Confluence

Well Being

Confluence were approached by the Dorset Hearing and Tinnitus Association (DHATA), a charitable support group for sufferers based in Blandford. Tinnitus is a hearing condition which affects a great number of people in a variety of walks of life, including many musicians. Sufferers hear persistent and repetitive noises, buzzes, and hums which can be intolerable and which, most tragically, cannot be cured.

Although there is no treatment, it can be soothed with a mask of music, or sounds from nature, and Tinnitus help and advice groups such as DHATA issue therapeutic tapes to this end. Karen Wimhurst agreed to work with DHATA to record a new tape featuring music and sounds from the River Stour. She met with a number of Tinnitus sufferers to find a form for the piece which would be most appropriate.

Unfortunately, attempts to raise additional funding for this project foundered, and original ambitious plans for a professional recording, the pressing of tapes and CDs and a large scale concert were regrettably abandoned. Also, it was felt by all parties that questions of contracts, copyright and royalties needed much more consideration before such an activity could advance.

As a consequence, the work was scaled down. Karen devised a piece for concert performance which might prompt financial support for the recording, and would be the centre-piece of a series of activities demonstrating the connexions between water, healing and well-being.

We were lucky to receive support from the Richard Glyn Foundation, who offered us free use of the ballroom at their centre at Gaunts House, near Wimborne. It was there, in December 2000 that we held an evening of music and talk called Well Being. This celebrated the beneficent presence of flowing water in our lives, addressed both practical, historical and mythological uses of water in healing and well-being, and recalled the reverence and respect shown traditionally to waters, wells and spas.

There were two guest speakers. Charlie Ryrie presented some thoughts from her publication The Healing Energies of Water (Gaia books, 1998), a broadly-based book which examines our intimate bond with water, from world myth through to modern hydrotherapy and traditional spas.

The second speaker, John Day of East Dorset Antiquarian Society, described their efforts to rejuvenate a well in Hazelbury Bryan.

The first half of the concert featured new compositions by local composers who had been taking part in Confluence. These included a young flute trio, lutenist Anna Eckford, guitarist Graham Moughton and others.

A guest appearance was made by the sound healer Frank Perry who improvised on Tibetan water bowls.

Karen provided a cycle of three songs for soprano and flute trio Red Sun, First Home, and Leaving the Shore performed by Helen Porter and the Vine Flute Trio.

To end the evening, Frank Perry joined Watershed to perform Karen's piece for DHATA, called Stream (since re-named Melbury Abbas Spring after the location of the recorded water sounds).

The highest praise came from DHATA co-ordinator and chronic Tinnitus sufferer Lorraine Tattersdill who thanked Karen for successfully getting through the barrier of noise that is symptomatic of the condition.

THE RICHARD GLYN FOUNDATION is a charity, based at Gaunts House near Wimborne in Dorset, enquiring into the nature of education, the nature of being human and profound learning. They offer courses, events, festivals, workshops and retreats over evenings, weekends, weeks and longer. Their work began in 1982 with children, parents and teachers and currently involves creative and liberal arts, exploration of consciousness and energy, ecological and environmental matters, group and team work, management, organ isation and training, retreat and meditation. They provide time and space for profound thinking and learning, good facilities and regular free satsangs for local guests. They welcome courses from like-minded organisations of every size and description, from the U K. and around the world.

CHARLIE RYRIE is an environmental writer and editor and a founder member of the Local Agenda 21 initiative to improve education about water. Her book The Healing Power of Water (published by Gaia books in 1998) has been widely praised: 'To read this book is to become aware of water and its significance in a new way, to open ones eyes to its many aspects and to appreciate it as never before' (David Lorimer, Director of the Scientific and Medical Network).