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Monday, 02 November
Staff
Team
Hello, my name is Joe and Iām chuffed to be working for Live & Local as the Community Engagement Officer for Eckington and Uttoxeter as part of the Rural Hub Towns Project.
I have spent my working life thus far juggling community music, music therapy and a busy performing schedule and Iām excited for this new challenge. Over the last decade, I have delivered participatory music work in hospitals, paediatric hospitals, acute and forensic mental health settings, prisons, care homes and special schools; first as a Healthcare Musician and latterly as a Music Therapist. I am still involved in this work and deliver work regularly for OPUS Music in the East Midlands and deliver training nationwide for musicians working in healthcare settings.
As a performer, I have been lucky to tour around the UK and Europe, and currently can most often be found playing with experimental folk singer Jim Ghedi and Appalachian old-time duo Old Spot (who have previously been part of Live & Localās Rural Touring scheme). This year I have had records released with Old Spot and experimental guitarist Nick Jonah Davis. I have also played on the score for 4ADās The Death of Robin Hood (featuring Hugh Jackman & Jodie Comer), toured with one of my musical heroes (Joseph Decosimo) and written electronic music for the score to a contemporary dance show by Caitlin Barnett Company.
Iām really excited to be working with Live & Local on their Rural Hub Towns project. I have spent the last 6 years living rurally in Derbyshire, and I know how valuable an injection of arts activity can be to a small town. Iām passionate about participatory music, and am excited to have a bit more of a broad remit that can encompass my passion for the natural world, rural communities and the magic that happens when people come together.
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What are your hobbies?
Outside of playing music, which has kind of permeated all aspects of my life really, I do lots of folk dancing. I have been a Morris Dancer for over a decade and currently dance with Harlequin Morris, and also do lots of traditional French bal dancing. Iām also an avid birdwatcher and use travelling for gigging to visit lots of nature reserves. Iāve been good at keeping this up in 2026 and hope to keep the momentum! Inspired by my wife I have started watercolour painting little bird portraits. They are delightfully rubbish, and Iām weirdly proud of them. I also love reading, video games, poker, cryptic crosswords and Nottingham Forest!
When you were younger, what did you want to be when you grew up?
A drummer in a band, or a dragon tamer. One out of two isnāt bad.
What was your favourite live event or a memorable live event that you attended?
I go to lots of gigs and am always seeking that magic experience! I couldnāt choose one so three standouts that spring to mind from the last few years would be Kiran Leonard at The Delicious Clam in Sheffield, Ni at the Carousel in Nottingham and Chris Wood & Andy Cutting at Sidmouth Folk Festival last year.
What is your all-time favourite song/band/movie/book?
Impossible questionā¦! Today:
'Wichita Lineman' ā Glen Campbell / The Divine Comedy / Ladybird / 'Sputnik Sweetheart'.
What has been your favourite holiday?
The best trip Iāve ever been on was my honeymoon to Thailand and I canāt wait to go again. We spent New Years Eve at a festival in Nan, which is a special town on the Laos border. We also spent two of the best days of my life in Kaeng Krachan National park seeing absolutely lifechanging wildlife and surprised ourselves by falling head over heels for Bangkok which has a kind of intensely laid-back chaos that Iāve never found anywhere else.
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Do you have any podcast recommendations?
I do a lot of driving for gigging so Iām a bit of a podcast fiend. I listen to lots of the really popular podcasts like 'Off Menu' and Adam Buxton but Iāll shout out some others: I loved āThe Good Whaleā and āS-Townā, both from Serial/NYT. Really in depth investigative journalism. For the same reason I also love āTortoise Investigatesā which holds some really amazing stories. I also love 'This American Life' and some of the episodes are just breathtakingly brilliant! For music podcasts I really love 'Song Exploder', 'Life of The Record', 'Sodajerker on Songwriting' and 'Tape Notes', all of which are brilliantly made.
This or that?
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