New EP - SOURCE - out on bandcamp

My new album of collaborative vocal improvisation, SOURCE, has been released into the world!

Formed by myself, Kate Mellors and Emma Coleman, the Wellspring Collective was born on an overcast day in London in May 2021. Never having sung before as a trio, but drawn together out of shared love of vocal improvisation and admiration for each other as singers, we did not know what would emerge from our encounter.

Here we are a year later, happy to share the fruits of that labour, a snapshot in time. What emerged are delightful little worlds of sound, textures, melodies and moments derived from deep listening. We hope our songs take you on a journey, surprise you, move you, maybe even make you laugh!

Collaborative vocal improvisation is by nature leaderless. For this album, we explored different starting points and then let the forces of three human voices come together to unfold something new, that can never be re-created. These prompts ranged from vocal techniques, such as 'slides' and 'in-breath', to genre, like 'village call' and 'lullaby', to roles, such as 'solo' and 'support'.

We love collaborative vocal improvisation because it’s the surest way into a state of flow that connects you deeply to yourself, to your collaborators, and to the imagined entity that is the song coming to life as you make it. Every moment is a discovery, an opportunity, an invitation, and it’s fascinating to notice in yourself and in your collaborators how those choices are negotiated. Collaborative vocal improv truly asks you to confront who you are right then and right there, no holds barred. Will you slide into the bass role? Will you flourish into a solo and if so, what will you be learning about your heart as you sing? Will you become an impish little trickster, or will you choose to be the steady motor? It’s all an adventure taken in the company of friends, and we love it.

What’s even better is that we had the process filmed, so over the next few months, we’ll slowly be releasing videos of the songs being made in the moment.

We hope you enjoy this album and maybe are even inspired to give vocal improvisation a go yourself. ;)

With much love from all of us, Emma, Kate S, Kate M.