神马福利影片

Head of Music, Warwick Arts Centre

鈥淚t was a surreal moment when I found myself standing inside the Vice-Chancellor's office, carrying a boom box with our demo recording on it.鈥�

鈥淥ne of the things I love about Warwick is that our musicians aren't here because they're pursuing a music degree. They're here because they want to make music. They turn up to rehearsals because they enjoy them, because their friends are there, or simply because they love creating something together.

We also get to see how beneficial this can be to their wellbeing. That's quite different from some of my own experiences in higher education music, where things can become centred around assessment and there can be less choice. Here, music is something people choose to do in their own time and there's something really special about that.

Recently we've tried to broaden what making music here looks like. Alongside our wonderful orchestras and choirs, we've developed songwriting opportunities, access to music tech and collaborations with academic departments. One of my favourite examples is the songwriting module created in collaboration with the Warwick Writing Programme. We鈥檝e had some amazing songs written as part of this module by some really thoughtful and intelligent songwriters.

Another highlight has been co-composing a new anthem, The Way Is Won, with colleagues Suzzie Vango and Professor David Morley and our students for Warwick鈥檚 graduation ceremonies. We wanted to create something that genuinely belonged to Warwick and could be performed by our students. And yes, I did find myself inside the Vice-Chancellor's office carrying a boom box with our demo recording on it. We were proud of what we'd created but this was the first time we鈥檇 shared it with other people. There was an anxious pause as everyone in the room listened patiently but thankfully, they loved it and you now hear our anthem during graduation ceremonies.

One of the things that keeps me excited is seeing the impact music has on our students. We engage with around a thousand individual students over the course of a year, whether that's through performances, rehearsals, workshops or events. Some will choose to go on and study music and perhaps want to forge a career in music. Hopefully, many of them will continue to make music simply because they enjoy doing it. Music-making doesn't have to be your career to be meaningful. It can be a way to make friends, to be creative, to stay mentally well, or just to escape it all and have fun. When I told my careers adviser at school that I wanted to be a musician, they told me I couldn't! I don't think they quite knew what to do with someone who only wanted to make music. So, I ignored their advice completely.

I like to approach music-making with an open mindset, there are infinite ways to do it. My first instrument was violin and then I moved onto learning the French horn. One day my friend said, "We need a bass player, can you learn bass?" That's probably how a lot of bass players get started, not many people grow up dreaming of playing bass! I borrowed an instrument from my friend鈥檚 older brother and began to teach myself. I ended up going to study jazz bass at Birmingham Conservatoire and have never stopped playing.

I spent years as a freelance musician, performing, teaching and working on community music projects. I also completed a PhD that focused on my own artistic practice. It felt like a real privilege to have so much time to focus on my own music and creative process. I've been at Warwick for four years, starting as Associate Artist in the Music Centre, that felt like the perfect opportunity to combine music-making, education and community.

Despite what my careers adviser thought all those years ago, you can make a life in music. More importantly, I've discovered how rewarding it is to help other people realise that music can be part of their lives too, whether they become professional musicians or simply continue to make music because they love it.鈥�