Friday 18 September 2026 5:00pm to 6:15pm
Faculty of Divinity
Sample “Three voices of joy” from Dr Stefan Williamson Fa’s 2026 book, Sonic Relations: Devotion and Community in Turkey’s Eastern Borderlands—themes include masculinity, calendar-keeping & fostering intra-communal relations.
The cover of Sonic Relations: Devotion and Community in Turkey's Eastern Borderlands.
About
Through vivid ethnographic vignettes, analysis, and audiovisual examples, Dr Stefan Williamson Fa’s 2026 book, Sonic Relations: devotion and community in Turkey’s Eastern borderlands, offers an intimate look at how Twelver Shii Muslims forge bonds of love, faith, and community within Turkey and across borders. It invites readers to rethink religion, not as belief alone, but as a sensory, relational, and deeply embodied experience.
Join us as we discuss a sample chapter, “Three voices of joy”. The chapter covers themes including masculinity, calendar-keeping, and strategies for improving intra-communal relations. Conversation will include chance to reflect on how the encounters recorded in Sonic Relations resonate with or differ from your own experience.
As befits the warm and hospitable scene the book introduces, we will be offering a selection of snacks and drinks to accompany this pre-dinner discussion.
About the author
Dr Stefan Williamson Fa is based on the Centre of Islamic Studies at the University of Cambridge, where he serves as a Research and Outreach Associate. An anthropologist, his research focuses on the intersection of Islam and the senses, particularly sound and taste, across Turkey, the Caucasus, Iran, and Europe.
He completed his PhD in Social Anthropology at University College London in 2019, following a Masters in Ethnomusicology from SOAS, University of London, in 2014. He has previously held research positions at the University of Birmingham, Lund University, and the University of Oxford.
Practicalities
To support in-depth discussion, the indicated reading will be provided to those registered two weeks prior to the session.
Places are limited and registration is required. (Booking opens on 15th July.)
A selection of snacks and drinks will be provided as part of this session.
A Cambridge Interfaith Programme event (Religion in Society strand).
NB There is a fee for this session. A discount is available to those booking all three sessions in this series.