Oxford 2025
Make a classical aulos with Barnaby Brown from oat straw and garden cane
2-day workshop, 11–12 March 2025, jointly organised by Lotos Lab and AMO (Ancient Music at Oxford). Davide Poggiolini (ΜΟΥΣΕΙΟΝ Matera) and Stefan Hagel (Austrian Academy of Sciences) will be around to assist.
Venue: Jesus College, Oxford
An activity designed for scholars of ancient music, university students, musicians, educational settings of all kinds, and anyone interested in ancient cultures. Making a complete Greek aulos in two days is a world first and a thrilling experience! Create a working doublepipe and become part of a community dedicated to the interpretation of ancient evidence, particularly questions of rhythm, metre, harmony, and tonality when singing and accompanying Greek and Latin verse.
Public events follow the hands-on sessions: a seminar on Tuesday and a recital on Wednesday. In these the tutors will be joined by Callum Armstrong. These events conclude the 2025 Approaches to Ancient Music seminar series run by AMO (Ancient Music at Oxford).
Gallery
- Day 1
- Day 2
- Post-workshop
Programme
Tuesday 11 March
13:00 – 15:30 Reed making workshop in Harold Wilson Room (light buffet lunch provided)
16:00 – 19:00 Seminar in Buchanan Tower Room
19:30 Informal dinner (venue TBD)
Wednesday 12 March
12:00 – 17:00 Reed cap making, aulos tuning, and how to practice: hands-on workshop in Memorial Room (light buffet lunch provided). Uncut reed-yokes will be supplied for participants unable to attend day 1.
18:00 Free recital in Jesus College Chapel run by Ancient Music at Oxford with performances by Callum Armstrong, Barnaby Brown, and Stefan Hagel.
Workshop fee
The pricing reflects time and skill harvesting, curing, selecting, and processing the stems of water reed, straw, and bamboo that will guarantee you take home an aulos that respects archaeological evidence and that you will enjoy playing from day one.
- Sponsor £220 Help us provide access for all, create resources, compose, research, and collaborate.
- Supporter £160 Support others on a lower income to attend.
- Standard £110 Help us to sustain Lotos Lab’s offerings.
- Discounted £70 For participants who cannot afford the standard rate.
- Oxford students £35 12 places reserved for students with an ox.ac.uk email address.
The workshop fee includes two light buffet lunches, 7.5 hours of tutor time, and all materials required to take home a working aulos. The workshop fee does not include the informal evening meal.
The aulos created in this workshop is based on originals from Giglio (high pipe) and Poseidonia (both pipes); an instrument you can practice daily and transport safely, as pictured in this photo:
20 spaces are available. It is possible to miss day 1, in which case we will supply two uncut zeúgē (reed-couples or ‘yokes’) pre-made. On day 2, participants will cut their zeúgē in two and start learning how to get new-born aulos reeds to behave. The dimensions of the bombykes respect an early 6th c. BCE ivory original, recovered in 1983 from a shipwreck off Giglio Campesi, Italy:
Porto Santo Stefano, La Fortezza Spagnola, S.B.A.T. inv. 146699/a. Photos: Mario La Rosa
