Edward Williams

Ed Williams is a guitarist, harpsichordist and composer exploring the interstices between early music practices, noise improvisation and experimental composition.

Currently studying for an MA in composition and improvisation at the Hochschule für Musik, Basel, he is working with instruments such as microtonal organ, amplified harpsichords and viola da gamba on open compositions that combine 16th-century improvisation methods with the contemporary performance practice called Real-Time Composition in an attempt to explore care- and risk-taking collaborative processes through deep, iterative exploration of tones and timbres.

He has released music on Editions Wandelweiser, Creative Sources, and Insub. Records, and plays with the Insub Meta Orchestra. He has toured Europe and North America with improvised music projects such as TANDEM, Multiversal and his own guitar solo project. His podcast Echo Chamber (2017-2020) dealt with the philosophical, social and emotional aspects of experimental music-making.

He holds ABRSM Grade 8 in Harpsichord and Classical Guitar and studied composition at the University of Edinburgh before going on to electroacoustic and chamber composition at the Marseille Conservatory. He translates texts for French new music publishers Maison ONA. and Artchipel.

He is currently based between Basel, Switzerland and Marseille, France.