15 Sept 2013. The Sunday Records' folk take Boards of Canada's album, 'Music Has a Right to Children' for a spin. For upcoming events, see www.thesundayrecord.com. For more info, contact: [email protected]. Next session at W&T - 17 November 2013.
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Thank you to Kenyan author Juliet Barnes for sharing with us her love for the history and peoples of Kenya. In the UK on a promotional tour of her book, The Ghosts of Happy Valley: Searching for the Lost World of Africa's Infamous Aristocrats, Juliet shared images from her research of the crumbling ruins of what was once Happy Valley's colonial homes, as well as offering comparative archival images of the people and sites of scandals. Fans of Frances Osborne's White Mischief or Nancy Mitford's The Bolter would not have been disappointed as Juliet recounted fascinating vignettes from meetings with descendants of the infamous Happy Valley set of Wanjohi Valley. In some cases, she also met elderly Kikuyus who had once served in the homes, estates and gardens of these colonial transplants. Apart from recapturing the dubious 'glory' of those days of debauchery, Juliet offered an insight into present-day Kenya and its challenges with preserving its indigenous wildlife, most notably through the story of Solomon, her friend, guide and collaborator in the retelling of Happy Valley's past. We had a rip-roaring live music session with Maggie Casey and her mates on Saturday, 6 July 2013. From Irish ditties to Scottish folk tunes, to self-penned music and lyrics from the scathingly irreverent and very funny Kath Tait (To get a flavour check out her website, listen to her music or pick up a copy of her CD, Bastard!), the session had an informal feel of a jam session. Thank you to all the wonderful musicians for serenading us with your awesome talent and for sharing your obvious love of music with us. Thank you to everyone who dropped by and enjoyed the afternoon with us. Watch this space, as Maggie and her friends will be back for another session this autumn :) [Or sign up for event updates here] Composer Pete M Wyer shared some verses from his poetry chapbook, The Dance Around the Fire, published by the San Francisco publisher Alternating Current, as well as some music pieces on Tuesday evening, 2 July. It was an informal event with some irreverent and tongue-in-cheek fun, including a short performance of Pete's 'play' 'Neanderthals.' Thank you Pete for sharing your beautiful words, music and humour with us :) Author and publisher Meike Ziervogel shared the extraordinary story of Magda Goebbels. How could a woman, who at one time embraced Zionism and almost converted to Judaism, become a Nazi fanatic? How could she bring herself to not only commit suicide but also murder her children? Meike's exploration of Magda's life blends historical facts with fiction; however, the themes explored in Magda transcend biography and historical fiction. Magda raises a host of difficult questions - how estranged familial relationships can lead to tragic circumstances, the impact of the cult of Nazism on a defeated Germany after the First World War - driven by Meike's urge to understand how a mother could have committed the ultimate crime of killing her own children.
Costanza and Anjana with old and new fans :)
Awesome and amaaaaazing talent at Woolfson & Tay today with classical guitarist Costanza Casullo and singer-songwriter Anjana Vasan! Thank you ladies for wonderful performances! It was a bit of a tight squeeze but it didn't matter as both women brought the house down with their wonderful music, especially when they performed their own compositions. In fact, by the time the hour-and-half acoustic session was over, both performers definitely had new fans. [Not all pictured. Some people were waaaaay back round the corner :) ] Questions overheard after we had wrapped up: 'Can we buy her song on iTunes?' and 'Do you have a CD?' One visitor, who happened to chance by at the shop, in London on a holiday break from Paris, told me she thoroughly enjoyed herself. Thank you again to Costanza and Anjana for a truly melodic afternoon. And thank you to all who dropped in too :) For more info about Costanza, visit http://www.youtube.com/user/ac00025 To listen to Anjana's music, visit https://soundcloud.com/anjana-vasan Lovers of music, join us at our next acoustic music session on Saturday 6 July at 3pm for an Irish and folk music jamming session with Maggie Casey and friends. W&T hosted a Platform65 open mic poetry and music session on 1 June 2013, with special guest, the Paris-based zheng harpist, writer and literary translator, Fiona Sze-Lorrain. It was an intimate afternoon with wondeful poetry, beautiful music and awesome talent. Thank you to all who joined in. Watch this space for more acoustic sessions and literary events - coming soon! You can register for events updates here, so you don't miss out! http://www.woolfsonandtay.com/register-for-updates.html Had lots of fun last night at City University as one of the guest speakers at an event organised by EQUIP (Equality in Publishing). [Thank you, Bobby Nayyar for all the hard work putting the event together!] Tim Godfray from Booksellers Association spoke about the changes experienced by the bookselling industry and the challenges of opening and sustaining a bookshop, while Jen Campbell, author of Weird Things Customers Say in Bookshops, shared more hilarious anecdotes from her experience as a bookseller, as well as her passionate belief in supporting local bookshops. Moi? Well, I was there to share W&T's story -- the lessons we'd learnt from opening a bookshop, what bookselling is about, what it's been like to close down and in the midst of reopening again -- that sort of thing. [Shivaun *wink* *wink* Sorry folks, this one's an inside joke.] And... Ahem, this is something I never realised till now. Sheesh, I pull a lot of faces when I'm speaking! While the other speakers look dignified and knowledgeable when they gave their talk, I kinda looked like I was auditioning for a cross between a comedy club sketch or a musical... eek.
But seriously, it was an informative and fun evening, and more importantly, inspiring -- a reminder almost to keep keeping on. Thank you to my team members who came along to lend some support and for the lovely company at dinner afterwards. New Yorker Vanessa Hidary a.k.a. Hebrew Mamita performed an awesome set of poetry and short stories from her book The Last Kaiser Roll In The Bodega at W&T on 19 December 2012. We were very fortunate to have Vanessa at our venue for her only London performance during this trip. (Her next stop is Limmud 2012 at Coventry.) It was a spellbinding performance - a mixture of humour and heart that captivated everyone in the room. Thank you Vanessa for dropping by and mesmerising us. Thank you to the North London Yiddish choir led by Robin Rubenstein for kicking off the night with a wonderful medley. If you missed tonight's performance or would like to check out Vanessa's work, visit her YouTube channel below: 'Twas a dreary, rainswept and bitterly cold day, with strong gusts of wind and even an uprooted tree in the square. Nevertheless, those brave enough to venture into Bermondsey to enjoy the day's Halloween activities could be spotted -- children waiting for facepainting opportunities at the reception, audience members listening to ghost stories at W&T, and Victorian-themed performers belting out raucous tunes in the square. Thank you again to Vanessa and Nigel for the creepy Dickens-themed stories and special FX :) For the courageous who would not be thwarted by the weather, it was another fantastic Boo! At Bermondsey celebration. |
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