Hear it Live!
10 April
Laila Samy
To mark the launch of the All Eyes on Her! display, British-Egyptian singer Laila Samy will bring the rich sounds of traditional Egyptian and Egyptian Coptic music to the Horniman, accompanied by Tarek Al Azhary on the oud.
Laila Samy is an Egyptian-British singer and multidisciplinary artist. She started singing professionally at 12 at the Egyptian Opera House, where her passion for music began. From the age of 16 to 23, she was part of El Warsha Theatre Troupe, where she developed her singing and acting skills through various roles.
Laila also studied cinematography in Cairo, which further shaped her artistic vision. Now, as an MA Music Performance student at the University of West London, she is focused on exploring the diverse styles and accents of Arabic music, working to expand her vocal range and deepen her connection to this rich tradition.
8 May
Kausary Band
Join us in May for a performance of modern and traditional Andean music by two founding members of the Kausary Band. They will use a variety of rarely heard traditional instruments.
For over 30 years, Kausary, led by father and son duo Juan and Johnny Figueroa Rodriguez, has promoted and preserved the music and culture of Peru and Latin America. The band’s name, Kausary, means “revive” in Quechua, reflecting their mission to celebrate Andean traditions.
Juan Figueroa Rodriguez, a Peruvian musician and educator, is renowned for his contributions to Andean and Latinoamerican music. Born in La Cuesta, Peru, he moved to Trujillo for his education before relocating to the UK in 1995.
Johnny Figueroa Rodriguez, a multi-instrumentalist from Trujillo, Peru, is renowned for his mastery of Andean wind instruments, charango, and percussion. His music blends ancient traditions with global influences, shaped by performances across South America and Europe before moving to the UK in 1991.
About Hear it Live!
Hear it Live! often includes performances on our four historical keyboard instruments, three of which, from the former Finchcocks Musical Museum, were restored to playing condition thanks to National Lottery funding.
The instruments are:
- A rare surviving example of a signed Neapolitan virginals by Onofrio Guarracino, 1668;
- A beautifully-preserved square piano by Adam Beyer, London, 1777;
- A 1772 Kirckman harpsichord; and
- A handsome English chamber organ, possibly by Joseph Beloudy, London, c.1800.
Find details of previous performances you can still watch below.
Watch one of the previous performances
- Pablo Tejedor-Gutiérrez and Sonia Hrechorowicz on the Cello and Kirkman harpsichord
- Grifton Forbes-Amos and Kian Cardenas on the guitar and trumpet
- Bantu Arts on the talking drums
- Linda Nicholson on the 1777 Beyer square piano
- Stephan Farr plays the English chamber organ
- Robin Bigwood performs on the Italian virginals
- Performance by Callum Anderson playing the English chamber organ
- Performance by Dominika Maszczyńska playing the square piano
- Performance by Linda Nicholson playing the Kirkman harpsicord
- Performance by Linda Nicholson playing the square piano
- Performance by Callum Anderson playing the 1772 Kirckman harpsichord
- Performance by Dominika Maszczyńska playing the 1772 Kirckman harpsichord
- Performance by Josef Laming on the virginals
- Performance by Steven Devine, At Home with the Horniman (part 2)
- Performance by Steven Devine, At Home with the Horniman (part 1)
- Performance by Masumi Yamamoto on the harpsichord
- Performance by Rebeca Omordia on the square piano
- Performance by Marilyn Harper on the organ
- Performance by Katarzyna Kowalik on the square piano
The Hear It Live! recordings were made possible through the generosity of the National Lottery Heritage Fund.
