::::the journey of skuld begins::::

After a few years of having the idea of the character of Skuld swirling within, it has become clear to me where the next step will go. As everything in my life is about 'journey', so it will be within this project that represents my life and my perspectives on the world that I live in. ::::the following may be:::: update: June 20, 2008. The horse travel aspects of The Skuld Project have been postponed due to a serious upperarm/shoulder injury. The challenge during this time for me will be to continue the explorations that the horse travel represents in a more pedestrian form. To let go of modern industrial time, exploration of the wild. This was a difficult decision to make until I remembered that the various elements of the project are something that I have been dealing with for my whole life and will continue to do so. I leave things sit as they are re: equine travel for the time being.

• To search for a deep and sure connection with the natural world through the motivations and perceptions of Skuld; of mythic imagining and re-vision-ing. Skuld and her kind have been amongst us humans for all remembered time. In the earliest days when all spoke as one – the animals the humans the trees the earth – their presence was known. As time wove on and the humans decided that they were different and of primary importance, that all the Earth was made for them, when they forgot the language of all, Skuld and her sisters found themselves forgotten and yet still pulled along with the people to their great distress. The Skuld Project is about the search and struggle to find the state where all spoke as one, when all were as one. Click here for more info about how The Skuld Project connects with modern issues of human/nature connection/disconnection.

::::the journey::::

• Long distance travel on horseback that incorporates music, song and storytelling.
• This mode and method of horse travel plays with time – moving slowly, away from the industrial clock; follows musical and storytelling tradition – traveling minstrelsy, the troubadour, the ancient celtic harpers, poets, na filí; plays with ideas of myth creation – do we create our myths or do myths create us?
• The journey explores a deeper connection with nature represented through the world of the long rider.
• The website shall be maintained to chronicle the journey at all stages.
• The skuld weblog allows those that follow the journey to read an ongoing travelogue and to make direct comments.
• Travel to be light and free, following new and worn trails, open range, atv/snowmobile trails, dirt roads, paved roads when necessary.
• While traveling, I will camp as I go and take hospitality as it graciously presents itself.
• In addition to making the musical instruments, travel/performance clothing and gear is being made using traditional materials and techniques, such as brain/smoke tanned hides, gathered and spun fibers etc.
• Horse tack and other equine equipment will be in part made by myself, borrowed and aquired from professional suppliers. Sponsorship is being sought out to help with certain items and costs.
• My horses will be 'barefoot' ie. will not use horseshoes. In September 2007 I studied barefoot hoof trimming at Equinextion and continue to work and learn so that I may maintain horse feet myself while I travel.
• Horse care and health is of upmost importance.

::::the music/the story::::

• Everything about this journey is connected to the character Skuld. Performances are in the form of the storyteller, the seanchaí. Story, song, music merge to create a unique and exciting experience for witnesses of performances.
• Movement/travel informs story which informs path which witnesses the lie of the land which creates the line of the music. The path isn't just about performance. The whole is a living piece. Art in motion. Informed by travel, the nature of the music and the story grows with motion and absorbed experiences; a direct representation of the journey.
• Traveling through rural and remote areas, performing at house concerts and similar small & intimate venues.
• I see few urban performances, though i imagine and hope that people may be drawn from towns and cities.
• At first, performances may be in the homes of friends and other known people who wish to host a house concert, trusting that other places will present themselves through word of mouth, this website and publicity. If you would think you would like to host a concert, please email me at catherine@fiain.com. I will spend more time organising performance aspects later on in 2008.
• Musical instruments are of my own making and rooted to the earth. gourd instruments, bone flutes etc.
• Music is available through this web site and will continue to be added as they are recorded. Downloadable online with a free will offering. Click here to go to the sonic page.

::::a rough timeline::::

• Spring 2007 – Autumn 2008 – Preparation. Develop riding skills further, knowledge of horse safety and care; a deeper knowledge of wild foods and wilderness travel.

  Fundraising towards the project through public and private sources. Making my travel/performance clothing and gear using traditional materials and techniques as much as possible, such as brain/smoke tanned hides, locally gathered and spun fibers etc. i am also on the lookout for horses that have the strength, endurance and temperament for the journey. A year of dreaming, crafting, conceiving, creating and learning.
  September 2007 – I attended an incredible natural hoof trimming and horse care seminar with Lisa Huhn at Equinextion.
  
• Winter – early summer 2008 will be spent creating new music and storyline for the project, equipment building and aquiring first at The Banff Centre during the winter and then volunteering with horse oriented places to build experience and ideas.
• Late summer 2008 – A 2–21/2 month tour exploring travel ideas, building experience with horse travel and developing how the project aught to be represented through music and performance. This will include audio gathering - concerts, sounds and music from the land, spoken word - to be presented as podcasts during the winter. At this point in time the route is looking to go from southern Saskatchewan through southern Alberta and then north through the mountains to Banff, Alberta. (postponed)
• Late Autumn 2008/Winter 2009 – Taking note of experiences of the trip from the summer to prepare for the next stage. The winter will be spent at The Banff Centre where new music will be created and podcast material edited and prepared for broadcast. Concerts and presentations related to the horse travel will be a major part of my winter in Banff.
• Spring 2009 – I will travel as in the summer before but for a much longer time and distance. How long? months, years ... with the sun and the wind as my guide. Early spring through late autumn laying over through the winter most likely.

As skuld has progressed over the last few years, I have spent a great deal of time exploring how the project could take form ... music, story, myth, graphic novel, film, imagery. Though all these could be a part of skuld, I had trouble taking these thoughts/ideas anywhere with real clarity. The realisation of what the skuld project could be has come about from looking at my own life and how i live it. Through the earth, the physical, the do-ing, a quest for clear seeing. Things cleared up considerably with this realisation and in truth i can see that i have been heading in this direction all along with awareness arriving only recently.

Below I will give a brief description that I have used for various purposes of how I envision skuld and the project in general. Though at present Skuld as a being has moved from a strictly norse/valkyrie/norn character into one that crosses many more cultural transformation myths (celtic, norse, native north american and others), I believe that the description below does give a sense of where I'm heading with all this. Thanks for reading! Catherine.