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What on Earth Evolved? |
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Listen and watch with wonder at the first 50 species in the top 100 table — those that have evolved up to and including humans. |
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What on Earth are these songs all about?
I found out about David Haines through a member of his Devon choir, Sue Blake, who had completed the What on Earth Happened? quiz in June 2009. After Sue contacted me, wanting to know the quiz answers, we got chatting by email. It transpired that Sue sings in a choir that takes David’s songs about evolution into schools to enthuse pupils about learning science through music.
How fantastic! I immediately wrote back, rather flippantly suggesting that perhaps David might consider setting my 100 species that changed the world to music. I had Tom Lehrer’s song The Elements about the Periodic Table in my mind. I sent her the list of species..
Two weeks later I was stunned to find TWO songs appearing in my inbox. David had composed the lyrics for the first 50 species, those that evolved in the wild before humans, to a ballad. For the second 50 species, those that have thrived in the presence of humans, he had written a contrasting jazzy number.
I was so inspired by the songs that I set about setting them to a visual display of all 100 species as they appear in the book. Many of them are drawings by Andy Forshaw, the artist who has so wonderfully illustrated both What on Earth? books.
The world premiers of both songs were performed live as a piano and PowerPoint duet by David and myself at launch lecture of What on Earth Evolved? 100 Species that Changed the World delivered at The Royal Institution in Mayfair, London, on Thursday 8th October 2009.
You can find out more about David, his music and his many educational al projects at www.singtastic.com
Click here for the second 50 species song
Christopher Lloyd October 9th, 2009
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