San Francisco Symphony’s Post

Giving back: always important, especially when it aligns with your organisation's values. Coxswain Alliance sponsors a critical learning and development program with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra; the Fellows. This is about nurturing the talent of the future, building capability. Have a listen to how the seasoned players David and Matthew talk about mentoring young and talented players. It is a nuanced approach that offers multiple avenues for building capability. And Matthew's comment goes to the heart of it. It's not just about being a good player; it's also about being a good colleague. Isn't that the truth!

I had the pleasure this week to sit on a panel to discuss Early Music in New York, past, present, and future and I thank the Early Music Foundation and Early Music America for the privilege. I touched on several issues that still plague the field with respect to ethnic diversity and that of black and brown musicians, among other things. Yes, there are more ethnically diverse players in the field now, but there is more work to be done to make sure there is representation in the field across the board. Today I had the pleasure of attending the Black Orchestral Network 2024 Summit and, low and behold, this was also the topic of discussion with respect to managing initiatives to increase diversity in every aspect of the field of classical music. The discussion focused on how to create equitable auditions, how to build community and financial support by increasing board, donor, and staff diversity, how to identify ways in which all of us can work together to break the stigma that comes with “white fragility,” and how to find ways in which we can reach a benchmark to celebrate black creative expression in the field rather than perpetuating the idea that this should be noted as extraordinary. Chi-chi Nwanoku, Founder of Chineke!. double bassist, broadcaster, writer, and mentor, spoke about the Berlin Conference of 1884, at which European Nations discussed how to divide up the continent of Africa among them. She brought to our attention that those nations sitting at the table reaped the benefits while those African countries that were not invited might consider themselves on the menu. All that to say, we need to have more change agents at the table alongside musicians of color to make the case for a more equitable field. We also need to respect the fact that musicians of color did not choose this field to right the wrongs of discrimination but chose the field because of a passion for making music. To work efficiently toward our goal, we need to see a larger and more diverse pool of advocates involved in every aspect of our field to move the DEI initiative forward, maintain it, and retain it as a high priority. https://lnkd.in/e4m-FhpF

Hey Scholastic, the role of music education in our schools is NOT up for debate! Here is a letter I wrote in response to the debate section in a recent publication of Scholastic News. #musiceducation #musiced #musicmatters #scholastic #scholasticnews #useyourteachervoice

The future is now

The Pitfalls of Black Elitism in the Music Industry Discover the negative effects of black elitism in the music business, as an industry insider reveals the hypocrisy and self-sabotage within. Understand the importance of inclusivity and maintaining relationships for sustainable success. @derrickmc @iambvaughan #MusicIndustry #BlackElitism #InclusivityMatters #IndustryInsights #RelationshipBuilding #SuccessTips #MusicBiz #BusinessHacks #BreakingBarriers #IndustryHypocrisy

🚀 Kickstart Your Music Industry Career! Exciting news for aspiring music professionals! NYU, in collaboration with Billboard, has just released a FREE guide designed to help you launch your career in the music industry. I found the guide to be packed with valuable insights, tips, and resources—perfect for anyone looking to break into the industry. Whether you’re just starting out or seeking to grow your knowledge, this guide is a must-have! 🔗 Download your copy below and start your journey towards a successful music career! #MusicIndustry #CareerTips #MusicCareers #NYU #Billboard

Today from Listen & Learn - a carefully constructed answer to the question "How do we incorporate Indigenous ways of knowing into the music classroom without appropriating sacred traditions?" link here: https://lnkd.in/grCeS_9N

📢 Exciting news for fellow music enthusiasts! Check out this insightful blog post discussing the fascinating claim that Black Sabbath was the first band with a real "heavy metal image." The piece delves into the author's perspective on how the band's appearance and album covers differed from the typical heavy metal aesthetic. Expand your knowledge of music history by reading the full post here: https://ift.tt/aYrUd4C

Performance spaces and education are just the start...

School prize draws are strange things; we've done then a few times. Prizes have previously been Pritt Sticks, dry-wipe big notice boards and other stuff I really can't remember now, but perhaps that's the point. These things aren't very memorable. They're handy for teachers and the school for a short while but that's about it. As prizes, they were a bit poor. So why even do a prize draw for school? What impact are we looking for and how should it align with our values as 'Blippit'? Blippit is about 'breaking down barriers to engagement and learning', so this time we decided to make children be the beneficiaries of prizes and find some way to break down barriers too. As luck would have it, when planning our most recent draw, we'd just launched a new music curriculum tagging dimension to Blippit Boards so choosing 'instruments as prizes' made sense. The thought of children getting their hands on free instruments was just a bit more exciting than children getting Pritt Sticks for us and their potential legacy much greater. In the end, what we did with our 'Summer Music Prize Draw' wasn't earth-shattering but it did show us that with a bit more thought, a prize draw for schools could try to do/be something 'more'. A school in Wales won the first prize (a dozen ukeleles) while a four-pack of djembe drums went to a very small school in Derby which we'll feature in September. For us, from now on, more 'thought' is the goal when it comes to prize draws for schools. Speaking of goals, come on England! 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 https://lnkd.in/ez3c5Vwn