Welcome to Responses to the Landscape, a project which records the responses of a range of people to the landscapes of North Devon. These take the form of music, poems and general narratives.

The project is a joint initiative between The Ariel Studios (Channel Arts) and North Devon Museums Service, and is funded by the North Devon Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty through their Countryside Agency Project Funding 2005-2006

Five local individuals and one band were asked to provide sound recordings that for them would capture the essence of North Devon. They were asked to select a location significant to them and create a personal response to it.

Six audio piece sets were created by The Ariel Studios from these contributions. They can be selected individually or from maps of the landscapes to which the recordings refer.

Local poet Sam Smith recited his poetry inspired by Ilfracombe, folk artist Chris Millington created a musical response to Rappery Bay and naturalist, Trevor Beer, provided his thoughts on North Devon's Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB). The Mortehoe shepherd, David Kennard, talked about his special place Morte Point, geologist Kester Webb imparted his knowledge of Combe Martin, and Recyc (North Devon Young Peoples Junk Band) composed music to describe The River Taw.

Responses to the Landscape is a pilot for a wider web-based resource, which aims to encourage people to explore and appreciate North Devon.

If you want to contribute your own thoughts, contact any of the project partners using the links to their site on this page, sending your name, contact details and an outline of what you would like to contribute.