Nick-penny
Nick Penny

Call of the Kingfisher: Bright Sights and Birdsong in a Year by the River

Nick Penny

Friday, 22 March 2024

2:00pm

1 hour

Oxford Martin School: Seminar Room

£7 - £13.50

Composer and wildlife recordist Nick Penny celebrates the magic and importance of connecting with nature in a love letter to a short stretch of river near his Northamptonshire home.

Penny has walked the stretch of the River Nene for forty years. He says a chance encounter with a kingfisher on New Year’s Day inspired him to observe the water and the woods more closely. He looks back at a year by the river and his deeper connection with the sights and sounds of wildlife and the local history and landscape. He reflects on the importance of birdsong in a world of so much noise pollution and rediscovers inspirational nature writers of the past including Gilbert White and John Clare.

Penny set up a musical workshop and has used local birdsong in his own music recordings. He presented a programme on the science of sound for Channel 4, has written non-fiction books for children on musical subjects, and tours his World of Strings workshop to schools.

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The Oxford Literary Festival sponsors, donors & partners

The Telegraph Festival media partner University of Oxford European Union Supported by the Delegation of the European Union to the UK Cultural Relations Platform Supporter of the festival's Voices of Europe programme Bodleian Libraries Festival cultural partner Oxford Martin School Festival ideas partner Oxford Mathematics Spanish Embassy The Spanish Embassy: supporters of the programme of Spanish literature and culture Cervantes Institute, London The Cervantes Institute, London Blackwell’s Festival on-site and online bookseller Symington Wines of the Douro Valley Compassion in World Farming Pasture to Plate Oxford Business College Where learning meets opportunity: education partners of the festival Old Bank Hotel Five-star hotel partners of The Oxford Collection Old Parsonage Hotel Five-star hotel partners of The Oxford Collection Oxford Brookes University Oxford International Centre for Publishing Critchleys Accountants to the festival Confucius Institute Voltaire Foundation Felicity Bryan Associates Goldmoney Properties Princeton University Press Prestige publishing partner. Celebrating 25 years in Europe in 2024 Oxford University Department for Continuing Education Jewish Book Week Partner of Oxford Literary Festival Jim Mellon Miles Young Tim and Marion Stevenson Martin and Elise Becket Smith Ian and Carol Sellars David Isaac Mary and Cecil Quillen Supporters of the programme of American literature and culture Yale University Press London New College New College founded 1379 Exeter College Exeter College: college home of the festival. Founded 1314 Worcester College Worcester College founded 1714 Trinity College Trinity College founded 1555 Magdalen College Magdalen College founded 1458 Reuben College Reuben College founded in 2019 Pusey House Brasenose College Brasenose College founded in 1512 New Dutch Writing Human Ecology Project MACROVegan Bear Ram Elk Festival Digital Strategy & Web Design Racalia Olive Oil Olive oil from Sicily Paul Bloomfield Ltd University of Oxford Alumni Office Alumni Office The Sheldonian Theatre Oxford Centre for Hebrew and Jewish Studies Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies Oxford University Images Oxford University Images CAV Oxford The Litmus Partnership Schoolreaders Windrush Group The Oxford Times BBC Radio Oxford Local radio partner Conference Oxford Ox in a Box OX magazine