What are your resolutions for 2020? My own resolutions follow my decision to add my voice to Culture Declares Emergency, and to shape my life and work in response to the climate and ecological emergency unfolding around us. It means I’m going to use my work to promote the changes Read more…
In the series Dal local al globale I presented a lecture-recital in Cremona in the beautiful Dipartimento di Musicologia e Beni Culturali, leading the audience on a journey through modal music practices of the Arab, Ottoman and Persian traditions.
Are you interested in learning oud? I teach Arabic and Turkish traditions as part of my role at SOAS, University of London. Feel free to get in touch and arrange a consultation lesson.
An opportunity to present one of my own compositions, Acem Kurdi Saz Semai, live for the BBC, with a mysteriously dramatic background – not really in line with the melancholy of the piece! Please contact me if you would like a copy of the score.
In 2020, students taking the IGCSE in Music will have a special focus on Arab music. For this reason I was invited to the City of London School for Girls to provide a workshop and presentation for students and teachers. I created a PowerPoint demonstration bringing to life the syllabus, Read more…
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…
A concert of Ottoman court music along with my song cycle “Sing no Sad Songs with Me”, in the elegant Reid Concert Hall of Edinburgh University.
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…