Wassails
Across the Westcountry, wassails are held on and around Old Twelfth Night aka Old Twelvey Night (17th of January) to celebrate the sleeping apple trees and ensure they produce a good crop of apples (and cider!) in the coming year.
The roots of this tradition are lost to time, and many of the modern wassails are relatively recent revivals, but the hopeful celebration of nature's regenerative power in the darkness of midwinter clearly resonates with many people today.
Rebecka has been leading the singers at the Stoke Gabriel wassail for over a decade, and has also led the singing at other wassails in and around Okehampton, Great Torrington, Black Torrington and elsewhere. Each year her wassail singers meet in January to rehearse a range of wassailing songs both traditional and modern, including several of her own compositions.
If you would like to join the wassail singers next year, or would like to be notified of wassailing dates, please sign up to the wassail mailing list. If you would like a wassail-themed workshop for your school or community group, contact Rebecka.