José Dias  published chapter in Jazz and Literature: An Introduction

José Dias has published the chapter ‘Four Musicians and Six Characters: Narrative Categories in Contemporary Free Jazz’ in the volume Jazz and Literature: An Introduction, edited by Maria Antónia Lima and Mia Funk (Routledge 2025). The chapter describes and reflects upon the interdisciplinary process of composing and improvising music as sonic storytelling, where each musical piece was created in response to a literary character from classic novels of Western literature. Between March 2016 and July 2017, José composed six pieces as his musical interpretations of six literary characters, including “John Willoughby’s Dilemma” (from Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility 1864), “The Notorious Death of Gustav” (from Thomas Mann’s Death in Venice, 1912), “The Second Wind of Angela Vicario” (from Gabriel Garcia‐Marquez’s Chronicle of a Death Foretold, 1987), “The Innocent Gaze of Humbert” (from Vladimir Nabokov’s Lolita, 1955), “Hector Walks Through the Gate” (from Homer’s Iliad, circa eighth century BC), and “Hergè’s First Girlfriend” (from Hergè’s series The Adventures of Tintin, 1929-1976). This work was recorded and launched in 2019 in the album ‘José Dias and Awareness – Live at SMUP. This chapter is also an attempt to systematise and organise José’s reflections on his own practice, specifically in relation to the role of narrative in his different approaches to music: composition, songwriting, and improvisation.

Image: ‘Helen’ by Clare Yarrington (www.clareyarrington.com)

Victoria Leonard is  invited speaker at Cambridge University Workshop 'Classics Beyond the Canon' 

CAMC Research Fellow Victoria Leonard was invited to present at the Workshop 'Classics Beyond the Canon' at Cambridge University held from Friday January 31st to Sunday February 2nd. The aim of this event was bring together a forum to edit or create Wikipedia pages for people of significance within the classical world or the classical tradition who have been overlooked on Wikipedia so far due to their gender, race, or any other marginalised identity. Victoria spoke about her work for #WCCWiki, a Women's Classical Committee UK initiative that seeks to improve the representation of classicists who identify as women or non-binary on Wikipedia. A Workshop on Friday facilitated researching and writing for Wikipedia and was followed by a reception in the Cambridge Museum of Classical Archaeology. On Saturday there was a Wikipedia edit-a-thon. The edit-a-thon was open to undergraduates, graduates, and faculty members from all subjects – no classical expertise necessary. 

Carolina Rito Invited to Fulbright Fellowship Grants Selection Committee

Carolina Rito was invited to join the selection committee for the prestigious Fulbright Fellowship Grants 2024/2025, contributing her experience and expertise to the evaluation of fellowship applications across diverse areas of research. The Fulbright Programme is an international educational exchange initiative sponsored by the U.S. government to promote mutual understanding and cultural exchange between nations. It provides scholarships for students, scholars, and professionals to study, teach, or conduct research abroad in a wide range of disciplines. Established in 1946, the programme fosters global collaboration and leadership by connecting participants from over 160 countries.