11:00 am, December 7 2025
Backyard Comedy Club, Bethnal Green
Speaker: Dr Tommaso Perego
Poet: Yvonne Murray
From Christmas playlists in every café to the festive hum of the high-street, sound seems to move all around us at this time of year.
Understanding how we experience sound in space goes far beyond the mechanics of the ear. But how do our brains make sense of it all? This ‘Sound Day Assembly’ was an opportunity to find out.
Our guest speaker: Tommaso Perego
Dr Perego is a composer, sound designer and senior lecturer at the University of East London. His research explores sonic movement; how we perceive sound in motion and space and how that shapes everything from performance and architecture to multimedia and art.
He gave us a playful exploration of sound, space and perception and we discovered why even the Christmas jingles that chase us through the shops can tell us something fascinating about being human.
Our guest poet: Yvonne Murray
Yvonne is a Murray poet, inspirational motivator and author who loves to manipulate words into stories, hurts into lessons and to empathise with those who share similar paths.
When Yvonne joined us in September, she moved us with her imagery and empathy. One of her poems was specially written for our assembly and you can watch a video on Yvonne’s Instagram.
Our singalongs
As usual, there were four pop songs performed by our Sunday Assembly London band and reflecting today’s theme.
- Shut Up and Dance – Walk the Moon
- Sound of the Underground – Girls Aloud
- Footloose – Kenny Loggins
- Don’t Stop Movin’ – S Club 7
The lyrics were projected on screen, with everyone welcome to sing (and dance) along.
Winter Fayre
We invited our community to display (and sell if they wanted) their creations at our Winter Fayre. The stalls were open either side of this assembly i.e. 10:20 to 11am, 12:15 to 1pm.
About Sunday Assembly London
Sunday Assembly London is your regular and reliable stop for a welcoming, accessible and inspiring Sunday community, where you can hear talks and poetry, sing songs and make new friends.
Stay after for tea, biscuits, and chat in the Backyard Comedy Club. Then join us for a local meal, picnic, or a drink and card games at the pub.
→ Our next assembly: Yule Never Believe It: Rational Rituals and Secular Ceremonies, 21st December
← Our previous assembly: De-Masking Masculinity, 16th November