Firstly, for all of us who’ve been involved in the creation of Diving Through Mirrors, Legends of the Land and Seasons, it’s been a joy!

We could not have imagined a few months ago that this might have been possible - we are delighted with the results, and we hope you are too.

We are all real people! We’ve all previously been involved in artistic creation, whether it’s art, poetry, song lyrics, video production or music, in some cases professionally.

Kerry has done the CD artwork using her own photographs and sings on several of the tracks.

Kerry, Ann and John have written lyrics which have been inspired by the amazing environment in which we live and work and by our own experiences. John is the keyboard player and main songwriter.

Rob has provided many ideas and been a font of knowledge for local legends.

The performers in Lydford's Daughter, however, including the beautiful and extremely talented Elowen Rye, only exist in virtual form.

We have developed and refined their personas as we and they have learned their craft, but all are the products of what is generically referred to as AI - Artificial Intelligence. This has been used in one of two ways - at first we used it to generate vocal sounds and realise the lyrics, but more and more we use it to add professional production qualities to actual recordings of singers' voices. Instrumental tracks are created with a traditional MIDI keyboard, then converted into whatever instrument we want by Suno and Udio. As we've learnt more and gained in confidence, this has become our standard working method, to such an extent that lyrics, melodies and harmonies are no longer simply AI generated - AI has become the session band which plays what we write. Beautifully, and always in tune - although it often involves many takes! Elowen exists as an evolving Persona within Suno - her voice is amazing and developing all the time as we provide feedback. She even seems to be developing a slight Irish or West Country lilt!

A very short while ago this wouldn’t have been possible, but it is now! The blurred and now possibly controversial barrier between what has been there for many years, whether drum machines, autotuning, autoharmonies or synthesised  music in the audio sphere, or photoshop, CGI and the like in the world of visuals seems to have been crossed. The recent media storm about the use of an AI model for the Guess advert which appeared in Vogue is merely the tip of the iceberg. In the same way that it is unlikely that any photo printed there can ever have been described as natural or real for a very long time, it would seem to have been an inevitable next step into using a completely artificial model.

Above all, what AI has done is completely remove the barriers to entry for artistic creation in these areas. Whereas a photoshoot might cost upward of £5,000/day, an AI model can be ‘employed’ for £5. A recording studio might be £2,000/day, plus engineers' costs. The minimum cost of recording and producing an album is around £10,000 and can be very much more. Without a recording contract or sponsorship, this is unachievable. Diving Through Mirrors, in every sense a studio album, has been produced for virtually nothing except our time.

And, despite the use of software, we still consider ourselves to be artistic creators. We have conceived, written, edited and produced these albums. Very few of us though are performers, and certainly not on the instruments or to the level required to produce a professional quality album.

We are proud of what we have achieved, which as well as being (we think!) beautiful, will hopefully raise money to support the astonishing place in which we work.

We hope you agree!

Many thanks

All at Lydford Gorge and Taryn Studios

Below is the list of software we have used, and we are grateful to the makers of these products, who are creative geniuses too!

• Suno Pro - voice production, track first cuts and home of the performers’ Personas.
• Udio Pro - instrumental track generation
• Audacity - sample and voice recording, track editing, mixing and final production
• MuseScore - music notation and realisation
• AnthemScore Pro - music transcription and MIDI recording
• ChatGPT - AI images of the performers. Studio graphics and website text
• Webador AI - website creation

What is truly extraordinary is the way this is revolutionising the creative music industry, to the extent that Suno have just announced the appointment as Chief Music Officer of Paul Sinclair, previously general manager of Atlantic Records, where he drove its digital transformation, and someone who has worked with Bruno Mars and Coldplay.

"Suno’s technology is extraordinary, but what excites me even more is the opportunity to help shape how it’s used, in ways that empower artists, songwriters and producers of all abilities, expand creative expression, and build new bridges between music and fans.”  - Paul Sinclair

Too right!

And finally...

We've decided for now that the physical CDs of the albums will only be available to buy in the bookshop at Lydford. Full digital copies can be downloaded to keep from Bandcamp (see section on Downloads and Streaming under News), and they are also available on all streaming channels such as Spotify, Amazon, Apple Music etc. The income from that is miniscule, averaging $0.003/play, which is a problem for all artists, so if you can and want to support Lydford Gorge, please consider buying a physical or digital copy outright.

The CD is priced at £10, all of which goes to Lydford Gorge. The digital download retails for the same amount, and all proceeds once VAT, taxes and other distribution fees have been paid will likewise be donated to the gorge.

Finally, beautiful though Elowen Rye’s voice may be, she’ll never be able to do the one thing essential to any creative endeavour - make tea!

Oh, and the buzzard at the end of Ancestors is real.