send back the echo
Our debut at London's Southbank Centre is an exploration of sound, deafness and 'how we listen'
“I beg of you to keep the matter of my deafness a profound secret”
- Ludwig van Beethoven, composer
“The many ways in which we can listen have never been more important” - Jasmin Rodgman, composer
Dear friends,
Although it has been a while since our last newsletter, we were thrilled to see some of you at performances we gave earlier this year in Ireland, Switzerland and around the UK. The past few months have been busy and creative with new shows, world premieres, recordings, and inspiring collaborations.
We will share more on that in due course. For now we would like to invite you to join us for our Southbank Centre debut in the Purcell Room on 9 May 2026!
send back the echo -
in collaboration with Deaf actor Vilma Jackson
The programme revolves around the work send back the echo, which we commissioned from British-Malaysian composer and director Jasmin Rodgman, and released as a film on BBC Arts in 2020 during the pandemic (watch here).
send back the echo is a journey inspired by a deaf musician. Ludwig van Beethoven’s personal letters and memoirs reveal a human story of intense passion, fear and joy as he reconciled solitude and deafness with a deep love of nature and music. These confessions are interpreted and performed in British Sign Language by Deaf actor Vilma Jackson, in a work conceived by Jasmin Rodgman.
With additional music by deaf percussionist Evelyn Glennie and moving text by the composer adapted, artistically re-written and performed by Vilma Jackson, this project invites us to reflect on the alienation faced by the d/Deaf community and people of colour within music, culture and the arts; a struggle that Beethoven himself endured as his hearing faded: “How harshly was I repulsed by the doubly sad experience of my bad hearing, and yet it felt impossible for me to say, ‘Speak louder, shout, for I am deaf’.”
We performed this project for the first time on 5 Oct in Geneva’s sumptuous Victoria Hall with audience members visibly moved. We can’t wait to share it with our London audience.
Southbank Centre, Purcell Room
Date: Sat 9 May 2026, 8pm
Reserve your tickets
If there is sufficient early interest, the Southbank Centre may add on a second performance - booking your tickets now could make a real difference.
The full Programme
send back the echo is framed by
Beethoven’s String Quartet in F minor ‘serioso’ Op.95 (arr. Julian Azkoul for string ensemble);
A Little Prayer (arr. I-Han Fu) by the acclaimed deaf Scottish percussionist Evelyn Glennie with text by the composer adapted, artistically re-written and performed by Vilma Jackson;
Jessie Montgomery’s Strum for string quintet draws on American folk idioms and the spirit of dance and movement;
Gareth Farr’s Mondo rondo (arr. Azkoul) is inspired by music of African and South America heritage, including “body percussion” evoking the m’bira (African thumb piano). This work appeared on our debut album In Motion.
For this performance we will be partnering with the charity Audiovisability whose mission is to make music accessible to d/Deaf and hard of hearing audiences.
While there are many ways to experience sound and music, shared emotions and vibrations can be a uniting force. As the Evelyn Glennie Foundation puts it: “together we can redefine what it means to listen - to support each other, improve social cohesion and transform lives.”
Thank you, as always, for supporting us and for helping us to share our music with others. We can’t wait to experience this special evening with you. We’ll be in touch soon with more details about our full spring season to include concerts in Aberdeen, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Sydenham (London) and Geneva.
With warmest wishes,
Julian Azkoul and all of us at United Strings of Europe