Music For Education & Wellbeing

My first ever guest, and music education advocacy superstar, Dr Anita Collins, returns in the 50th episode of my podcast. Anita describes herself as an educator, researcher and writer in the field of brain development and music learning - but she is so much more than that. We discuss her work in advocating for music education, and focus in on practical ways to win hearts and minds for music. 

 In this episode I’m joined by some of the team at CUMIN – the contemporary urban music for inclusion network: Dr Pete Dale, Professor Pam Burnard, and Dr Raphael Travis from the universities of York, Cambridge and Texas State University. The network is for anyone working through music with young people in genres like hip-hop, grime, EDM, house and more. We discuss the challenges of measuring impact, the need for multiple and participant-led methods in evaluation. We also discuss the book 'Music for Inclusion and Healing in Schools and Beyond'.  

In this episode I talk with Jenny Young, Director and founder of Blue Cabin, a charity based in the north East of England that strengthen relationships between care-experienced individuals and the people in their lives through creative activities. We talk about how Blue Cabin has grown, touching on developing practitioners, growing income streams, working with local authorities and adoption/fostering agencies, and evaluation.

 In this second mini podcast, I want to quickly touch on framing again, but this time, thinking about long-term, systemic solutions. But perhaps not in the way you might imagine. Because at a time when support for the arts from politicians in the UK doesn’t seem to be improving, I think we have a massive opportunity. It’s an opportunity to make a systemic shift our arts CPD and support system, a shift in focus that will enable us to ·       Change perceptions about the work we do, and why it matters. ·       To make sure the arts, music and culture are properly valued and embedded in public policy as a means to improve our society and our lives. EDIT: With apologies for the error: audience development in the arts is 35 years old, not 25 years. It still seems like yesterday to me! 

 In this short episode, I’m talking with … myself! In a change to the usual format, I’m sharing some thoughts on how we talk about why arts, culture and music matter. I touch on framing, messaging and decision science, and I mention organisations and individuals that can help, and are worth following.  

 How did a youth music charity go from moments of almost giving up, to being core funded by Arts Council England, and respected by commissioners/funders in public health and youth justice? Listen in on my chat about resilience with Adam Joolia, CEO of AudioActive, the brilliant Sussex charity that uses music as a tool for social change, education, and personal development with young people. 

In this episode, I talk with Dr Ally Daubney, educator, researcher, evaluator and author and John Bergin, CEO of Newham Music, one of the partners in the East London Music Alliance music education hub. Following 5 years of research into participation, professional development, progression and sustainability in music education, they’ve developed a model for what they term a ‘rich music education ecology’. 

In this episode, I talk with Erin Johnson-Williams and Caz Creagh from the Arts & Humanities Research Council - Hub for Public Engagement with Music Research. The hub is part of the Centre for Music Education and Social Justice at Southampton University. It aims to connect music education research to real-world settings, and to fund research that informs government policy to have a lasting impact on people and music across the UK. 

 In this episode, I talk with Professor Marcus Smith, who is co-founder of the Clem Burke Drumming project, based at Chichester University which is researching the physical, mental and health benefits of drumming. Marcus co-founded the project with Dr Clem Burke, who is the drummer with Blondie; and Professor Steve Draper of Hartpury University. We discuss the research, including the impact of drumming for young people with additional needs including those who are autistic. 

In this episode, I talk withNikki-Kate Heyes MBE, who was the founder, and until recently, CEO of soundLINCS, a community music organisation that’s been working with people from all walks of life through music, for 26 years. We talk about the development of the organisation, the health and direction of the community music sector, and Nikki-Kate gives her three tips for survival and resilience. 

 In this episode, I talk with James Dickinson, head of Hull Music Service, which is part of the local authority and also lead for the new music education hub covering Hull, East Riding, north and northeast Lincolnshire. We discuss how the music service is partnering with the local authority to use data to explore the impact of music on attainment. We also discuss how the service is using an annual impact report to engage partners, supporters and staff with the bigger picture around their value and impact. 

In this episode, I talk with Beatriz Ilari, a Professor at the Center for Music, Brain and Society at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles. We discuss a 10-year study looking at the impact of music and sports programmes for young people; and a short study using an evaluation method and approach to teaching called Positive Youth Development. We also discuss how academic researchers and music educators might connect to work in partnership. 

 In this episode, I talk with James McPherson, Managing Director of Music Leaders UK, a new music course and award for secondary school age students. The downturn in numbers of young people pursuing music in schools and other settings is a worrying trend, particularly in the UK. The award aims to address this, by acknowledging learners’ own musical passions and interests while also developing their interpersonal and leadership skills. 

 A hate crime and a near death experience caused Ami Gaston to re-evaluate her life and future. She now works internationally to promote healing and wellbeing through music and activism. She’s worked with refugees and families through organisations such as the US government and the United Nations. She also has a great story to tell about performing for the Dalai Lama. 

 In this episode, I talk with Serona Elton, from the University of Miami and the Mechanical Licensing Collective; and Dr Oliver Morris, Head of Education and Skills at UK Music. We talked about their routes into the music industry, and the challenges and opportunities for young people – and their families - wanting to understand what roles they could pursue in music.  

 In this episode, I talk with Penny Osmond, workshop and choir leader, about her singing work with new mums who have perinatal mental health disorders. We discuss the first randomised control research in this area, led by Professors Rosie Perkins and Daisy Fancourt, which found that singing could relieve moderate to severe post-natal depression at double the rate of control groups. We also hear about Penny’s wider music and perinatal mental health programmes including Songs from Home – addressing social isolation in new mums through online songwriting, and Music at Heart, singing with mothers referred through a hospital. 

In this episode, I talk with Emma Supica, Education Coordinator for Artiphon, a music tech company that creates new instruments to enable everyone to be creative, with or without prior musical experience. It’s latest is the Orba, a palm-held instrument that can be used alone or connected to other technology. We talked about the importance of play in music; how the Orba is being used in education, wellbeing and social justice settings and can be adapted for different people and environments; and the value of participant and user voice in education and in tech. 

 In this episode, I talk with Mark Robinson, the founder of Rocksteady Music School, which brings in-school rock band lessons to primary schools across the UK. It’s a new model for music education that combines peripatetic tuition approaches with group rock band tuition and inclusive pedagogy, increasing children’s interest in and uptake of music lessons. Mark’s lightbulb moment was when he realised that children in his lunchtime band workshops were progressing faster than those in one-to-one lessons, and his mission ever since has been to get more children making music by choosing what they want to learn, and learning as part of a band. 

 In this episode, I talk with musicians Carl aka C. Roots, and Grace from Inhouse Records. Inhouse is an award-winning record label for change, working inside and outside of prisons with emerging musicians who are prisoners. The team work to highlight the creative potential of prisoners and to reduce reoffending, focusing on what's strong, not what's wrong.  They’re supported by a range of impressive partners and funders from the Universal Music Group to the Ministry of Justice, and have won awards for their social enterprise work 

In this episode, I talk with Sam Chaplin, community choir leader for The Choir With No Name, workshop leader, singer-songwriter, jazz trumpeter, pianist, composer and arranger. We discuss: how community choir leading is ‘caught rather than taught’; the four Cs of connection, confidence, congratulations and the catharsis of ‘singing it out and the song on Sam’s new album inspired by this; the value of peer mentors as part of advocating for the choir; music more central in everyone’s lives.