A warm welcome to 3tynespodcast
Audio podcast shining light on music culture in West Northumberland
Hello and happy weekend!
This is the sixth in a series of spotlight articles featuring our paid members. You can read our previous one here. It has been such a brilliant experience opening up my inbox to creatives working across Northumberland and beyond! I have already met some wonderful people and it has been a pleasure hearing their stories and learning more about the work they are doing here in our small corner of the world. We hope you enjoy reading them too.
This week we are catching up with Steve Chaplin, the man behind 3tynespodcast.
About 3tynespodcast
3tynespodcast is a new audio podcast celebrating grass roots music culture in rural west Northumberland. Hosted by Hexham-based songwriter Steve Chaplin, it showcases music and conversation with anyone involved in local live music - musicians, festival organisers, venue managers, instrument makers and the people who listen to music in all its forms.
Over to Steve…
Draw a line from Carter Bar through Kielder, Haltwhistle, Alston, Allenheads, Wylam and back to the border, and you have West Northumberland. It has three great rivers – the North Tyne, the South Tyne and the Tyne itself. These waterways, together with their dales, their tributaries - the Rede, the Allen and Devil’s Water – and the uplands in between define a sparsely populated area of moors and farmland. But it is rich with music.
Back in November 2023, I was congratulating myself yet again on how well I kept up with new music in the North East when it occurred to me that most of the gigs I went to were in Tyneside or the east of the county. I knew little about what could be heard on my doorstep, if only I paid attention. So I did and – if I may dramatise my epiphany and mix my metaphors in one go – the scales fell from my ears.
If the wealth of local music took me by surprise then, it has overwhelmed me since. The 3tynes area boasts at least five large annual music festivals, more pub and open mic sessions than you can shake a stick at, residents who have been highly influential in music education, and many accomplished musicians in all genres. And each one has been supportive and generous with their time when I’ve asked them to be on the podcast.
The first episode aired in May 2024 and the first six months will feature renowned historian and traditional folk musician Vic Gammon; master luthier Gary Southwell, who has made guitars for Julian Bream and Paul Simon; political activist Paul Frear; maker and player of the Northumbrian pipes, Kim Bull; Kate Lynch, Director of Highlights Rural Touring Scheme; session player, guitarist and producer Dean Parker; Americana enthusiast Marshall Nattrass; community music advocate David Oliver; and folk legend Ian K Brown.
This format is ideal for dipping a toe into music culture.
Listening to the 3tynespodcast is like earwigging a conversation between two people at the next table in the pub. It’s informal and meandering; rabbit holes are happily gone down.
Most episodes are 30 – 40 minutes long, just right for the daily commute or for when you’re ironing or cooking dinner. We talk about making a living through music, politics, history, songwriting and much more. Most episodes include the guest’s music and in some cases this is recorded live for the podcast.
Episodes of 3tynespodcast are scheduled for the second and fourth Tuesdays of the month (but with so much to talk about, there are usually bonus episodes in between).
You can receive episodes by subscribing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, YouTube Music and Podcast Index. Thick-fingered keyboard warriors can also stream it over the internet from here.
I post updates and news about what’s coming, plus links to as many events as I can find in the area, on Instagram and Facebook.
The podcast has been fascinating and fun in equal measure. I hope these incredibly talented guests will gain a wider audience and the podcast will help music in the 3tynes area to prosper.
Want to say hi to Steve and support his work? Leave a comment below.
Thanks so much to our recent supporters here at Culture Northumberland:
Esmé Weijun Wan,Vanessa Priest, Lindsey Mclaren, Louise Mabbs,Hilary Elder, Republic Gallery, Dex Hannon, Dispel Develop,Alison Edwards,A Recumbent Prattler, Lyn Campbell, Chloe Daniels, Sarah Morpeth and 3tynespodcast - you’ll learn more about their work soon.
Thanks for the heads up- I’ve subscribed on Spotify!