Instruments: Weathered Pianola, Saxophone, Musical Saw, Voice

Eat The Light

Sarah Llewellyn's theme and variations for Dickens' The Signalman. Music featured in and inspired by Jonathan Holloway's adaptation for BBC radio 4 drama. 
First broadcast on Christmas Day. Available to listen on BBC Sounds: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m001ghw9

Dickens' The Signalman Theme And Variations

Based on Grappelli (v); Django Reinhardt (g solo) from their recording 1936 of "After You've Gone"

This version features the violin, musical saw, and the harmonica, played by my great neighbor musician, John (Jay) Roosa! His grandfather was a great violinist who had studied with Carl Flesch.

AFTER YOUVE GONE March 20 Vln Saw Harm

For the ninth instalment of Pet Projects we are delighted to welcome artist, cellist and children’s author Margit van der Zwan to the show. Based in Lancashire, Margit was born in the Netherlands but has Hungarian roots through her grandma – and therein lies a link to her distinctive pet: a Magic Roundabout remix who is an expert at shepherding her music students to the piano – as well as putting them at ease. 

In the course of a highly entertaining chat, Margit reflects on some of her adventures – including touring with pop band Elbow, introducing her wonderful picture book ‘I love my maracas!’ to leg-hugging young readers, and learning to play the musical saw (as well as designing a card game) during lockdown. She also looks ahead to her forthcoming art exhibition, ‘All Made Up’, which runs in Clitheroe from 22 February 2025, and we discuss her own unique musical compositions, excerpts of which are included in the show at the following points: ‘Hearts Hearts’ (38:20), ‘The World’ (46:48), ‘White Van’ (01:00:00) and ‘Een Fijne Melodie’ (01:06:50). 

Thanks so much for coming on the show, Margit! As always, there was much to learn from a wonderful new guest – both about the arts (classical/contemporary string music this time) and about those dawg-gone animals…

Pet Projects is a collaborative project devised by writer and editor Peter Humphreys and artist and filmmaker Ana Rebolledo, who provides the artwork and video content. It is available on Spotify, SoundCloud, iTunes and elsewhere. If you’re enjoying the podcast please like, subscribe and share.

Links to discussion points/project info: 

Margit’s website: https://margitvanderzwan.com 

Margit’s musical book for c. 3-year-olds, ‘I love my maracas!’: https://www.etsy.com/uk/listing/1819613555/i-love-my-maracas-childrens-story-book 

Details of Margit’s forthcoming exhibition, ‘All Made Up’: https://www.instagram.com/p/DE5q3OaAC2A/ 

Margit’s own music on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcy3pHO-OoOBXgfabWXgcHA 

Quartet for Two – a podcast based on Margit’s card game: https://quartetfortwo.weebly.com 

Carlo Curley, classical organist: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlo_Curley 

Borrow my Doggy website: https://www.borrowmydoggy.com 

Emily Sandé, singer with whom Margit shared the stage at The Royal Albert Hall: https://emelisande.com

Dame Evelyn Glennie, famous percussionist: https://www.evelyn.co.uk 

Arthur and George – book by Julian Barnes: https://www.julianbarnes.com/books/arthur.html 

Kassia, Byzantine composer who came up when we shuffled the cards: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x0ipNUTtDYU

Pet Projects - Episode 9 - Margit van der Zwan

A haunting dark ballad. John’s deep voice is perfect for the subject matter, an ironic matter-of-fact tale of ill-fated love. The arrangement is simple, just voice and guitar with  musical saw by Rowena Southard. Listen!

Country Rose

(French cover) Version française de la chanson  ♥ Lava ♥
Vidéo sous-titrée en anglais (Eng subtitle video) :
http://xanylovem.free.fr/vidos/lava-reprise.html

Arrangement guitare et scie: XanyloveM
Voix: XanyloveM et FaDe https://soundcloud.com/fa-d-1

NOTE: I discovered this original song at the cinema on the first part of a PIXAR cartoon movie :-))

LAVA Cover French (original Pixar vidéo link with Eng Subtitle)

Natural Songwriter & Singer
Stop Devaluing Music https://artistrightsnow.medium.com/200-artists-urge-tech-platforms-stop-devaluing-music-559fb109bbac

I'm a writer and editor based in Lancaster. Check out my podcasts Pet Projects (in which I interview creative types about their pets - and their projects), First Impressions (a surreal slice of literary cheesecake), and Monkey Scribbling (two older blokes reflect on their youth in the '90s through the letters they exchanged at the time). 

Pet Projects is a collaboration with Ana Rebolledo and Monkey Scribbling with Richard Pye. 

The family band I formed with my brother, Decaying Leather, in 1989 continues to write and record. Our music can also be found on SoundCloud and elsewhere.

Rosalind Hall is an Australian musician and composer who creates performances, compositions, installations and soundtracks.  Rosalind’s spatial and expansive work explores the physicality of sound through the use of amplification, microtonal movement, beating frequencies and reverberation.

Sarah Llewellyn is a composer and sound artist working across the arts in the UK and internationally. She creates original music, song and soundscapes for the stage, screen, radio, circus and the concert hall.

She composes for, and records with, some exceptionally gifted and specialist musicians. Her work often weaves in subtle layers of electronics and experimental sound design. She has composed for orchestras, chamber groups, choirs, circus bands, vocalists and actor musicians. She also creates soundscapes, electro-acoustic work and spoken word pieces.

Originally from Liverpool she went to study composition in London at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. A combination of her classical training, running away with a circus and over 20 years of composing for an array of productions all contribute to Sarah’s diverse experience and influences.

She is represented by Kate Weston, Fillingham Weston Associates.

New tracks tagged #musical saw