Stories Through Songs

Songwriting is for anyone!

Group of five people with two playing guitars and one holding a ukulele, engaged in a musical jam session indoors.

Rebecca coordinated this project for CFINE in 2024. A songwriting project where adults in Aberdeen explored their own stories, emotions, and experiences through creating original songs in a supportive, beginner-friendly environment.

During the project Rebecca ran a series of songwriting sessions with two groups, in a workshop space at the Aberdeen Vaccination & Wellbeing Hub in tandem with a gardening group using the same space. The gardening group were using the ‘Cube of Perpetual Light’, a vertical growing system lit by grow lights. The Cube, on loan from Scotland’s Rural College, was used as inspiration for some some of the songwriting.

The project culminated in a showcase event where participants were invited to share what they’d been working on. In addition a stone engraved with a phrase of lyrics written by participants was located in the Earth & Worms Community Garden where it can be be viewed and enjoyed.

The project acted as a pilot for the later developed CFINE Community Music Project.

A group of five people gathered around a table with musical sheet music, a keyboard, and various personal items, engaged in a discussion or music session in a room.

Close-up of a hand holding a pink marker writing on a sheet of music as a person in the background plays a piano.

Two women sit at a table, one is reading sheet music and the other is playing the violin.

A multi-tiered plant incubator or germination chamber with various plants at different stages of growth inside, situated in an indoor environment.

View through a green-lit glass display case showing small plants growing on a rack; a person's face is faintly visible in the blurred background on the left side.

A man with a beard, wearing a dark blue beanie, looking at a plant incubator.

Close-up of colorful flowering plants with shades of purple, green, and pink.

Group of smiling people taking a selfie in an indoor gardening or plant nursery area, with small plants and seedlings in the background.

Two women playing a violin and a piano, with a neon-colored lighting and an audience watching.

Three people sitting at a table, smiling and looking down. The person in the foreground has glasses and a beard, holding a yellow notepad. The middle person has glasses and reddish hair tied up. The person in the background is wearing a black beanie

Rebecca Dunn with a pink knit beanie, floral patterned dress, colorful beaded necklace, and black long sleeves, is sitting at a desk with a paper cup, notebook, and pen, looking down and resting her chin on her finger.

Two women sitting at a table covered with papers, notebooks, and cups, engaged in songwriting. Behind them, a display case holds various potted plants and seedlings.

A group of four musicians performing indoors with blue walls. One woman is standing with a notepad, a man is seated playing guitar and singing, another woman is playing a violin, and a man is playing keyboard. There is a CFine banner behind them, a h

A man with long curly hair and a beard playing a keyboard in a cozy room with dark blue walls, decorated with a horse painting and an acoustic guitar, with a banner reading 'cfine tackling poverty together' in the background, and colorful flowers in

A man standing and speaking into a microphone at a social event, with a woman sitting and clapping nearby. The man is holding a booklet, wearing glasses, a black shirt, and light gray pants with suspenders. The woman has curly hair, is smiling, and i

Close-up view of colorful artificial flowers in the foreground, with a man playing guitar and a banner in the background at an indoor venue.

Rebecca Dunn with long curly hair standing next to a blue display board filled with photos, text, and posters, in a cozy room with dark green walls, paintings, and a wall light.

Person using a smartphone to read handwritten lyrics, with open notebooks and papers on a table.

Close-up of a woman with light skin, long wavy hair, wearing clear glasses, smiling slightly, in a digital or artistic style with a focus on her face.

A man with glasses, a black jacket with a yellow Patch on the arm, and a beanie hat, sitting at a table with a disposable cup, a napkin, and a newspaper, under red and green lighting.

A woman with curly hair, smiling, sitting at a table with a small guitar in front of her, gesturing with her hands, dressed in a patterned blouse and vest.

Photography by Aleks Ka https://alekska.com/
and CFINE https://www.cfine.org/

Graphic with green speech bubbles showing feedback icons, musical notes, and the word 'FEEDBACK!'

A speech bubble with a thank you message surrounded by musical notes on a gray background.

A speech bubble on a gray background with musical notes around it, containing the text: "I've really improved my confidence, thank you."

A speech bubble with a quote about the usefulness of music sessions, surrounded by musical notes on a grey background.

A speech bubble with the message 'Everybody has been great and fun.' The background is gray with green musical notes around the speech bubble.

A speech bubble with a quote, surrounded by green and white musical notes on a gray background, saying "I enjoyed 'building my skill and confidence'".

Speech bubble with the quote: "I enjoyed 'working with like minded people and finding a safe creative space'" on gray background, decorated with green and white music notes.

Speech bubble with the quote, 'I enjoyed working with others and collaborating/sharing ideas', surrounded by musical notes on a gray background.