Part of Manchester Folk Festival 2027
Strange Heavens is the name of an original musical work by acclaimed singer, songwriter and folk guitarist, Jon Wilks, and journalist and songwriter, Rich Lines.
The musical work was inspired by the vast and luminous paintings by English artist Sir Stanley Spencer, found at the National Trust’s Sandham Memorial Chapel near
Newbury – one of the great achievements of twentieth-century British art.
Spencer painted the chapel’s interior between 1926 and 1932, inspired by his own experiences of the First World War. Created to honour the ‘forgotten dead’ who were not remembered on any official memorials, the series chronicles Spencer’s everyday experiences as a medical orderly and soldier on the Salonika front.
With the support of the chapel team, the musicians were given rare time alone inside the chapel to develop a musical response to Spencer’s work. They were struck by the intensity of the paintings and the quiet dignity found within the scenes of hospital life and military labour, and what was originally intended to be a single song soon developed into a song cycle.
Manchester Folk Festival marks 10 years with Eliza Carthy & The Restitution, Belinda O’Hooley & Jackie Oates, Spiers & Boden, Leveret, Olivia Chaney, Fionn Regan, Pokey LaFarge, Catrin Finch & Aoife Ní Bhriain and many more performing from Wednesday 10th – Saturday 13th March 2027.
Manchester Folk Festival is a multi-venue festival taking place in the heart of the city, bringing together a diverse range of artists who represent the broad definition of contemporary folk music. Discover the best traditional folk, roots and acoustic music across a variety of the city’s iconic music venues.
Their four-day Festival Legends 2027 wristbands offer full access to every gig, session, ceilidh and event during the festival – you can book those here. Individual tickets for all headline shows are also now available.
“Arguably the UK’s leading urban folk festival, which given its relatively short history is a real endorsement of the event” – BBC Radio
