Oudmigrations is a research project dedicated to the journeys of ouds, their histories, and the stories attached to their makers, players, and owners. The first Oudmigrations concert series took place in Rome, thanks to the generous support of ISMEO (Associazione Internazionale di Studi sul Mediterraneo e l’Oriente) and hosting by the Biblioteca Vallicelliana. They explored Read more…
Un “Liederkreis” tra il Tamigi e il Bosforo Sonorità lontane tessute con ricordi di donne Poesie di Christina Rossetti Musiche di Rachel Beckles Willson Musicisti: Rachel Beckles Willson (voce, oud), Ciro Montanari (tabla), Kostas Tsarouchis (contrabbasso), Evgenios Voulgaris (yayli tanbur) ‘Sing no Sad Songs for Me’ nasce dall’incontro tra la poesia Read more…
Today is Good! took the stage at the first edition of Siracusa’s Moro Festival on 22 December
A song-cycle connecting the Bosphorus and the Thames – resonances woven through the memories of women Poetry by Christina Rossetti Music by Rachel Beckles Willson Performers: Rachel Beckles Willson (vocals, oud), Ciro Montanari (tabla), Kostas Tsarouchis (double bass), Evgenios Voulgaris (yayli tanbur) ‘Sing no Sad Songs for Me’ connects the Read more…
I moved to Sicily in May 2017, in order to work as a volunteer with Francesco in with various educational projects for asylum-seekers. We were keen to work with unaccompanied minors, and were trained to be legal gaurdians. Alongside this legal and pastoral work we have put on a series Read more…
Sing no Sad Songs for Me – a cycle of pieces after the poetry of Christina Rossetti. For voice, oud, yayli tanbur, double-bass and tabla Premiered at St Ethelburga’s Centre for Peace and Reconciliation, London, on 30 June 2018 My imperialist grandfather Henry Beckles Willson was sent in 1918 to Palestine to decommission Read more…
Called after Ornina, goddess of music in Mesopotamia and ancient Syria, our ensemble is leading a revival in the tradition of female music-making by women in the Arab world. In the courts of Baghdad, Cordoba, and Medina women were highly trained in musical composition and performance, as well as in Read more…
Oudmigrations is an internet-based project dedicated to the journeys of ouds, their histories, and the stories attached to their makers, players, and owners. I developed the research thanks to a Major Research Fellowship from the Leverhulme Trust, and worked in collaboration with musician, luthier and researcher Karim Othman-Hassan. When we launched in April Read more…
In autumn 2017 I collaborated with Isola Quassud, a theatre company based in Catania, Sicily, developing music within an intercultural production entitled ‘Welcome to Italy’. The aim was to immerse the audience in Italy’s disfunctional reception process for immigrants. Through a series of workshops involving reading, movement and singing, the actors drew Read more…
In Summer 2017, in collaboration with Francesco Iannuzzelli, I put together a concert to compliment an exhibition of photography by Steve McCurry. The exhibition’s primary selling point was the famous photograph of Afghan refugee Sharbat Gula. Rather than directly entering the debate about media exploitation of the dispossessed, we decided Read more…