Jenny Sturgeon records an EP for St Kilda

Jenny Sturgeon

The Wren And The Salt Air is a collection of songs and tunes by acclaimed Scottish singer-songwriter Jenny Sturgeon. It was written to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Scottish archipelago of St Kilda becoming a World Heritage Site for its natural features.

The Wren And The Salt Air, commissioned by the National Trust for Scotland (NTS), comprises four new pieces of music inspired by the wildlife and human history of the archipelago. It is a spellbinding collection that effectively captures the unique atmosphere of St Kilda, Britain’s most remote island group.

In this EP Jenny explores the connections between birds and music, and woven into the tracks are her field recordings of the birds of St Kilda, as well as those of composer, author and ornithologist Magnus Robb (The Sound Approach).

Susan Bain, the St Kilda Site Manager for NTS, says of the project:

“The St Kildans drew inspiration from the landscape and wildlife around them in order to compose songs and melodies and I’m delighted that Jenny has continued this tradition. As a World Heritage Site St Kilda has value to all of humanity and music can connect and inspire peoples across the globe regardless of language or culture.”

The Wren And The Salt Air  features Jenny (vocals, shruti box, guitar), Jonny Hardie (fiddle, vocals), Pete MacCallum (guitar, vocals) and the distinctive calls of the St Kilda Wren, Leach’s Storm-Petrel and Black-Legged Kittiwake. This, the third studio recording from Jenny, was recorded over two days at Studio 1604 in Aberdeenshire.

St Kilda is an iconic group of islands with a wealth of human history and animal life, including a seabird population of around half a million birds, plus a unique sub-species of wren and mouse. St Kilda and its history have long captured the interest of people across the globe. It was as recently as 1930 that the last native St Kildans left the archipelago. Today, three organisations – NTS, Scottish Natural Heritage and the MoD – work in partnership to further a continuing programme of conservation and research on the islands.

Artist’s website: www.jennysturgeonmusic.com

Trailer video: