Clay Country musician Richard Trethewey is to launch his latest album at Malpas Village Hall, near Truro, at a sold-our event on March 17.

Two Halves was first imagined for vinyl, with one side of songs and music inspired by stories from Cornwall’s evocative river estuaries - from smuggling and piracy to wonderfully eccentric royal visits, forgotten castles and the Kea plum harvest.

The flip-side tells tales associated with Cornwall’s industrial heritage, from the story of an vicar ice skating on a frozen clay pit in the 1930s, to Cornwall’s diaspora connections – Richard’s own ancestors left the Clay Country to seek their fortune in Canada, and he has incorporated the sounds of the mining industry in his music.

On Thursday, April 25, Richard will bring the show to Screen 2 at The Plaza Cinema, performing the album as a trio as well as showing the films he has made that accompany Frenchman’s Creek, Queen of the Cornish Rhine, Bringing the Harvest Home and Hope in a Jam Jar.

A singer, fiddle and cittern player, Richard is passionate about unearthing nuggets of Cornish history that might otherwise be overlooked.

The album features a selection of musicians and friends he has worked with over the years, including St Dennis Band Quartet – and his father, who sings in Cornish on a lullaby inspired by Richard’s work as a music therapist for Children’s Hospice South West.

Two Halves is Richard’s second solo release, following collaborations with musicians including The Rowan Tree, Didjan (with Bec Applebee), Jim Causley, The Grenaways, Kesson, Brother Sea, and Harbottle and Jonas.

He has also accompanied the Cousin Jack’s theatre production of The Mousehole Cat, both annually in Mousehole but also touring in London and the USA.

Richard was made a Bard of the Cornish Gorsedh in 2020, taking the name Kaner Drollys, meaning Singer of Stories. Order an album, and book tickets for the April event, at www.richardtrethewey.org