Phoenix Archive Project Commission
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A bag full of old 16mm film reel was donated to Exeter Phoenix by someone who knew themselves to be in possession of something precious, but couldn't preserve it. Exeter Phoenix Digital digitised the film and rescued a rare archive of home video footage from 1930s - 1960s, which tracks one family’s travels and activities through this turbulent period, from daily life and family outings to major historical events and world travel.
A good forty years ahead of the commercially available family camcorders of the 1970s and almost 90 years in advance of the smart phone, live stream, social media selfie culture era, this insight into the birth of domestic documentary is completely fascinating. I'm incredibly grateful for the opportunity to create a song cycle in response to the Phoenix Archive. It's been extraordinary reflecting on this exceptional informal and intimate footage of the Parrish family and their friends over 30 years. Witnessing this fragmented, decontextualised and informative piece of social history brings a generative mix of tenderness, discomfort, beauty, humour and fascination which has been a rich seam to delve into as a songwriter! FRAGMENTS REMAIN due for release 2025, recorded in Exeter Phoenix auditorium and produced by Ben Green is performed by cellist and vocalist, Clarissa Carlyon and drummer Oli Haines alongside Holly. Exploring themes of family, memory, dementia, shifting baselines, objectification and colonialism, the album is a wryly nostalgic, wood-grained, cinematic dreamscape wending through folk, lo-fi pop and ambient acoustic realms. The Phoenix Archive Project has been made possible thanks to support from the National Lottery Heritage Fund and The Radcliffe Trust. |