We’ll start our conversation together with the question:
“When do you notice the town bells, and when do you tune them out?”
As part of the development of Intervals Over Stone – a new composition for hand-rung and electronic church bells premiering in Drogheda in September 2027 – composer Natalia Beylis will host a pop-up conversation station.
Drop by and share what the bells mean to you: a memory, a routine, a sound you love or one you’ve learned to tune out. These conversations will directly shape Natalia’s new work, which brings together the hand bell ringers of St. Peter’s Church of Ireland and the programmable bells of St. Peter’s Catholic Church into a single piece written for the town itself.
No appointment needed – just stop and talk for a few minutes. All ages and all opinions welcome, including complaints!
Tickets: Free, all welcome to drop in – no appointment needed!
Date: Sun Sept 6
Time: 10am – 5pm
Venue: St Laurence Street, Drogheda, Co. Louth
Natalia Beylis
Natalia Beylis’ music revolves somewhere between sonic storyteller and multi-instrumental explorer. Based in rural Ireland, her work parallels the lines of her surroundings: creaking trees, farm animals, vocal samples taken from conversations with her neighbours, the northwesterly breeze, creatures rustling in the hedgerows, strange noises from the bog at dusk and rainfall. Lots and lots of rainfall.
Her solo compositions and improvisations are a mix of garbled tape collage recordings, manipulated sounds of seemingly mundane objects, eerie mandola mantras and dreamscape piano voyages.
While she regularly records on a variety of traditional instruments, she is just as likely to use non-musical sound sources within her compositions. For example, she recently released an album using just the sounds created by a domestic Singer sewing machine.
Alongside several other solo albums, Natalia has also released collaborative records with cellist Eímear Reidy (Whose Woods These Are, She Came Through the Window to Stand by the Door) and violinist Agathe Max. She has played in and founded numerous groups, including Woven Skull, Divil A’ Bit, the free improv collective Three Eyed Makara and currently the duo Hedgling with percussionist Willie Stewart. Natalia also composes pieces for ensembles. Her latest composition, ‘Around Here, The Birds Plant The Trees’ uses conkers both as a sonic source and as a visual conducting aid to direct the players.