This Tonal event by Feral Practice takes place in Taunton on 27 September between 10am and 4pm. It is a sound art work that invites you onto the water, and into the river’s world. Weaving music, field sound and spoken word, science and imagination, Tonal crafts a distinctive vision of the River Tone from human and otter perspectives. With original music by Welsh composer and otter fan Timothy Johnston.

Boats launch at French Weir, and include a 10-person wheelchair accessible boat, canoes and kayaks. Children under 13 years must be accompanied. For directions, there is more information on the calendar.

Tonal on local radio.

Episode 1) Dirty Rivers
Focused on river pollution, the first episode looks at sewage, farming, pharmaceuticals and chemicals, discusses solutions and pays special attention to otters. It features extracts from Feral Practice’s interviews with Matt Wheeldon of Wessex Water, Helen Wakeham of the Environment Agency, Gideon Amos MP, Dr Liz Chadwick of the Cardiff Otter Project, Jo Pearse of the Somerset Otter Group, Neil Ogilvie of Somerset Council and Joanna Uglow of the Somerset Farming and Wildlife Advisory Group.
Monday 22 September 8pm live on FM or Radio Frome , then streaming on Mixcloud
Frome FM 96.6FM – Sustainable Frome with Mike Grenville
Friday 26 September 10am on 10 Radio 105.3FM and 10 Radio website  – The Community Show with Pauline Homeshaw and Andrew Norris

Episode 2) Let it Flow
The second episode is all about flow and constriction – how water management like weirs, canalisation and urbanisation affect wildlife, with a special focus on eels and salmon.
Times/dates tbc

Episode 3) River Being
The final episode will delve into our human relationship to waters and river. If rivers are indeed alive, can they be seen as persons, or are they sacred beings? How might we belong to a river?
Times/dates tbc

Tonal Podcast

The podcast is where to find all the deep dives – riverbank conversations with a wide array of people whose lives are shaped by water. Interviewees will include politicians, ecologists, campaigners, water industry professionals, artists, farmers, activists, poets, lawyers, and spiritual practitioners. Each guest unwraps a distinctive relationship to water, exploring urgent topics such as flooding, pollution, biodiversity, and the rights of nature movement. Together, they build a diverse archive of river knowledge.

It is available at the Tonal website or wherever you find your podcasts (search ‘Tonal – Rivers Beyond Sewage’)

All seven episodes can be found on the podcast section on the books page of this website.