Songs From Stones 2010

The Cadw Songs From Stones 2010 project is an education project
involving 4 primary school classes and one community group.

The project has been designed to inspire participants about
a historic monument in their locality - Denbigh Castle,
Ewloe Castle, Flint Castle or Rhuddlan Castle;

to enable the participating school or community groups
to create an animated interpretation of 'their' monument;

to provide each group with the hardware and software which will enable
the group leaders to run similar projects in future years
if they wish to do so.

The project aims to train all participants in the use
of animation and sound software; the creation, recording
and editing of sound; and storyboarding.

The project aims also to develop a wide range of skills
in all participants - communication, storyboarding,
animation, sound recording & editing, observation skills,
group working skills, IT skills, problem solving,
and presentation skills.

The animations created during the project will be shown
in Theatr Twm O'r Nant, Denbigh, between 6 and 7.30 pm
on Wednesday 7th July 2010. Each group will give
a short presentation about their project, outlining
the high and low points of the project, and whatthe group gained from the project.

Each group will have an allocation of 20 seats for the event.

Films now on Songs From Stones website

The three completed films made by Ysgol Amlwch, Ysgol Llangaffo, and Ysgol Moelfre as part of this project are now on the Songs From Stones website, along with the original animated film created by Sean Harris and vistors to Beaumaris castle in August 2008.

http://www.songsfromstones.co.uk/home/

World premiere of Anglesey animations

Wow! What a fantastic evening. Many people around the world were in cinemas this evening, watching the premiere of the latest Harry Potter film, but a very select 50 or so people of all ages were in Ysgol Gyfun Bodedern watching the world premiere of 4 animations created by teachers and pupils in Anglesey primary schools. And what a premiere it was!

Marilyn Lewis, Director of Cadw, opened the event with a few words about the way Cadw has worked with Sean Harris and hopes to work with other artists in the future to interpret historic sites.

Sean Harris spoke about how much he'd enjoyed working with the teachers and children, and how much he'd learnt and shared about the 5 prehistoric sites which the animations focus on. Sean spoke about how not being certain about the events of the long distant past leaves lots of room for artistic interpretation.

For example, were all the bones of fish and small animals found in Barclodiad y Gawres the remains of a special 'stew' which formed part of an ancient ceremony, or were they just the left overs of an otter's dinner? Sean also spoke about the otter, which now resides in Ysgol Moelfre...


Each animated film lasted a couple of minutes - but when you realise that 25 frames are needed for each second, that's at least 3000 frames for each 2 minute film. That is a LOT of work. It was also obvious from both the films and the way the teachers and pupils spoke about their experiences of this project, that there was a lot of love and sheer effort and hard work put into the making of these films. The films themselves were wonderful combinations of photographs, hand drawn artwork, imaginative ideas, fantastic sounds and magical music. They were full of life!

Ysgol Amlwch began the evening with a spectacular film focusing on Parys Mountain. There were photographic backgrounds with hand drawn and animated foregrounds, copper spilling out of cracked rocks, characters holding axes aloft, and a very powerful soundtrack. Everybody had worked very hard on this film and the love and effort really showed.


The pupils spoke eloquently and enhanced the presentation of the animation, here is what they had to say:

We at Ysgol Gynradd Amlwch have been working very hard on creating this animated film about the mining of Parys Mountain during the Bronze Age. We have realised that it takes a very long time to create a short animated film.

Rydym ni yn Ysgol Gynradd Amlwch wedi bod yn gweithio yn galed iawn i creu ffilm animeiddio am y cloddio ar Fynydd Parys yn ystod yr Oes Efydd. Rydym wedi sylweddoli bod o yn cymryd llawer iawn o amser i greu ffilm animaeiddio byr.

It took about 2 months to create this 2 minute film and it was 2 months of very hard work. We have put a lot of effort into this film and we are very glad to see it finished.

Mae o wedi cymryd tua 2 fis i greu 2 munud o ffilm ac rydym wedi gwneud 2 fis o gwaith galed. Rydym wedi rhoi llawer o ymdrech i greu y ffilm ac rydym yn falch iawn o weld o wedi gorffen.

Before we started to animate we went to Parys Mountain with Sean Harris, Ken Brassil & Dylan Adams to record sounds and see what pictures we could use as backgrounds for the film.

Cyn i ni ddechrau animeidio aethom ni i Mynydd Parys hefo Sean Harris, Ken Brassil & Dylan Adams i recordio sŵn a gweld pa luniau fedrwn ni eu defnyddio fel cefndir i'r ffilm.

After we had created the film we realised it sounded a bit boring without any music. So we went into groups and created little tunes and then recorded them and adapted them on the computer.

Ar ôl creu y ffilm sylwodd bod y ffilm dipyn bach yn ddiflas heb gerddoriaeth. Felly ethom i mewn grwpiau i greu caneuon bach ac wedyn eu recordio nhw a'u addasu as y cyfrifiadur.

After putting the music and the film together it sounded great.

Ar ôl rhoi cerddoriaeth ar ffilm hefo'i gilydd roedd o yn swnio yn grêt.

We have enjoyed every minute of this project and we hope you will enjoy watching the film as much as we enjoyed creating it. Thank you very much to Mrs Owen for helping us create the film.

Rydym wedi mwynhau pob eiliad o'r prosiect yma ac rydym yn gobeithio rydych chi mwynhau y ffilm gymaint ac rydym ni wedi mwynhau ei chreu. Diolch yn fawr iawn i Mrs Owen am helpu ni eu creu y ffilm yma.

Ysgol Llangaffo had really struggled in some respects whilst working on this project - their new computers didn't co-operate with the software so they were limited to using one computer in another department. There were also real problems getting the soundtrack and animation together, and they wondered if they would have to bring the soundtrack on a CD and play it separately. Eventually, despite the difficulties, it all came together into a wonderful animation focusing on Barclodiad y Gawres and the animals which went into the 'stew'.

Mr Rowlands spoke about what a great skills based cross curricular project it had been, and how it supported the new 2008 curriculum in terms of developing and practising communication skills, IT skills, problem solving skills & creativity. He also outlined the cross curricular nature of the project, which included elements of local history, art, IT & music. The creation of the film was was quite a challenge which tested his IT and problem solving skills! However, great enjoyment was had by all involved in making the animation, and in a recent self evaluation exercise undergone by the school, several pupils expressed the opinion that this was the best thing they had done this school year.

The pupils talked us through a PowerPoint presentation taking us through the process with photographs, and one or two of them surprised us with their comments which reflected how strongly they felt about the project, which had affected them very positively. Here's what they had to say:

Yn gyntaf daeth Sean a Dylan i'r Ysgol i siarad hefo ni am y prosiect. Cawsom weld ffilm Sean a chyfle i ddefniddio I Can Animate. Yna aethom i'r neaudd i wneud synau ar gyfer y ffilm gyda Dylan. (First, Sean & Dylan came to school to speak with us about the project. We watched Sean's film and learnt to use I Can Animate. Then we went to the hall to make sounds for the film with Dylan)

Y diwrnod canlynol aethom ni hefo Sean & Dylan i Barclodiad y Gawres i flasu naws y lle, i dynnu lluniau ac ir recidrio mwy o synau. Er fod y tywydd yn wlyb ac yn wyntog cafwyd diwrnod i'w gofio. (The following day we went with Sean & Dylan to Barclodiad y Gawres to get a feel for the place, to draw pictures and record sounds. The weather was wet and windy making it a memorable day.)

Ar ol hanner tymor cychwynom ar y gwaith o greu'r animeiddiad. Buom yn trafod syniadau ac yna aethom ati i wneud lluniau i'w defnyddio yn y ffilm. (After half term we started on the work of creating the animation. After discussing ideas and things we made pictures to use in the film.)

Defnyddiom I Can Animate i greu'r animeiddiad, roedd yn lot o waith ond roedd o werth o i gael gweld ein lluniau yn symud ar y sgrin. (We used I Can Animate to create the animation, it was a lot of work but it was worthwhile for us to see our pictures moving on the screen.)

Daethom at ein gilydd ar ddiwedd y prosiect i roi popeth at ei gilydd yn defnyddio Windows Movie Maker ac roedd pawb wrth eu boddau pan welsom ein ffilm ni ar y smart board yn y dosbarth. Diolch yn fawr i Sean & Dylan am ein helpu ni, mae pob un ohonom wedi mwynhau bod yn rhan o'r prosiect hwn. (On the whole it came together at the end of the project and to make everything come together we used Windows Movie Maker and everybody was in their element when we saw our film on the smart board in the classroom. Thanks very much to Sean & Dylan for helping us, every one of us enjoyed every part of this project.)

Gethin - Y peth nes i fwynhau orau yn y prosiect oedd defnyddio I Can Animate i wneud yr animation oherwydd roeddwn i cael dysgu sgiliau newydd ar y cyfrifiadur. (The thing I enjoyed most about the project was using I Can Animate to make the animation because I learnt new skills on the computer).

Sasha - I enjoyed drawing the pictures for the animation best because I like art and I couldn't wait to see my pictures come alive on the screen.

Jac - Nes i fwynhau gwneud yr animation ar y laptop hefyd achos dwi'n hoffi gweithio ar gyfrifiaduron a doeddwn i ddim wedi gweithio llawer gyda laptop o'r blaen. (I enjoyed making the animation on the laptop as I haven't worked much with laptops before).

Tomos - What I really enjoyed about this project was going out of class and going to see the actual burial chamber. I enjoyed being in the chamber and actually stepping where they made the stew thousands of years ago. I had never been inside the burial chamber before and I will never forget this experience.

Ysgol Moelfre wowed us with an ethereal animation focusing on Din Lligwy. They spoke of ghosts, and the soundtrack of their film was certainly very other worldly. There was a fabulous buzzard soaring over the site,and Celts working below. This film was very professional, and belied the difficulties the group had had in saving the animation, and stopping it all turning pink at inopportune moments!!!

Here is what the children had to say about Din Lligwy:

Pentref Celtaidd ydy Din Lligwy ddim ymhell o Moelfre. Beth bynnag mae dylanwad y Rhufeniaid yn gryf ar y pentref. yma mae olion tai crwn a sgwar. Roedd bobl yn byw yma rhwng y blynyddoedd 100 a 400 O.C. Din Lligwy is a Celtic village not far from Moelfre. However, there is a strong Roman influence on the village. here, there are ruins of both round and square buildings. People lived here between 100 and 400 A.D.

Aethom ni i Din Lligwy i gael syniadau am y ffilm. Tra oeddem ni yna gwelsom foncath yn hofrn uwch ben ar death un o'r plant o hyd i bluen y boncath. Felly oedd cael boncath Din Lligwy a'i bluen yn y ffilm yn un syniad. We went to Din Lligwy for some ideas for the film. While we were there a buzzard hovered above us and one of us foud its feather on the ground. Therefore, having Din Lligwy's buzzard and it's feather was one idea for the film.

Dywedodd Ken Brassil wrthym bod olion hen efail yn un o' cytiau felly ar ôl mynd yn ôl i'r ysgol wnaethom ni feddwl am yr holl gelfi fuasai'r gôf wedi'i wneud yno. Ken Brassil told us that there had been a smithy in one of the huts in Din Lligwy. So when we returned to school we thought of all the different metal tools that could have been made there.

Meddyliom am beth ddigwyddodd i Din Lligwy. Roedd un o'r plant yn meddwl bod storm tebyg i storm y Royal Charter a storm yr Hindlea wedi chwalu'r pentref. We thought about what had happened to the vllage. One of the children suggested that a hurricane similar to the one in Royal Charter and Hindlea storm had destroyed the village.

Roedd rhai plant yn meddwl tybed os oedd ysbrydion yn Din lligwy. Felly gwnaeth rhai ohonom luniau o ysbrydion Celtaidd. Some of the children thought there could be ghosts in Din Lligwy. So some of us drew some Celtic ghosts for the film.

Ar ôl bod yn Din Lligwy daethom at ein gilydd i daflu syniadau ar gyfer y ffilm a phenderfynu pwy oedd yn gwneud beth? Chwilio am luniau Celtaidd mewn llyfrau ac ar y we. A few days after being in Din Lligwy we discussed our ideas and who was going to do what. We searched in books and on the internet for pictures.

Here is some of Ysgol Moelfre's artwork, used in the film:

Ysgol Pencarnisiog's animation had beautifully drawn characters and various items being dropped into the deep waters of Llyn Cerrig Bach, and what we heard of the soundtrack was excellent. Sadly, technical difficulties on the night prevented us from hearing all of it, but what we heard was wonderful! This school had undergone an inspection during the summer term, while they were making the film, and said the Inspectors had been suitably impressed with what they had seen in terms of cross curricular work, skills and working in groups and pairs.

Sadly, the evening co-incided with Ysgol Y Borth's trip to York, so we were not able to see their film. We hope it will be added to the Songs From Stones website with the other 4 school animated films, sometime soon.

We all had a fantastic evening watching the finished films and listening to the observations of teachers and pupils. What an amazing project, which worked so well because of all the love, creativity, effort and sheer hard work the artists, teachers and pupils all put in to the project. Fabulous films, an unforgettable experience for all who took part, and hopefully an inspiration to many others around the world.

Thank you all!

Just a quickie!

....to say a huge diolch yn fawr iawn pawb! What an absolutely inspiring couple of weeks. I will write more next week when I've a little more time, but just to say you were/are all bendigedig!

Please get in touch if I can help with anything. I have not yet come back down to earth from my visit to the magical, mystical island of Anglesey and its prehistoric portals to the past....nor do I want to come back down to earth!! Sean, Ken and I had a great and marvellous time. Your wonderful music will soon be uploaded to cerddora.com and I look forward to hearing and seeing your new creations!

Thanks again for all your warm and friendly hospitality. Diolch yn fawr.

Hwyl!

Dylan

And so we are done; over a hundred new junior archaeologists, animators, composers and sound engineers later, all hopefully with some sense of ownership of their sites.

Bryn Celli Ddu didn't disappoint - great to stand on top and listen to some very strange rumblings emanate from within! And to the create the longest human time line of the project - all the way back to 5000BC; Harry 2009 to Mairi 5000BC, very nicely mapped by the group.

Over to you now...

Please don't hesitate to get in touch if you're feeling stuck and please keep us updated through this blog with your progress (or trials and tribulations!).

Sean

Hello all

Dylan and I have had a ball in the last ten days! We think we are all on to some very exciting new ways of getting children/young people to engage with these extraordinary places. What we are all doing is, in effect, story telling, and as we all know, these magical sites have extraordinary stories...

Roger Young and James Betts from Kudlian Software (who have developed the wonderful I Can Animate) visited Llangaffo school on Wednesday. Over coffee afterwards in The Bull, Llangefni, they expressed their admiration for what we are achieving together. They learnt loads about their own product by coming to Anglesey and described it all as cutting edge in terms of educational process.

So, hopefully you are all feeling proud of what has been achieved, as well as inspired and excited about what is to come...

Once again, DON'T burden yourselves with a (non-existent) sense of everyone else's expectation - enjoy, explore, don't be afraid to push buttons and experiment and the results will come. 

Judging by the children's response, you won't be short of ideas (or technical know-how!)

Really looking forward to seeing the results of your creative experiments!

Sean

My highlights so far;

Spotting Bronze Age hammerstones on Parys Mountain

Wild garlic oatcakes at Din Lligwy (and finding the Barclodiad y Gawres otter is now stuffed and residing at Moelfre school!)

Arthur, King of the Britons (aka Dylan) getting lost at Llyn Cerrig Bach and appearing majestically on the crag top, brandishing Excalibur, to find that his 'subjects' were in fact standing beneath another crag some distance away....

Trance drumming in Barclodiad y Gawres - watching the Yr 4 boys and girls drifting away with their ancestors! We need another session like this so that the Chief Inspector of Monuments can join in...

And of course, looking forward to what Bryn Celli Ddu will bring...

YGG Amlwch Day 2 including field tip

The weather was not good on the day we went to Parys Mountain. Sean and Dylan changed the plans for the day so that we ate our picnics in class and went at lunchtime, when the weather was better. We did some more work in the classroom. While the very last group finished learning about animation, the rest of the class thought about sound. We all closed our eyes and listened very carefully for a few minutes. We listed all the sounds we could hear on the whiteboard. Then we thought about which of the sounds we could hear might have been heard by Bronze Age people. We crossed out the ones that they couldn't have heard.


Then we did a class drama, based on the processes used to make copper. 3 people dressed in yellow were chosen to represent the ore.





3 people dressed in red were chosen to represent the flames, which danced around the ore and heated it up. They had fun!


and 3 people dressed in blue were chosen to represent the water used to quench the metal.


We all enjoyed the drama, and Dylan said it would help us remember the things the Bronze Age people needed to make copper.

Dylan told us the story of the red dragon and the white dragon and the castle whose walls kept falling down in the night, and we imagined being underground, and the earth moving. That made us think about stories and how we know about history, and which stories might be real history and which might be imagined. We thought about how hard it was to build things a long time ago, moving big stones with just people and not with machines.



It was quite a short tip on the bus. The rain had stopped, but it was still very windy when we got off the bus.


We met some experts, who told us about copper ore.

They showed us some copper ore, which is a beautiful blue colour, and some of the other special stones that have been found on Parys Mountain.

It was quite a walk from the bus to the part of the mountain that we needed to go to, but we kept stopping on the way to talk about things, so we didn't really notice how far it was.

What a fabulous place. The hills and rocks are all different colours. We went down the hill into the bottom of the mine, pretending we were going back in time.



At the bottom, we talked about the Bronze Age miners and the Victorian miners. The Bronze Age miners used small pieces of wood to 'mine' the copper ore. They pushed the wood into the sides of the hill and set fire to them. Once the burning wood had heated things up, they threw water over the wall, and that made the rock crack. Little bits of charcoal (burned wood) have been found in the walls of the big cave here. The bronze age miners also had 'hammer stones' of harder rock to bash against the softer rock to break it into small enough pieces to melt the ore from. We made some collaborative sound by tapping rocks together, the sounds we made helped us imagine we were miners back in the Bronze Age. Dylan recorded the sounds so that we will be able to use them in our film, if we want to.

We learnt that the pigment that is used to colour paint is made from ground up rock. there are lots of colours of rock at Parys Mountain, and some people tried grinding rock into pigment. Nice colours on the trousers, hope mum wasn't too upset when she saw them at the end of the day!


We found an old mine, and we learnt that you needed copper and tin to make bronze. There is no tin here, and there is no copper in Cornwall, so historians think people used to travel by boat between Cornwall and Anglesey to exchange copper and tin.

Rowing a boat for hundreds of miles is hard work, bronze must have been very important to the Bronze Age people.

There was no money in the Bronze Age, so people exchanged things. We thought that when the Bronze Age copper miners exchanged some copper for tin with miners from Cornwall, they may have had a big party and ceremony to celebrate the successful trade, especially after such a difficult journey . So we made a song from sound, and had a ceremony of our own! Everybody had to bow when the person carrying the ceremonial ore moved past them.


The chief of the 'tin' people accepted the gift of copper ore gracefully.


This visit really helped everybody to imagine what it might have been like to live here and mine copper in the bronze age.