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Scafell Pike

Sound Walk Four Peaks Sound Walk
Episode 3 of 4

Horatio Clare climbs Scafell Pike in the third Sound Walk up the four great peaks of the United Kingdom.

The third of Horatio Clare鈥檚 Christmas Sound Walks. It鈥檚 the north eastern tip of Wast Water in the Lake District which sees the start of the climb of England鈥檚 highest peak, Scafell Pike.

Joining the Corridor Route to take him up the mountain 鈥� one of the most impressive routes in the whole of the Cumbria - this is a journey of extremes. From the warm rolling foothills, across boggy ground and rocky outcrops, the trek takes him to Sty Head, and around Great End whilst passing Skew Gill and what appears to be a roaring and bottomless Piers Gill.

Passing groups of fell runners whilst surrounded by the splendour of the Lake District鈥檚 scenery, the path gets harder and the weather darker. The cloud comes down and the rain saturates.

At the end of the silence and remoteness of the Corridor Route, the path joins the main drag up the mountain. Looking like an army of ants emerging from the mists, astonishingly, on a day of terrible weather, hundreds of people are still drawn, almost magnetically, to England鈥檚 highest spot. In a joyous joint pilgrimage to reach the summit, with the hill walkers seemingly representing almost every corner of Britain鈥檚 society, as the rain pours the glee of everyone鈥檚 triumph over adversity is clear.

Part of Horatio Clare's Sound Walk journey to the four highest peaks of the four UK nations. Climbing Ben Nevis in Scotland, Slieve Donard in Northern Ireland, Scafell Pike in England and Snowdon in Wales, he sets out on an epic journey up the monolithic titans to take the temperature of this particular moment in time and our relationship with the outdoors.

Approaching the dozing giants, not in an athletic spirit of conquest but in a spirit investigation and curiosity, he arrives at the foot of each of them with no preconceptions, but with an open mind in the hope of climbing to the attic of each country and looking through the skylight to see how they talk to each other and how they talk to us.

Hearing the birds, smelling the fresh air, being shrouded by mist and cloud whilst also soaking up the light, shades and colours, with long periods of carefully recorded atmosphere, interwoven with music and lucid descriptions, this is radio that鈥檚 designed to take time to hear.

Music threaded through the programmes include works from a wide variety of genres by composers and performers including Amiina, Olafur Arnalds, JS Bach, Beoga, Gavin Bryars, Anna Clyne, Laurence Crane, Danish String Quartet, Dalla, Alex Groves, Leos Janacek, John Luther Adams, EJ Moeran, 脷na Monaghan, Anne M眉ller, Nordic Fiddler鈥檚 Bloc, Vikingur Olafsson, Morfydd Owen, Puuluup, Penguin Caf茅, Aidan O鈥橰ourke, Richard Strauss, Ralph Vaughan Williams, A Winged Victory for the Sullen and many more.

Books and sources used for research include:

Ben Nevis: Britain's Highest Mountain - Ken Crockett and Simon Richardson

Twenty Years on Ben Nevis - William T Kilgour

The English Lakes: A History - Ian Thompson

Below Scafell - Dudley Hoys

The Pinnacle Club for Women Climbers pinnacleclub.co.uk/journals

On Cambrian and Cumbrian Hills - Henry S Salt

Slieve Donard's Domain - Nicholas Russell

Snowdon: The Story of a Welsh Mountain - Jim Perrin

Portrait of Snowdonia - Cledwyn Hughes

Mountains and Desire - Margaret Grebowicz

59 minutes

Last on

Mon 27 Dec 2021 16:00
大象传媒 Radio 3

More episodes

Previous

Slieve DonardFour Peaks Sound Walk

Next

SnowdonFour Peaks Sound Walk

See all episodes from Sound Walk

Music Played

  • Thomas Ad猫s

    Arcadiana (O Albion)

    Ensemble: Danish String Quartet.
    • ECM New Series.

  • Yann Tiersen

    Comptine D'un Autre 脡t茅

    Performer: Yann Tiersen.
    • Virgin.

  • Andy Cutting

    Edges / Thin Waltz

    Performer: Andy Cutting.
    • Lane Records.

  • Peter Gregson

    Hidden

    Performer: Peter Gregson. Performer: Warren Zielinski. Performer: Matthew Denton. Performer: James Boyd. Performer: Eoin Schmidt-Martin. Performer: Meghan Cassidy. Performer: Richard Harwood. Performer: Ben Chappell.
    • Deutsche Grammophon.

  • Terje Isungset

    Fola, Fola Blakken

    Performer: Terje Isungset. Performer: Arve Henriksen.
    • All Ice Records.

  • Claude Debussy

    Des pas sur la neige (Book I, No. 6)

    Composer: Colin Matthews. Orchestra: Hall茅. Conductor: Sir Mark Elder.
    • Halle.

  • Godspeed You! Black Emperor

    Our Side Has To Win (For D.H.)

    Performer: Godspeed You! Black Emperor.
    • Constellation.

  • Gustav Holst

    The Planets Suite, Op. 32: V. Saturn

    Choir: London Philharmonic Choir. Orchestra: London Philharmonic Orchestra. Conductor: Vladimir Jurowski.
    • Holst: The Planets.
    • London Philharmonic Orchestra.
    • 105.

  • Steve Reich

    Music for Large Ensemble

    Ensemble: Steve Reich.
    • ECM.

  • Laurence Crane

    See our lake

    Ensemble: Apartment House.

  • amiina

    Hilli

    Ensemble: amiina.
    • Ever Records.

  • Chick Corea

    Children's Songs (No 6)

    Performer: Chick Corea.
    • Chick Corea: Children's Songs: Chick Corea.
    • ECM.
    • 6.

  • Ralph Vaughan Williams

    The Lark Ascending

    Performer: Nicola Benedetti. Orchestra: London Philharmonic Orchestra. Conductor: Andrew Litton.
    • Deutsche Grammophon.

Broadcast

  • Mon 27 Dec 2021 16:00
    大象传媒 Radio 3

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