About

  • I am open to new projects and welcome ideas for commissions, project proposals, and collaboration opportunities. Please get in touch and I will be sure to get back to you.

    To contact me, email jacobthompsonbell[at]gmail[dot]com

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Jacob Thompson-Bell is a musician and researcher creating music and multimedia across live performances, releases, and installations. His work connects with ideas, people, and practices beyond music, most notably in food and ecology, in which he has led projects with a wide variety of collaborators, including Kenyan farmers, U.K. climate activists, and international food and drink brands. His music has been played on BBC Radio 3 and programmed in venues including Le Delta (Namur), Tramway (Glasgow), Kings Place (London), the Purcell Room (London), LSO St Luke’s (London), Iklectik (London), Howard Assembly Rooms (Leeds), and BFI Southbank (London).

Recent projects include work with Kenyan farmers and musicians, including Pastor Joel Kimeto, to explore food heritage and futures through co-created music (2025-26), as part of BA-funded project ‘Histories and Futures of Under-utilised Crops Re-Imagined’ (PI Lilian Korir). Since 2018, Jacob has also developed a range of collaborative projects and released music under the moniker Unusual ingredients, a multi-sensory food-music collective exploring the connections between flavour and sound. Previously, he has written for and worked with The Vegetable Orchestra (Vienna), London Sinfonietta, London Symphony Orchestra, the Debussy Trio, the Orchestra of Opera North, Ligeti Quartet and CoMA. Commercial collaborations include commissions for multisensory soundscapes from Pink Lady and Magnum UK, through Unusual ingredients.

Jacob is a Senior Lecturer in Music at the University of Lincoln, U.K, where he leads the Lincoln Centre for Ecological Justice. His research explores how music can make positive changes on social and ecological issues by working across disciplines and sectors. He has led workshops and events bringing together artists, scientists and community activists to explore climate collaboration. Previous events include a Climate Hackathon at Leeds Conservatoire, U.K. (June 2023), and Artistic Citizenship Forum (December 2022), exploring how artists can be supported to engage with wider social and environmental themes through their practice (read the report: Artistic Citizenship: Co-Creating a Flexible Definition).