A STERLING line-up of Scottish musicians has been enlisted to bring a children’s storybook to life as part of an educational project being rolled out across Scotland.
Written by an Ayrshire business consultant for his own children during lockdown, the book has been transformed into a new album and audiobook with the music composed by Craig Espie of Skerryvore.
A father himself, Espie said the project was an innovative way to showcase Scottish traditional music to a new generation. Mr Goose – Risk And Reward, is also aimed at teaching the importance of taking risks and developing personal resilience.
Created by Grant Kennedy and illustrated by artist Louise McBride, its teaching has been piloted at Doonfoot Primary in South Ayrshire before being rolled out to schools in the rest of the region.
Espie has created an instrumental song for each individual character and called on a host of friends from the Scottish music scene to each represent one, while BBC Radio Scotland broadcaster and musician Gary Innes has stepped up to narrate the audiobook.
THE accompanying educational resources are aligned to the Scottish Curriculum for Excellence and now available to schools across Scotland via the national learning platform Glow.
The album features some of the finest traditional artists in Scotland including Scott Wood on bagpipes and whistle, guitarist Anna Massie, Trail West’s Ian Smith on accordion, Ciaran Ryan on banjo, Innes White on mandolin, Talisk’s Mohsen Amini on concertina, Sarah MacNeil on clarsach and Rura’s David Foleyon on flute.
Also on the album are Ronald Jappy on acoustic guitar and keys, Martin O’Neil on bodhran and percussion, double bassist James Lindsay on double bass and David Dunsmuir on electric guitar.
Fife singer-songwriter Cameron Barnes delivers the rousing closing track which brings all the musicians together to celebrate the book’s overall message.
“Mr Goose was inspired by the different animals my children and I would see while out on walks in our local area,” said Kennedy. “I started to think about my everyday work in corporate risk and how this could be relevant to youngsters.
“I quickly realised that these valuable lessons could be applied and taught in a school environment and Mr Goose was a fun way of telling that tale.”
ESPIE said he had enjoyed bringing the characters to life musically.
“This project is something completely new – a new way to listen to traditional music, look at composition and showcase the music and instrumentation of our traditions to the next generation,” he said.
“After taking Mr Goose home for my children to read, it became clear to me that each character could have its own instrumental theme which formed an album.
As well as accompanying the book and the educational materials already in place, the music could also provide an additional educational resource, teaching the subject of traditional music.
“It was great fun bringing each of Grant’s characters to life musically and I felt it was essential to capture the essence of each one’s individual personality and decision-making processes.
“For example, Little Mouse has the delicate sound and excitement of the mandolin, and The Swans has the beauty and grace of a clarsach.
“Mr Goose is a great resource for young children and the level of professionalism and quality of musicians means that it is also something which the whole family, including lovers of traditional music, can enjoy.”
The Mr Goose – Risk And Reward album and audiobook were supported by funding from Creative Scotland.
The Mr Goose book is available now to buy on Amazon. The album will be available to stream and download on all major digital platforms including iTunes and Spotify on Friday, August 20, with an audiobook release expected to follow soon.
For more information visit: www.mrgooseonline.com
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