music and arts

Enchanting Forest - Sussex

Four years ago during lockdown founder Nicoleta Carpineanu started working on a project called Enchanting Forest here in Sussex with David Alexander Yeoman, who sadly passed away in 2022. It is a project inspired by the sounds of the wet woodland habitat near Ebernoe Nature reserve. 

Thanks to recent funding, FWF is developing this project which explores the relationship between the individual, community and the forest, combining old English folklore (including storytelling, poetry and songs) with electronic music and a canvas of forest soundscapes. 

FWF is collaborating with a diverse range of multigenerational Sussex-based artists and communities as well as producing some of the songs that David/Keys composed for the project. In this way his legacy will continue. The first single “Lady of the Forest” by David Alexander Yeoman is out now.

Proceeds from the resulting album will go to fund reforestation, rewilding and/or environmental education and arts projects in East Sussex via Forests Without Frontiers. 

Partners include

Wilderlands, where we are extending hedgerows and creating a forest garden adjacent to ancient woodland as part of Weald to Waves’ efforts to create a network of contiguous habitat across a currently fragmented landscape, and where we will record for Enchanting Forest.

Childrens Forest who will form part of an intergenerational choir led by Sophia Efthimiou, recording songs in nature.

Sussex Wildlife Trust who will facilitate our “leave no trace” access to sensitive nature sites for further recording & filming sessions, in particular at Ebernoe & the Kelp Forests, as well as the ecologically important site of Kingley Vale.

We will be working closely with Professor Alice Eldrige from the University of Sussex who will help create the Sussex nature soundcape, as well as advisors Dr Chris Sandom and Professor Margaretta Jolly.

Sussex-based artists who have confirmed participation include Nico de Transilvania, Jules Dickens, Andrew Stuart-Buttle, Alice Russell, Emma Critchley, Murray Ballard, David Bramwell, Stefanos Andreas, Niall Hollaert and Elle Osborne, as well as musicians from New Note Orchestra which supports those affected by addiction and homelessness through music and dance.

We have worked with Professor Alice Eldridge to capture the sounds of the forest at Ebernoe Common, including the underwater sounds of the pond and the roots and bark of trees. These nature sounds will become the canvas for the album.

Recently we took a community choir led by Sophia Efthimiou deep into the magical woodlands at Ebernoe nature reserve, where we filmed and recorded some of the songs that will feature on the album. Singers and artists Alice Russell and Danny Emerson were also part of this special day.

We spent an inspiring day in Kingley Vale amongst some of Britain’s oldest Yew trees with New Note Orchestra, bringing together music, storytelling and landscape, demonstrating that both music and nature can play a powerful role in recovery.

We joined Ruby Stothard on the beach in Rottingdean, a young activist and ambassador for Sussex Underwater, to learn more about the kelp forests and find out how they are supporting the recovery of this important habitat. On the same day, local musician and artist Edmund Lloyd-Winder joined us to compose an ambient piece inspired by the Sussex shoreline.

The Enchanting Forest project is launching at Brighton Dome Corn Exchange on Thursday 20th November, an immersive evening of sound, art and performance - celebrating the launch of our new album and film, telling the story of the Sussex landscape through music, nature and community.