Giulio Regeni was murdered and tortured in Egypt in January 2016 while doing research for a PhD at Girton College, Cambridge. “For Giulio” is a short ambient composition written to commemorate his passing and to celebrate the things he stood for: justice, idealism, fairness, a better world. The piece is centred on the power of the collective and the impact that the ideas and actions of a single individual can have through others around them. The opening notes of the piece are gradually evolved and reinterpreted, just as Giulio's life and work will shape even those who did not know him personally.

I heard about Giulio Regeni from some friends of his running the Truth for Giulio campaign who came to speak at a meeting of Cambridge University Amnesty International. The sheer horror of this happening to another human being and the tragedy of the events that had unfolded made me feel compelled to write a piece of music, both as a tribute to someone so bright and yet so unfairly taken from us, and to raise awareness for our calls for justice. It was originally performed at an event in Cambridge in May 2017 organised by CUAI in collaboration with the Egypt Solidarity Initiative and Amnesty International Cambridge City, and supported by Cambridge UCU and Cambridge NUJ.

halsall