peregrine notes. . .
Peregrine Notes is a series of pieces based on walking within landscapes. These compositions feel collaborative to me, whether the music comes from contemplating a special tree, or from the sense of comfort or connection that I feel while wandering through the woods or by the sea. These pieces are composed from the sensory memory of these special places and living presences, from feeling enveloped in the grace of nature.
Please check back for audio recordings…
information about pieces:
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Just follow the numbers on this map to find the trees in Beacon Hill park. You can listen to my pieces for each tree on your walk.
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Based on time spent on Malcolm and Cormorant Islands, off the coast of Northern Vancouver Island, in February 2026.
My favourite dawn redwood tree is on the north side of Goodacre lake in Beacon Hill Park, tucked into the edge of the woodlands. I love how the trunk and root structure of this magical tree evokes qualities of the wind: woven, twisting strands seem to be filled with movement. The tree is surrounded by flowers in spring.
A memorial bench close by has this special inscription: Crispin Pedler 1986 - 2017 So Loved. Mismatched sock wearer, Soulful guitar player, gentle and kind, May you whittle the wind with time
At the corner of the children’s farm in Beacon Hill Park is a grove of ponderosa pines. They shelter peacocks in their low branches, and deer can often be seen gathered in their shade. Pines against the blue sky always bring a very strong feeling of home for me. Even though I’m already here on the west coast, something about ponderosa pine trees creates a rush of nostalgia to be here. I have never quite understood this phenomenon but perhaps other people feel it too.
The Moss Lady lies sleeping in a little wooded grove in Beacon Hill Park. She is near the stream which connects Fountain lake and Goodacre lake, close to the Emily Carr memorial stone bridge. Inspired by the Mud Maid in England's Lost Gardens of Heligan, the Moss Lady 11-metre sculpture was created by artist Dale Doebert and Victoria park staff in 2015.
The south Island is filled with Garry oak meadows and many efforts are made to preserve these beautiful old trees and their natural meadow ecosystems.
I have a special fondness for the Garry oak shown in this photo, which can be found slightly southeast of the pickleball courts in Beacon Hill. Its massive branches are calligraphic and flow from crown to ground. In late summer, the tree is surrounded by a sea of tall grasses. It watches over clusters of daffodils, fawn lilies, bright pink shooting stars and camas blooms in spring.
I am often drawn to the sculptural shapes and striking colours of Pacific madrone (arbutus) trees, which have long inspired artists on the West Coast.
On wandering through Beacon Hill Park, I occasionally come across artists painting beside this quiet stretch of trees along Arbutus Way, which you can find by entering the park from Southgate at the south end of Quadra.
Telegraph Bay lies close to Cadboro Bay at the end of Telegraph Road in Victoria… pebbles, rocks, driftwood logs, wind-blown with rocky terrain.
When I think of the comfort of trees, I imagine chestnut trees. Big and leafy green in the summer, they offer thick shade and radiant dappled light, while giving safe shelter for bird nests, and attracting insects to feed woodpeckers and songbirds like warblers, chickadees and woodfinches. Hummingbirds thrive on their nectar: in spring, the dancing upright cones bloom in masses of cream and pink flowers like seas of twirling skirts.
In fall, chestnut tree leaves transform into exuberant yellow, illuminating sunlight from within like over-sized party lamps. Before losing their leaves for winter they drop bucketloads of glossy brown chestnuts. In windstorms, it is not unusual to hear the sharp crack of chestnuts bouncing off parked cars or pavement.
This work draws inspiration from sketches I made while attending the Artshed Residency in Sointula with Ella Morton and Cheryl Duvall for two weeks in February 2026. Composed for Cheryl, the piece unfolds through a series of shifting portals evoked by the experience of walking the forests and shores of Malcolm and Cormorant Islands. Traces of sonic currents are shaped by salt air, sunlight on the strait, the damp greys and greens of winter west coast moss, leaves, lakes, trees, and the unceasing movement of the tides. Sointula translates from the Finnish as "place of harmony."
