radio and tv
Woman's Hour - BBC Radio 4
Listen to Reem's music in this programme looking at the work of Palestinian painter Laila Shawa as part of the series Treasures of the British Museum on BBC Radio 4, 12 November 2009.
Click here to go to the BBC Radio Woman's Hour website
Salome: Dance Of The Seven Veils - BBC Radio 4
Produced for BBC Radio 4, Reem explored the history of the Dance Of The Seven Veils, from its supposed origins as a dance of the goddess Ishtar, to its notorious transformations in the 1890s onwards, as it began to reflect major changes in politics, culture and attitudes to women, October 2007.
Woman's Hour - BBC Radio 4
Listen again to Martha Kearney's interview of Reem on BBC Radio 4, 14 February 2006.
Click here to go to the BBC Radio Woman's Hour website
Copysnatchers - BBC Radio 4
Visit the official BBC Radio programme site
Download the essays written and read by Reem on the programme in PDF format
(essays will open in PDF format in new browser window):
Coffee-Snatchers (Essay 3 of 3)
On Hospitality (Essay 2 of 3)
Do Still Waters Run Deep? (Essay 1 of 3)
Distant Chords - BBC Radio 4
Read about Reem's radio documentaries for BBC Radio 4, exploring the music of migrant and exiled communities in the UK.
Links to programme information:
Series Two, covering the Armenian, Micronesian and Portuguese communities, Produced by Tony Phillips
Series One, covering the Afghan, Kurdish and Yemeni communities, Produced by Neil McCarthy
Press Coverage:
Greed is Good
The Guardian, 24 January 2003
Charlotte Higgins
Pick of the Day
The Guardian, 7 January 2003
Harold Jackson
Listeners' Feedback:
(as emailed to the official Distant Chords website)
"Reem has a superb way of interacting with people, and the enthusiasm and directness of the people on the programme was just superb... You cannot appreciate how important these programmes are in the current climate of anxiety… These programmes are essential to strengthen the bridge of humanity that exists between various communities in the UK."
Omer Rana, January 2003
"Thanks for such a wonderful lunchtime programme. 'Distant Chords' has been a very moving musical journey. As a Jewish musician working in Bristol, I have felt a sense of connection with these other diasporic traditions."
Jon Stein, January 2003
"I found this programme very moving and beautiful. Reem Kelani provides insights and associations which strike a chord for anyone living in exile, and I'm sure is equally evocative to native listeners."
Hanna Braun, January 2003
The Unholy Land - Channel Four TV
Directed by Colin Luke on behalf of Mosaic Films Production. Associate Producer, translation, sub-titling, as well as music for this series to mark Channel Four's "Israel 50" season, 1998.
Your Land is My Land - BBC Radio 4
Produced by Vanessa Harrison for BBC Radio 4 and presented by Tim Llewellyn. Reem researched and performed poetry and traditional Palestinian songs and music for a documentary series to mark the 50th anniversary of the creation of the state of Israel, 1998.
A Day in the Life of a Palestinian Woman - BBC World Service
Produced by Sara Bradshaw for BBC World Service. Reem co-presented (alongside Suzanna Carney-Nour), provided translation into Arabic and sang in a series of English language teaching programmes. Inputs also included research and advice on the signature tune, 1995.
See No Evil - BBC 2 TV
Directed by Stephen Walker for BBC Everyman. Reem devised original music and did simultaneous interpreting and sub-titling for this TV documentary, commemorating the 10th anniversary of the Sabra and Shatila massacre in Beirut, 1992.