Since 2024 I have been working with visual arts and design students on field recordings and soundscapes. The first formal project was with the Nuova Accademia di Belle Arte (NABA) in Milan, in November. Our activities ranged from listening exercises following scores by Pauline Oliveros, soundwalking, field recording, and then Read more…
“Musician Beckles Willson (Orientalism and Musical Mission) scrupulously traces the history of the oud—a short-necked, fretless stringed musical instrument—from its first written mention in ancient Persia to the present day. An instrument long associated with bereavement (an early fable holds that a grieving father constructed it from his deceased son’s Read more…
Are you interested in learning oud? I teach Arabic, Persian and Turkish traditions as part of my affilliation with the Royal Northern College of Music, where I am Honorary Research Professor. Feel free to get in touch and arrange a consultation lesson.
I will be leading another workshop in Collaborative Sonic Art, this time for the Connect: Resound Learning Festival put on by NYMAZ, the North Yorkshire Music Action Zone. As a whole, the festival is an exploration and a celebration of the music education sector’s diverse approaches to online learning. It will Read more…
Do you want to study world music traditions? To play and sing music of the Middle East? Of India? My new Music Boat may be for you. It brings together a team of outstanding musicians in the classcial traditions of Asia, in search of new ways of sharing repertoire in a Read more…
Lockdowns have led many of us have become more aware of how sound and silence shape our lives. We have also been obliged to spend less time making music together. Would you like to make music with the things around you? With the sounds you hear? Perhaps you don’t consider Read more…
During the first Covid-19 lockdown I launched Music Boat, a collaboration with outstanding musicians in the classcial traditions of Asia, in search of new ways of sharing repertoire in a rapidly-changing world. We are a collaborating team of Europe-based musicians hailing from Mexico, Germany, Egypt, Greece, Iran, Lebanon, Palestine, Spain Read more…
As part of the SOAS Summer School I am thrilled to lead an experimental online course in modal creative work
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.
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…