Welcome to Elwood Singing Walking Trail, where you can hear and sing 12 songs connected to Elwood, at 12 Song-Sites around our parks, beach and canal!

Explore this website further to find all sorts of other useful things, including: Detailed Route Guide and Further Information about the project.

Elwood Singing Walking Trail was created by Elwood Community Choir, Jeannie Marsh and friends © 2022

Feedback

Elwood Sing Walking Trail is a brand-new project in 2022, and as far as we know we are the trailblazers for this concept in Australia. We are keen to receive feedback about ESWT, so we can learn how and when people are participating, and suggestions for ways we could improve processes or content (digital/non-digital).

We would be grateful if you could please complete our short survey. Access the SURVEY HERE.

Thank you!

Frequently Asked Questions about Elwood Singing Walking Trail

Are there public toilets along the Trail?

There are public toilets along the foreshore section of the Trail, Song Sites 6 – 8. In other sections of the Trail, you need to plan ahead! Go to the toilet before you leave home, or plan a coffee or food break at a local café or bar in one of Elwood’s shopping centres: Tennyson St shops, Ormond Village on Ormond Rd, or shops at the junction of Glenhuntly Rd, Broadway, and Ormond Rd. 

I have limited mobility, and my friend is a wheelchair user. Is ESWT accessible for people with mobility issues?

ESWT uses footpaths that are generally flat and smooth. Point Ormond Hill (Song Site 6) is quite steep, and might not be suitable for all. Most signs are located on park benches. We are keen to receive your feedback if you have suggestions for how to improve accessibility.  

I understand that the recordings on ESWT will be played via the speaker on my phone. I would like better sound quality, so I was thinking of bringing my small portable speaker. Is that a good idea?

Yes, a small portable speaker connected to your phone will enhance the audio experience. Please be considerate of others, as all Song Sites are in public areas, and not everybody appreciates loud music.

How does the QR code thing work?

At a Song Site, direct the camera of your smart phone at the QR code on the sign until it connects to the ESWT section of the Elwood + St Kilda Neighbourhood Learning Centre (ESNLC) website. Press the link, and you will find the song recording, sheet-music and word-sheet for the song. Sing along with the recording, using the resources provided. When you finish, you might like to return to the main ESWT menu to explore other parts of the site.

Do I need to keep using the QR code to access materials at every Song Site?

No, once you have used it once, you can keep the link open while you walk to another Song Site, then go to the Song Site menu to select the next song.

We would like to make a day of it and break up the walk with a long lunch at a local café. Is there a good range of cafés in Elwood? Where are they?

Yes, there are numerous cafés in Elwood. Many can be found in the three main shopping areas: Elwood Village (Ormond Rd, between Pine Avenue and Beach Avenue), Elwood junction (around the intersection of Broadway, Glen Huntly Rd, and Ormond Rd), and Tennyson St shops (between Scott St and Kendall St).

I’m hopeless with technology, my mobile phone is old and dodgy, and I’m not good at navigating websites on small screens. Can I still access ESWT resources and participate?

Yes, you can access all ESWT resources via the website: www.esnlc.com.au/elwood-singing-walking-trail You can download and print out word-sheets, maps, and other resources, and bring them with you. Maybe visit the Song Sites with a friend who can use the QR code on their phone, then you can hear the recordings and sing along together.

I notice that there are copyright signs on many of your materials. Does that mean I can’t use these materials outside Elwood and ESWT? Who do I ask for permission?

ESWT contains copyright material, and the project is the product of two years of hard work. Please contact us at eswtrail@gmail.com to request permission to use any of our ESWT materials or ideas.  

Any suggestions for simple little “walking songs” we could sing BETWEEN Song Sites?

We are working on this! Visit the More Chants and Short Songs page of the website. Stay tuned for more additions, or suggest ideas of your own via our ESWT Feedback Survey. 

I’m not a singer, how can I possibly do an activity involving singing?

Everybody can join in a singalong, especially when you are singing along with recordings of a choir and a band! If you don’t feel like singing, you can just listen, enjoy the lively artwork on the ESWT signs, read the background material, or dance along to the music – you choose!

Some of the songs look like they would be good for kids. Shall I bring them along?

Definitely! There are a number of “action songs”, such as The Rakali Hop (Song Site 11), and heaving and hauling the sails in Round the Cape (Song Site 9). Some songs are great for dancing, and others for a spot of “quiet time”. Explore them and find your own favourites!  

Do I need to do the entire 12 Song Sites, or can I just select a few?

Start anywhere, and visit as few or as many as you like, whenever you like! You choose!

Where can I send my feedback?

Please fill in our ESWT Feedback Survey. We are keen to receive feedback.

Where can we find more work by designer of the signs?

All the ESWT signs, logo, and merchandise were designed by Elwood graphic designer Consuelo Fernandez-Ortiz. You can visit her gift shop Be Marsupial at 57 Glen Huntly Rd, Elwood, or her online shop https://bemarsupial.com.au/

I’m a teacher and I’m interested in involving my students in the history, music, art, and environmental aspects of ESWT. How should I proceed?  

Contact the ESWT team at eswtrail@gmail.com

What is the Elwood Singing Walking Trail?

Elwood Singing Walking Trail is an outdoor community music project devised and created by Elwood Community Choir, with their leader Jeannie Marsh, and a team of arts professionals and volunteers in 2020-2022. It combines singing and walking via a 6.8-kilometre route around Elwood’s beach, canal, and parks. Participants stop at 12 Song Sites along the way to sing (or listen to) a song created or chosen for that location. The songs and locations draw upon the history, flora and fauna, stories, and people of Elwood. Outdoor singing is a COVID-safe way for choirs and music-lovers to continue singing together, during and after the pandemic. Elwood has many delightful outdoor sites well-suited to the project.

People can use the Trail in many ways, to suit their mobility, available time, and interests.

Examples of ways to use the Trail

Randomly come across a Song Site sign on your walk or ride around Elwood: access the song for that site via the QR code on the sign; you are now on the Trail website, with all the resources you need; you can spend five minutes enjoying the music: listen to a recording of the song, sung by Elwood Community Choir; play it again and sing along, using word-sheets or sheet-music from the Trail website; check out the map and background information, and start exploring the Trail further on your next walk.

Plan an Elwood Singing Walking Trail adventure: using the website, organize a “singing walking outing” for your local choir, school class, or social group; download map, brochure, Detailed Route Guide, sheet-music, and other resources to plan your outing; decide on a short trip (eg: visit 6 Song Sites, and stop for coffee or ice-cream at local café along the way), or a longer trip (eg: visit all 12 Song Sites with a big lunch break in the middle). Or decide to ride your bikes instead of walking. Or bring the family, and enjoy the “action songs” with your kids or grand-kids… or any other way you like!

Background to the Elwood Singing Walking Trail

Stage 1 (Research and Development) was funded through a City of Port Phillip Arts Response Grant in the midst of COVID lockdowns in 2020. An outdoor “soft launch” in March 2021 presented the completed songs, research findings, and route map.

Stage 2 (Infrastructure and Presentation) was funded through a City of Port Phillip Cultural Development Grant in late 2021. Three professional artists were engaged for this stage of the project: Jeannie Marsh (Artistic Director), James Hodson (Audio Engineer, Musician), Consuelo Fernandez-Ortiz (Graphic Designer). Projects completed in Stage 2: a) design, construction, and installation of 12 signs for the 12 Song Sites, including QR codes to access website containing all ESWT materials b) recordings of Elwood Community Choir singing the 12 songs c) construction of website for the project, containing: recordings, song-sheets, background information, map d) launch of completed ESWT in October 2022. The Trail-Blazers group of volunteers from Elwood Community Choir were actively involved in project management tasks throughout the project.

Please refer to Further Information to learn more about the creators, song credits, history, places, and source materials for Elwood Singing Walking Trail.

Return to Elwood Singing Walking Trail homepage here