Cambridge has a wonderful project to celebrate the unique history and tradition of song in the city, and welcome the Tour de France Stage 3 taking place on 7 July.

By organising opportunities for communities to get together to participate, by researching and sharing stories, by listening to singers and learning to sing, by opening doors so that musicians and poets of all ages can be sharing their voice, Cambridge will be celebrating the city in song and welcoming the Tour de France.

An innovative and inspiring project - Cycle of Songs - created by Pilot Theatre and Historyworks and funded by the Arts Council England is taking place in the weeks leading up to the 7th July at various venues across Cambridge to celebrate the start of the Tour de France Stage 3. Showcasing and celebrating Cambridge’s singing talent and diversity, what is distinctive about the Cycle of Songs project is that it is also encouraging people who have never sung before to join a special Cycle of Songs choir to learn how to use their voices to join in celebrating the city, and to participate in fun ‘popup choir’ events during June and July.

The Cycle of Songs will feature a collection of songs which Helen Weinstein, the producer, is developing with local choirs, schools, artists and members of the community in collaboration with some of the city’s leading composers, historians, poets and musicians. All of the songs are based on original source materials about Cambridge researched by Helen and her team, many telling hidden stories from the city’s history to celebrate the quirky and inspirational characters and creatives from the past in the present. These stories are the inspiration for new pieces, with lyrics and melodies commissioned for the choirs in Cambridge to rehearse and record.

The Cycle of Songs project goes into recording phase in June to create a free app of the nine commissioned sound poems and songs, that will be launched on the 5th July at the Big Weekend on Parker’s Piece as part of celebrations for the Tour de France Stage 3, enabling people to hear a great repertoire of songs alongside summaries of the stories that inspired them along the route, and providing a lasting digital legacy for Cambridge.

For further information on how you can get involved in the Cycle of Songs project please visit

www.cycleofsongs.com or email cycleofsongs@gmail.com

You can view the original post at the Le Tour Yorkshire website