Research & Consultancy
Contact me for Arts, Health & Culture research and creative writing or doctoral supervision.
music work
Contact me for Music Work services including Residencies, Supervision, or coaching.
musicality in care training
Contact me for Musicality in Care training, coaching and mentorship.
About me
I trained as a music therapist and have worked in practice and participatory research for twenty five years across dementia, neurological rehabilitation and nursing care. In that time I ran landmark research projects such as a junk orchestra for people living with stroke and head injury in the community, created the UK’s first national music therapy service in care homes, and have been a keynote speaker internationally on music, health and education. I was awarded my PhD in 2015, published my first monograph in 2016, and gained an MBE for Services to Music Therapy and Care in 2017. In 2018 I started a post-doctoral fellowship at the Wellcome Trust / Guildhall School of Music and Drama. I also led the doctoral programme and supervised a number of PhDs ranging from music therapy to drama.
I am currently an Independent Scholar, educator, and freelance practitioner, with a focus on understanding more about Music Work across the whole spectrum of applied music with people. I am an Associate of the Alzheimer Scotland Centre for Policy and Practice, a Visiting Research Fellow at Bath Spa University School of Music and Performing Arts, and founder of AERIEL Creative Research. My scholarly activities involve building a practice that is anti-oppressive, anti-racist, and world-building. I host an online zine called www.thepontoon.info. I am editing a new international collection of Creative Critical writing on Music Work, and I supervise and teach Music Workers internationally.