Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls Rebel Girls

Get to know British saxophonist Jess Gillam, who read us the story of electronic music pioneer Clara Rockmore. Jess tells us about her love for classical music, and how she fell in love with the saxophone. She talks about the joys challenges of being a professional musician, and how listeners can get their own start in music!

Born in Russia in 1911, Clara Rockmore grew up to become a trailblazing performer of the world’s first electronic instrument—the theremin. Rockmore was a child musical prodigy with perfect pitch, but by the time she was a teenager, an arm injury forced her to give up her beloved violin. Still, music called to her, and after Rockmore was introduced to a brand new instrument—one that made the player look like she was pulling notes out of thin air—she embraced the theremin’s magic, amazing the world with her virtuosic talents.


About the Narrator
Jess Gillam is a British saxophonist and BBC radio broadcaster. She is the first ever saxophonist to be signed to Decca Classics and recently released her second album, ‘TIME’. Gillam is also a presenter on TV and Radio. She became the youngest ever presenter for BBC Radio 3 and hosts her own weekly show and podcast called “This Classical Life” where she chats to musical guests to swap tracks and share the music they love. She has been the recipient of a Classic BRIT Award (in the Sound of Classical Poll), and was the first ever saxophonist to reach the final of BBC Young Musician. Jess studied and was mentored by the legendary saxophonist John Harle and graduated from Guildhall School of Music with a Masters with distinction in 2020. 

Credits
This podcast is a production of Rebel Girls. It’s based on the book series Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls. This episode was produced by Camille Stennis, written by Alexis Stratton, and proofread by Ariana Rosas. Sound design and original theme music was composed and performed by Elettra Bargiacchi, final mix by Mattia Marcelli. Executive Producer is Katie Sprenger. A special thanks to the whole Rebel Girls team, who make this podcast possible! For more, visit www.rebelgirls.com.

Get to know inventor Ann Makosinki, who brought us the story of movie star Anna May Wong. Ann talks about how she became a young inventor, and how we can become inventors ourselves. And she explains why the story of Anna May Wong is so important to her, especially as an Asian-American woman today.

Hailed as the first Asian American movie star, Anna May Wong’s groundbreaking career spanned from the silent film era to 1950s TV, when she starred in her own television show. Though bound by the racist and sexist stereotypes of Hollywood in the 1900s, including laws forbidding on-screen interracial relationships, Anna May Wong carved a path for herself in Hollywood and beyond, eventually appearing in 60+ films and performing on stages around the globe.


About the Narrator

Ann Makosinski is a 23 year old Filipina-Polish Canadian inventor, global keynote speaker, and aspiring writer. She is best known for her invention of the Hollow Flashlight, a flashlight that runs off the heat of the human hand, and the eDrink, a coffee mug that harvests the excess heat of your hot drink and converts it into electricity to charge your phone. Ann has given 5 TEDx talks, is one of Forbes Magazine’s 30 Under 30, Times Magazine’s 30 Under 30 World Changers, Entrepreneur Magazine’s Young Millionaires, and Glamour Magazine’s College Women of the Year. She recently completed her work on a line of children's toys that run off of green energy. 

Credits

This podcast is a production of Rebel Girls. It’s based on the book series Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls. This episode was produced by Isaac Kaplan-Woolner, sound designed and mixed by Camille Stennis.This episode was written by Alexis Stratton. Proofread by Ariana Rosas. Executive Producer is Katie Sprenger. A special thanks to the whole Rebel Girls team, who make this podcast possible! Original theme music was composed and performed by Elettra Bargiacchi. For more, visit www.rebelgirls.com.

(Originally aired 7/21/19) Today, you'll hear from May Boeve who narrated the previous episode about Katia Krafft. If you haven't listened to last week's episode, now is a good time to go back and check it out! Boeve reveals how she first cultivated an interest in climate change, the incredible humans who are working to create positive change, and the risk involved with her daily responsibilities!

(Originally aired 7/19/19) Once upon a time, a girl dreamed of sailing down a river of lava. Her name was Katia. Katia became fascinated with volcanoes when she first saw them on-screen at a small French movie theater as a teenager. So, she set out to study them, capturing their magnificent beauty and power through the lens of her camera. With her daredevil husband Maurice by her side, Katia visited over half of the world’s active volcanoes, sailed a boat into a lake of acid, and even escaped out a second-story window into a pile of volcanic ash.

About the Narrator:

Self-proclaimed activist May Boeve is the Executive Director of 350.org, an international climate change campaign. Founded in 2008, 350.org strives to generate the sense of urgency required to tackle the climate crisis through creative communications, organizing, and mass mobilizations. Boeve has been active in the climate movement since her days at Middlebury College. In 2006, she co-founded and led the Step It Up 2007 campaign, which brought together communities from 1,400 places for a National Day of Climate Action. Four years later, Boeve was handcuffed and arrested in front of the White House while protesting the Keystone XL pipeline. Through it all she has maintained her commitment to fighting for what’s right, and in 2015 Time Magazine recognized her as a “Next Generation Leader.” Boeve is a tireless advocate for the environment and is the co-author of the book Fight Global Warming Now.

Credits:
This episode of Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls is produced by Elena Favilli, Joy Fowlkes and Meg Murnane, with writing by Grace Boyle and narration by May Boeve. Jestine Ware edited all scripts and Janice Weaver fact-checked all scripts. Sound design and original theme music by Elettra Bargiacchi. Mattia Marcelli was the sound mixer. Special thanks to Clio McClure who coordinated all credit recordings and narrator donations.