few words together and don’t try
to make them elaborate, this isn’t
a contest but the doorway
into thanks, and a silence in which
another voice may speak
Other Sound of Many Waters events took place throughout the day including a Brilliant Birds Family Fun Walk which was led by Ed Drewitt from the Bristol Ornithological Club and Mandy Leivers from the Avon Gorge and Downs Wildlife Project. The walk went to the peregrine watch point on the Downs.
Catholicism and the Natural World saw Bishop Declan, who is the Bishop with responsibility for the environment for the Catholic Church in England and Wales, joining Mary Colwell for an illustrated talk in Clifton Cathedral. This event took place in the evening and draw a varied audience. You can listen to the event here.
You can listen to this morning's 'Sunday Starts'. The four hours of live broadcasting are split into four hour-long chunks so you can enjoy the unique event: hour one, hour two, hour three, hour four.
The programme includes interviews with Bishop Declan; Chris Sperring; Mary Colwell - the inspriation behind Sound of Many Waters; Julian Hector - talking about his top series 'World on the Move', Clifton Diocese World Youth Day pilgrims - Rachel Manning and Antonia Fafiolu; Jean Young - who's just returned from a Lourdes pilgrimage with HCPT - The Pilgrimage Trust; Head of the Clifton Diocese Music Service, Richard Jeffrey-Gray who talked about French Catholic composer Olivier Messiaen; Clifton Cathedral altar server Alice O'Neill talked about young people and faith; and there was an interview about cliftondiocese.com. Trevor Fry also introduced an enlightening feature by Scott Ellis. Scott's report came from Afghanistan where he spoke with the Padre at Camp Bastian.
BBC gardening expert Mary Payne toured the Bishop's garden with Trevor Fry as part of 'Sunday Starts'. She saw all parts of the garden and described the snow-covered scene and plants within it for listeners. A visit to the Severn Estuary by Trevor Fry was also part of the programme.
A solo unaccompanied song by 11 year-old Shelley captivated listeners and all who came to the Bishop's garden. Singing live on the radio for the first time, the amazingly talented young singer performed 'Summer has Come'. Shelley's mum, dad, sister and gran all came to enjoy her wonderful voice. Shelley attends SS Peter & Paul Catholic Primary School in Bristol. Her music teacher Louise White also came to support Shelley in her broadcasting debut.
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