Poet Laureate Simon Armitage and his band LYR celebrate the beauty of blossom in new EP

The five-track Blossomise EP is the result of a year-long collaboration between the band and the National Trust, as part of the charity’s annual Blossom campaign, and is being launched today, World Poetry Day.

A book of the same name, featuring a series of poems and haikus written by the Huddersfield-born poet inspired by the blossom season, as well as the lyrics to the five songs, is also released today by Faber.

LYR, comprising Simon, singer-songwriter Richard Walters, and multi-instrumentalist and producer Patrick J Pearson, worked closely with various collaborators, including choirs and young filmmakers, who created music videos for each of the songs on Blossomise.

The band will perform it on a tour of four cities – Plymouth, Coventry, Manchester and Newcastle - across England that are hosting a variety of creative blossom inspired events as part of the National Trust’s Blossom Week, which takes place from April 20 to 28.

The events will take visitors on a journey through vibrant, vivid soundscapes created by Walters and Pearson, underscored by choral interpretations by local choirs and accompanied by Simon’s emotive lyrics.

“Blossom is an extraordinary emotional milestone every year, a moment of illumination and resurgence after the dark winter months,” said Simon

"Increasingly, we have seen that poetry is resonating with people from across the generations and from many different walks of life, not least when it shades into musical territory and performance. As such, this feels like the right project at the right time, designed to amplify the joy of blossom, encourage people all over the country to feel inspired by nature’s resilience, and to welcome the coming of spring.”

During Blossom Week, Simon Armitage will be doing readings of his poetry in Belfast and Manchester.

Now in its fifth year, the National Trust’s blossom campaign features more than 100 events across England, Wales and Northern Ireland with the aim to recreate the Japanese tradition of “hanami”, where people across the generations get involved in enjoying the transient beauty of cherry blossom.

Annie Reilly, head of the National Trust’s Blossom Programme, added: “Our blossom campaign has always been about encouraging people to take a moment to slow down in their hectic lives and take in the beauty of nature around them as it awakens from winter.

“Through the five Blossomise songs, LYR has created a 25-minute ‘time-out’ that allows us to do exactly that: to listen, to observe, and to be moved by nature's incredible show of resilience and hope. We hope everyone will be inspired to celebrate spring’s greatest show with us, whether that is at one of our many events as part of the Festival of Blossom, or remotely, listening to Blossomise songs and poetry surrounded by the spectacle unfolding wherever they live.”