Songs From Home, is an expanding musical exploration of the way humanity experiences belonging. Every person, community, nation and culture has a connection with the feeling of Home - whether that’s a place, a set of values or an experience of acceptance. In many ways Home is synonymous with Identity.

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However according to the UN, in 2021 there were 82.4 million forcibly displaced people across the world, figures that do not take into account people experiencing homelessness due to socio-economic or mental health issues. Millions of people are on the move across continents and/or sleeping rough on our streets. Home has been taken away and along with it, the right to choose and claim Identity.

 

With so many people on the move, many people living in host countries have felt an existential threat to their own sense of Identity. As they witness waves of new people moving into their communities this feeling has spurred a wave of nationalist politics which has shifted the political landscape across the globe. To those people Home is changing and they feel they have little control over the speed and direction of transformation.

Songs from Home is a musical reconnection to the feeling of Home for all these people, and a way of bridging the gaps between them. Though the context may be different, people are much the same across the world. For most of us the feeling of Home shares a similar core - a need for safety, belonging and purpose.

 

Over the past few years the UK has been receiving people from across the world fleeing war, persecution, oppression and climate change. Music is a fantastic way to support the inclusion of these new people into local communities, but we felt we wanted to go further than just share songs. 

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Songs From Home is an exploration of a new musical language, looking at how different instruments, styles and cultural heritages come together to create something new in the melting pot that is 21st century Britain. 

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Our inspiration comes from the traditions of our musicians, re-interpreting songs from our cultures of origin and composing new music together that speaks to the joys and challenges of today.

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We imagine music that speaks in many languages, explores rhythms from many continents and sings melodies from many lands.