If I suddenly became very rich (which sadly isn't going to happen) I would start up a moderately competitive grant for a moderate amount of money for mid-career artists to complete the middle phase of a mid-sized project. Obvs other demographics need more funding too. But there's a real lack here!

I'm very pleased to share this creative conversation with my wonderful @rcsofficial.bsky.social friends and colleagues Laura Bissell and Laura Gonzalez, in which we explore "inspiration" in both the literal and metaphorical senses of the word. rdw.rowan.edu/joie/vol3/is...

"Breath…is repeatable and trainable, yet also unpredictable and resistant." This conversation about inspiration goes lots of unexpected places. Ultimately I think it's about finding comfort and rhythm in bodies and creative practices that are always a bit creakier and wheezier than one envisioned.

I'm very pleased to share this creative conversation with my wonderful @rcsofficial.bsky.social friends and colleagues Laura Bissell and Laura Gonzalez, in which we explore "inspiration" in both the literal and metaphorical senses of the word. rdw.rowan.edu/joie/vol3/is...

The 10 year old: "I want neeps [turnips]! I want NEEPS! I WANT NEEPS NOW! #parentingproblemsididnotforesee #scottishparenting #unexpectedturnipemergency

I enjoy Spelling Bee, but I also find the allowable words so arbitrary. Why is puppylike a word but eellike isn't. And why is eely a word but elky isn't? And don't get me started on all the excellent Scottish words it omits! I am feeling a bit elky about this!

I enjoy Spelling Bee, but I also find the allowable words so arbitrary. Why is puppylike a word but eellike isn't. And why is eely a word but elky isn't? And don't get me started on all the excellent Scottish words it omits! I am feeling a bit elky about this!

All the Scottish cafes now serve pumpkin spice lattes in the fall, which seems very out of place because no no one eats pumpkin pie here, so pumpkin spice is not a thing. But haggis spice is pretty similar -- nutmeg, allspice, mace. Why don't they sell these as haggis spice lattes? Sounds delicious!

All the Scottish cafes now serve pumpkin spice lattes in the fall, which seems very out of place because no no one eats pumpkin pie here, so pumpkin spice is not a thing. But haggis spice is pretty similar -- nutmeg, allspice, mace. Why don't they sell these as haggis spice lattes? Sounds delicious!

PRANKSTER SLUG news! www.theguardian.com/world/2025/s...

A collaboration between me, @amsouth.bsky.social & Lesley Harrison, performed at @rethinkingfable.bsky.social (www.rethinking-fables.org.uk). Lesley & Alex weave together pieces by me and Alex and a poem by Lesley to create a new fable, "The Gannet and the Whale". www.youtube.com/watch?v=r55d...

GIANT STICK INSECT news! www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Thank you Federica Simone for featuring me and my work on the @sahavoice.bsky.social podcast! It was a pleasure talking with you!

Thank you Federica Simone for featuring me and my work on the @sahavoice.bsky.social podcast! It was a pleasure talking with you!

Apparently it's #invertefest #invertfest, which seems like a good time to share our in-progress series of films about marine invertebrates, Animoceans, made in collaboration with @neilbanas.bsky.social, Clubhouse Animation, Greenlight Creative. vimeo.com/1006905555

If you want your own personal #invertefest, remember that there are #origami #copepod diagrams available at origamiplankton.org! Also #diatoms for the copepods to eat and #bowhead #whales to eat the copepods.

Apparently it's #invertefest #invertfest, which seems like a good time to share our in-progress series of films about marine invertebrates, Animoceans, made in collaboration with @neilbanas.bsky.social, Clubhouse Animation, Greenlight Creative. vimeo.com/1006905555

Mr Trevelyan said: "Those who know me well know I was eventually going to build a giant curlew. She's a real beauty. I wanted to represent curlews well because they're such a beautiful bird."

GIANT CURLEW COSTUME news! www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

This is the kind of news I am here for: www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

What a pleasure to attend a rehearsal of my piece Varia, played by Alan Kitchen, at the stunning 828-year old Glasgow Cathedral. Concert is on April, we pieces by Ailie Robertson, Kenn Tay & others. Hope to see you there! www.rcs.ac.uk/whats-on/pre... youtu.be/HqD9pYKh-3M

My inbox (presumably everyone's inboxes) is basically a classic game of 1970s Space Invaders. You successfully fight off one group of aliens/emails only to find that the next group comes even faster and more lethally/urgently!

What a pleasure to attend a rehearsal of my piece Varia, played by Alan Kitchen, at the stunning 828-year old Glasgow Cathedral. Concert is on April, we pieces by Ailie Robertson, Kenn Tay & others. Hope to see you there! www.rcs.ac.uk/whats-on/pre... youtu.be/HqD9pYKh-3M

I'll play! City I like: Glasgow City I love: Glasgow City I think is overrated: N/A City I think is underrated: Glasgow City I feel most myself in: Glasgow City I still need to visit: Many City I dream of living in: Glasgow (& now I do!) Most inspiring city today: Glasgow Favorite city: Glasgow!

I'm pleased to share this paper on Creativity, health & sustainability, co-written w my wonderful @rcsofficial.bsky.social colleagues Laura Bissell & Laura Gonzalez! @amsouth.bsky.social, @clclcc.bsky.social, @soundscotland.bsky.social, you all get a mention in here! jpaap.ac.uk/JPAAP/articl...

Ah it was a cartoon — and a surprisingly quick google. A case of life imitating art I suppose

I'm pleased to share this paper on Creativity, health & sustainability, co-written w my wonderful @rcsofficial.bsky.social colleagues Laura Bissell & Laura Gonzalez! @amsouth.bsky.social, @clclcc.bsky.social, @soundscotland.bsky.social, you all get a mention in here! jpaap.ac.uk/JPAAP/articl...

🎲 What is Indeterminacy in music? 🎲 Check out our primer and follow our catalogue tour to discover the different ways many CE composers use indeterminacy in their works! [photo: excerpt from Aleksandra Vrebalov’s ‘Bubbles’] whatsnew.composersedition.com/indeterminat...

🐦 🦃 🦉 🦆 🦢 🦅 🦜 🕊️ 🐔 🐤 Whether through transcription of their songs, evocation of their flight, or reflections on their place in our lives (and ours in theirs), birds inspire Composers Edition composers working across a range of instrumentation and style: whatsnew.composersedition.com/birds-in-con...

String players, when there's scordatura do you prefer to read pitches as they sound or as they're played?

Looking for suggestions of (solo) piano pieces based on birdsong, _not_ by Messiaen, Beach, Dillon, Mâche, Couperin, or Rameau. Asking for a friend. (Really!)

Looking for suggestions of (solo) piano pieces based on birdsong, _not_ by Messiaen, Beach, Dillon, Mâche, Couperin, or Rameau. Asking for a friend. (Really!)

A lovely performance of a movement of my piece "Varia," performed by @huwmorgan.bsky.social on the Mainly Slow Organ Music series. Interestingly my dog, Idris Donut, who is usually completely unmoved by recorded music, loves the tuning of this 1760 single-manual organ! youtu.be/_9O71qM2iak

👁 NEW MUSIC FOR A NEW MONTH 👂 March brings a range of works by Allbright, Baltakas, Boyle, Bussey, Dearden, Doolittle, Gorb, Harry, Holmes, Inglis, Milstein, Peate, Robertson, Self, Tafreshipour & Venturi whatsnew.composersedition.com/march-new-re...

A lovely performance of a movement of my piece "Varia," performed by @huwmorgan.bsky.social on the Mainly Slow Organ Music series. Interestingly my dog, Idris Donut, who is usually completely unmoved by recorded music, loves the tuning of this 1760 single-manual organ! youtu.be/_9O71qM2iak

You are cordially invited...

Composing is hard! (I have been composing for 34 years, and it is hard every single time!)

Our #zoomusicology #animalwelfare paper "Playing music to animals," co-authored by Pralle Kriengwatana, @amsouth.bsky.social, Martin Ullrich, @ruedinager.bsky.social and me is now open access. This has been such a great team to work with & fun paper to write! www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Our #zoomusicology #animalwelfare paper "Playing music to animals," co-authored by Pralle Kriengwatana, @amsouth.bsky.social, Martin Ullrich, @ruedinager.bsky.social and me is now open access. This has been such a great team to work with & fun paper to write! www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

Morning, all! I'm just wondering - and I can't think why I didn't wonder before - is anyone out there researching historical #MusicPublishing? Would love to know more about their work. Thank you!

Who are your favourite 20th/21st century composers/musicians who use birdsong or other inspiration from birds in their music, and who do _not_ come from the Western classical tradition?

It's nice to see Idris Donut (my dog) getting due credit for his artistic output! (Thank you Leah Kardos/The Wire)

Have started a Scottish arts organisations and artists starter pack. For those new to Bluesky – SP’s collect together accounts on a common theme and you can follow them all with one click 😊 Starting with the arts orgs. Individual artists – let me know if you want to be added! go.bsky.app/4gSyNWx

Had great fun to write this paper with Pralle Kriengwatana, @amsouth.bsky.social, Marin Ullrich & emilydoolittle.bsky.social on how animals respond to music & what needs to be reported in future to better understand their responses #AnimalWelfare @uofgsbohvm.bsky.social doi.org/10.1016/j.an...

Bird nests made from anti-bird spikes?! 🤯 Hi, I'm a nest researcher 👋 and new here on BlueSky, sharing the craziest #bird nests I've ever found. 👀 Today, I’m sharing my discovery of rebellious birds that build nests out of anti-bird spikes. And honestly, it's like telling a joke... A thread. 🧵

Honestly, I never thought I'd start to miss the days of Bill-Gates-as-most-prominent-US-billionaire. (This is not to be taken as endorsement of Bill Gates or those days, just astonishment at how very much worse everything is now.)

So pleased that 'Keening - Song of the Stranding' has been given the green light, thanks to funders Creative Scotland, the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland Make It Happen Fund, and the Hope Scott Trust. Some details here, more to follow! #SongOfTheStranding @nordicviola.bsky.social

MUSICAL ANIMAL news!

Great to see our interdisciplinary paper on music and animal welfare out in the journal Animal Behaviour. Very much a team effort with @emilydoolittle.bsky.social, @ruedinager.bsky.social and Martin Ullrich, steered by Pralle Kriengwatana. authors.elsevier.com/a/1kYdDmjMA3XG

I'm excited to share our interdisciplinary inquiry into the use of music in animal welfare contexts, "Playing music to animals" co-authored by Pralle Kriengwatana, @amsouth.bsky.social, @ruedinager.bsky.social, Marin Ullrich & me! #zoomusicology #AnimalWelfare authors.elsevier.com/a/1kYdDmjMA3XG