SPRING NEWS

When (if) spring eventually arrives, I’m doing a couple of talks on song (bird and human) to welcome it. Whistling in the dark (on nightingales), at the Royal Society of Literature on April 15, and on 18th century naturalists’ attitudes towards music of all sorts at the Lufthansa Festival, May 11th .

Mabey in the Wild returns for a second series on Radio 4 in June, this time on trees. And one species featured, the ash, will get a more extensive treatment in a new edition of my earlier book on trees (Beechcombings). The Ash and the Beech: the Drama of Woodland Change, will be launched on June 6.

From June, celebrations of our East Anglian musical hero, Benjamin Britten, will be extensive. See Tailpiece for something outside the usual run of commemorative concerts and talks, An exotic dessert recipe invented by Ben and passed down through our family.