The place where science and folk music intersect is the basis for Tipping Points. During 2022 Luke worked with scientists and social scientists to develop a workshop that explored the interactions between science and society at a local level through folk music-making and storytelling.
This performance includes original compositions for melodeon, guitar and voice which travels from the Neolithic to the present-day taking in the highways, byways and coastlines of the British Isles. Musically the performance draws on English and Scottish traditional music and contemporary folksong.
It is told through the lived experience and stories of farmers and fisherfolk which has evolved to reach locations including Wester-Ross, Oxfordshire and Dartmoor.
Lucy Beattie grew up in Lochbroom and became a farmer at 21. She has recently completed a PhD exploring science communication and the interaction between research and public engagement in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) subjects. She has been a founding force behind Ulluminate as a community science festival.
Luke Daniels’ accolades include BBC Musician of the Year (BBC Radio 2 Young Tradition Award); PRS for Music Foundation (New Music Bienniel Award) and the Palme d'Or Award for Music. Luke has been touring since the mid 1990s as a session musician with Riverdance, De Dannan and Cara Dillon but since 2012 has released eight critically acclaimed solo albums of his own songs and music. He has performed at The Philadelphia Folk Festival, The LondonJazz Festival and in the Royal Festival Hall as well as many of the UK’s top festivals including Cambridge, FolkEast, Towersey and Celtic Connections and appeared a solo guest on BBCRadio 2’s Folk Programme.
Andy Neal’s research places organic carbon at the heart of soil. He is working with colleagues to develop a radically different way of thinking about soil. Neal is a regular public speaker; his work has featured on BBC Radio 4’s Inside Science and at New Scientist Live events. In his spare time Andy is a classical double bass player. As well as playing with the Devon Philharmonic and other orchestras he also teams up with a band of Ukuleles in his hometown in a weekly jamming session.
Melanie Wright works with academics at Rothamsted Research's North Wyke site in Devon to develop closer links with farming and regional stakeholders. She promotes the Institute's research in grassland livestock systems and ensures that the work is in line with the major challenges facing the livestock sector as it strives to intensify sustainably in the face of rising global food demand and climate change.