Page 76 - Guildhall School Coverage Book 2020/21

The project is led by Guildhall School Research Professor John Sloboda OBE, in partnership
with co-investigators in the UK, Belgium, Columbia and Finland, and is funded by the Arts and
Humanities Research Council together with the International Platform for Social Impact of Making
Music (www.simm-platform.eu).
Co-investigators are:
• Professor Heidi Westerlund (Sibelius Academy, University of Arts Helsinki)
• Professor Geoffrey Baker (Royal Holloway, University of London)

• Dr An De Bisschop (University College Ghent)
• Dr Gloria Patricia Zapata Restrepo (Fundación Universitaria Juan N Corpas, Bogota)

Preliminary scoping of the field from public domain information in the four target countries has
revealed a common emphasis on work with children and young people and a prioritisation of
inclusivity and access. Musical forms and activities which celebrate ethnic minorities and
marginalised groups – or aim to provide participants with spaces for inter-cultural encounters –
are also an important part of the landscape. There are significant differences of emphasis too.
For instance, the elderly and disabled are the focus of much European work, while Colombia has
more projects addressing post-conflict reconstruction after their long decades of internal
conflict (The full report of the scoping study is
at https://www.gsmd.ac.uk/fileadmin/user_upload/files/Research/OpenAccess_PDFs/Sloboda_et
_al_FJME_2020_Music_for_Social_Impact_an_overview__FINAL_.pdf).

The project now aims to go deeper and connect directly with musicians who have worked in this
area “at the coal face” on a regular basis, so that their experiences and insights can more fully
inform the wider community of practice, of commissioning and funding, and particularly of
training.

All members of the research team work in arts higher education, where it has become a priority
to understand how best to develop the curriculum to support the professional development of
resilient but reflective socially engaged artists.

Professor John Sloboda, project leader, said, ‘This is a uniquely challenging time for
musicians all over the world. We really want to hear and amplify the voices of working musicians,
mostly freelance, whose skills and energies make this delicate and often challenging work
flourish. Socially engaged arts work is an increasingly prominent part of the cultural landscape.
Distilling and sharing the insights of those who practice is a vital part of ensuring its future
flourishing’.

The survey is based online and takes around 30 minutes to complete. Musicians who are based
in the following countries and are interested in taking part should consult:

UK: gsmd.ac.uk/socialimpactcall
Belgium: gsmd.ac.uk/socialimpactcall-BE
Colombia: gsmd.ac.uk/socialimpactcall-CO
Finland: gsmd.ac.uk/socialimpactcall-FI

www.gsmd.ac.uk

Guildhall School of Music & Drama is provided by the City of London Corporation.