When we at the Music in Communities network saw that the Australian International Music Show would be held in Melbourne during the inaugural Melbourne Music Festival on the first weekend in October, well, we couldn’t be left out of that now could we?

MICN is pleased to announce another Music In Communities Networking Conference, this time in Melbourne. We’ll take over the Hospitality Suite 1 in the Melbourne Exhibition Centre from 9am to 4pm, Saturday 2 October 2010. Bookings for this conference are open. Click here to register!

“The best part about the day was realising that I am on the right track,  sharing my musicality  with people who used to think they weren’t good enough to be involved and to sing out loud and long for the rest of their lives.  I want to do more and I feel this is the beginning of something great.”

The conference will be an invaluable opportunity for you to meet with other music makers in your community. You’ll hear great success stories from some wonderful community music champions, and learn the strategies and methods behind their success. You’ll have the opportunity to workshop your own challenges and share your successes with others.

“I enjoyed hearing about other projects that are happening in the community, putting faces to names and meeting new people.”

Who Should Attend: Leaders and administrators of community music groups, music therapists, music teachers, those considering starting a music group, local council cultural officers, delegates from cultural centres, conservatoria and music schools, and anyone with a passion for making music happen.

“The best thing for me was that, this day confirmed for me the desire in people for community music.  The second best thing was assuring me that there is a network out there that I can call on for help and advice!”

Early bird Discount: Those who book before Friday 10 September will be eligible for an early bird discount of $10.00.

Costs
MICN paid-up members $60 ($50 with early bird discount). Non-members $85 incl. 1 year MICN membership ($75 with early bird discount).

Registration: To register click here!

• Issue spotlight: copyright and sheet music
• Upcoming Brisbane networking day
• Winning ways: Music For Everyone case study
• Network membership benefits

In our first issue we’ll be taking a look at one of the issues you have raised as being a topic you would like to know more about: copyright, particularly how copyright law affects how we use and copy and distribute sheet music. In the article “Copyright and Sheet Music” – I have an enlightening chat with Rebecca Foulcher of APRA|AMCOS to navigate this often confusing and sometimes worrying topic.

Also in this issue we publish the first of a series of case studies of winners in our most recent Music in Communities Awards, starting with Canberra based “Music for Everyone”.

But first, let us take an opportunity to tell you about the Music in Communities Conference Day being held in Brisbane on 25 September. With a wonderful collection of guest speakers and an opportunity to workshop your challenges and share your triumphs, this day is not to be missed.

MUSIC IN COMMUNITIES CONFERENCE DAY

“The best part about the day was realising that I am on the right track,  sharing my musicality  with people who used to think they weren’t good enough to be involved and to sing out loud and long for the rest of their lives.  I want to do more and I feel this is the beginning of something great.” – 2010 Wollongong MICN conference participant.

Hot on the heels of a very successful MICN regional conference in Wollongong, MICN is pleased to announce a Music In Communities Networking Conference in Brisbane at the Queensland Conservatorium of Music from 9am to 4pm, Saturday 25 September 2010. Registrations for this conference are open now.

The conference will be an invaluable opportunity for you to meet with other music makers in your community. You’ll hear great success stories from some wonderful community music champions, and learn the strategies and methods behind their success. You’ll have the opportunity to workshop your own challenges and share your successes with others.

Who Should Attend: Leaders and administrators of community music groups, music therapists, music teachers, those considering starting a music group, local council cultural officers, delegates from cultural centres, conservatoria and music schools, and anyone with a passion for making music happen. <Register now!>

COPYRIGHT AND SHEET MUSIC

When we are handed a sheaf of photocopied sheet music for us to work with how many of us question if this is OK, or wonder whether the composer or writer is receiving fair payment for their work. Are we ever allowed to make photocopies of sheet music? What would happen if we were caught making illegal copies and for that matter, who does the catching and how?

Rebecca Foulcher is Licensing Services Manager of the Australian Performing Right Association and the Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (helpfully shortened to APRA|AMCOS). She helps us navigate the issues.  <Read on>

MUSIC FOR EVERYONE

“(Our) activities are funded by a hard won jigsaw of arts, education and social inclusion grants from the ACT Government and sometimes from the Commonwealth Government.”

Music for Everyone (MFE) has never had a commercial imperative.  However, as a government-funded organisation, MFE is expected to be very business-like in its operations, and we certainly have to work very hard to spread our funding resources a long way. We have to prepare business plans, detailed budgets and meet all sorts of criteria to get funding.  It takes a lot of time and energy sourcing the funding, then keeping it and then meeting all its requirements. But I think it’s very important for organisations like MFE to tap into government funds and thus make sure at least some of the taxpayer’s money is spent on worthwhile community cultural development, otherwise it just wouldn’t happen, and it would all be spent on sport and defense!

Read more of the interview with MFE’s leader, Vivienne Winther

MUSIC IN COMMUNITIES NETWORK

The Music in Communities Network CONNECTS you with other people working and volunteering in community music, through listings, blogs, forums, e-updates and events. IMPROVES your skills through the sharing of other people’s experiences. PRESENTS the latest research on music in communities. BRINGS you events and workshops to help you start and sustain your musical efforts in your community. REWARDS exemplary community music programs, through the annual Music in Communities Awards.

Join the Music in Communities Network and make a bigger difference in your community! Membership is only $25 per year.

Benefits include:

• Discounts and early notifications for community music events, symposiums and conferences
• Regular member-only offers including discounts from Australia’s leading music suppliers and other businesses
• E- bulletins, with the latest news in community music from around the country and overseas
• Online learning and skills-sharing opportunities
• Free listing on the community music register

Register now!

Rebecca Foulcher is Licensing Services Manager of the Australian Performing Right Association and the Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (helpfully shortened to APRA|AMCOS). She helps us navigate the issues.

Q.  What you should do if you have a few possibly illegal photocopies in your music library?

Legally, you should dispose of any illegal photocopies in your collection, it’s a wrench I know, but that’s what you should do.

What we try to get across to community groups is that we’re not the copyright police. If it did come down to any breaches of copyright action in relation to printed music it would actually be the copyright owners who would take any necessary action. It wouldn’t be APRA|AMCOS because we don’t actually own the copyright in print music, we just act as the conduit between the users and the creators.

Q. So who is it that goes around auditing music libraries?

There’s not one body that goes around auditing music libraries as such. We or the publishers are usually notified of copyright breaches by members of the general public.

Q. We hear horror stories about people being the subject of legal action and being heavily fined because they have had photocopies in their music library. Has this ever happened?

There was a very high profile case from the early nineties where it came to the copyright owners’ attention that a large community youth choral association was photocopying books of music to sell to their choristers. That’s where they really went wrong because this was such an obvious breach of copyright. In the end the association was quite heavily fined. We (APRA|AMCOS) were involved in that case from the point of view of representing the publishers’ interests. This was a worst case scenario. It rarely happens quite like that.

Q. How, then, might it usually happen?

From my personal experience, it’s rare for publishers to just go in for the kill. They are more likely to send a letter saying: “We’ve become aware that this is happening. Here’s our invoice for what we think is fair. Please contact us to discuss.” I’ve seen a few of those.

Just as an example, last Christmas there was a local councillor who sent out Christmas carol lyric booklets to 40,000 of her constituents. Not realising that ‘Rudolf the Red Nose Reindeer’ is still in copyright, so is ‘Santa Claus is Coming to Town’. We were alerted to that and we sent that information to the publishers.

She made a genuine error and the publisher made a huge concession on what they would normally charge, but in this case, because the number of copies was so high, it still added up to a significant amount of money.

Community organisations need to be aware of their copyright obligations. That’s where AMCOS comes in handy. We’re here to tell you what you need to do in order to be copyright compliant so that you can feel comfortable that you are doing the right thing.

Q. So if a person approaches you with a copyright question, you won’t pass on their details to the music publishers. You won’t dob them in?

That’s right! We’re very happy for anyone to get in contact with us if they have any questions about the copyright status of a piece. We have a free research service for community groups. We’ll let you know what works are completely free of copyright or we’ll let you know the name of the publisher you need to contact to purchase or license copies of the work. If you want us to, we can contact the publishers for you, but only if you give us permission because our privacy policy prevents us from passing on your details without your permission.

When you ring up or email your questions you’ll be speaking to someone in Print Music and Educational Licensing. And that will be either myself or Rebecca (that’s right we’re both Rebeccas just to make it easier!) When you call asking about the copyright status of a work please make sure you have the title, the composer’s name and if possible the date of the edition.

Q. Can I ask you a few specific questions that have been put to me by our members: If a group, say a community choir, has purchased 30 copies of a piece of music, how many photocopies can they make?

This is a common question and a common misconception. Community organisations cannot make photocopies of print music, regardless of the number of legitimate copies they hold.

Currently, schools are the only bodies that have a license with APRA|AMCOS with a print music concession. That’s only primary and secondary schools, not tertiary institutions, such as the Conservatorium. The APRA|AMCOS agreement with universities does not include a print music concession.

I get a lot of phone calls from community groups saying “I hear that there is a photocopying license that you have for community music groups” and I have to tell them it does not exist. We’ve approached the publishers several times about a licensing arrangement for community music groups and thus far we’ve not been successful.

Q. Often, groups have made their own arrangements of works that may still be in copyright. What happens when they apply to have their arrangement licensed?

Quite often the publisher will say “give us six to eight weeks” and quite often they’ll want to actually see the arrangement before they authorise it, which is a lot of work with the possibility of it getting knocked back.

Another thing that I can’t tell you is how much they are likely to charge. We get asked that a lot. I’ve heard stories of from $100 for an arrangement to $2000. There’s no norm.

What I can say though is being seen to be doing the right thing in advance puts you in a much better bargaining position than if you have been caught out after, for instance, a concert has taken place.

Q. So it’s always better to be proactive about these things? It’s better to make the first move and approach APRA|AMCOS or the publishers?

Absolutely, and you should also remember that the people you are dealing with at the publishing companies are just people. You’re not talking to the CEO or the General Manager or the Legal Officer when you’re talking to these publishers. They’re normal people and they are reasonable. They have a set of criteria that governs what they can and cannot do but if you’re trying to do the right thing then they’re usually quite understanding.

Useful Links

www.apra-amcos.com.au

For further information about print music and copyright and to be absolutely sure of your responsibilities download this excellent publication from APRA|AMCOS “A practical copyright guide to the use of print music in Australia”. It is well written in easy to read plain english, and contains a comprehensive list of frequently asked questions.

www.copyright.org.au is the website of the Australian Copyright Council. They provide information, advice and training about copyright in Australia.

See in particular their information sheets (free) and their practical guides (for sale) for non-profit organisations.

Music For Everyone was inspired and led by Australian Judith Clingan, a gifted composer, performer and teacher. Originally known as Gaudeamus, the collective worked on several workshop and performance projects together.  Participants then wanted ongoing weekly music programs, such as tuition in a small range of instruments, music groups for pre schoolers and music groups for people with disabilities.

As more and more people became involved, a bigger range of regular tuition options and performing ensembles was set up, depending on what sort of interest came out of each project. For example, the children’s singing group enjoyed acting and singing in a staged musical so much that they stopped being a choir and became Act Up Sing Out, a unique youth music theatre training program that now presents three fully staged musicals a year.

Q. What range of programs do you offer?

Music For Everyone offers more than 150 hours of activity each week. With 28 music tutors as staff, around 600 participants aged 18 months to 80 take part in one or more music activities each week. In 2008, across all programs and events, our active music making participants numbered 2,806, and our programs and performances reached audiences of 16,780.

Classes include:

• Pre-school music groups for toddlers and parents
• Music groups for people with disabilities
• Instrumental and vocal tuition, group classes and individual lessons, for children, teens and adults
• Adult instrumental ensembles in strings, wind and guitar
• Youth participating in music theatre training, presenting three productions a year
• Youth rock bands meeting to rehearse at Rock Academy
• Drumming programs for ACT schools.
• Participants in these programs perform in 35 or more performance events in the ACT region each year.

MFE also presents a range of special events or one off activities including:

• Rock School holiday workshops for youth
• World class visiting artists in hands on weekend workshops exploring music of many cultures
• Workshops and events commissioned from MFE by national institutions, schools, community groups and social support networks
• Commissioning music from composers for community musicians to play and perform.

Q. Music for Everyone is like a community music school, which is a common thing in Europe, but not so much here. Were you inspired by the European model?

The beginnings of Music For Everyone was through the vision and leadership of multi-talented musician, Judith Clingan.  A composer, artist and teacher, she brought adults and youth together in a range of community performance projects that covered choral music, instrumental music and music theatre.  Out of that came requests from the people who had enjoyed making music together for some ongoing opportunities to learn instruments or add to their existing skills as community musicians.  Judith may have been aware of the European schools, but mainly the development of what Music For Everyone did was driven by the desires of the people involved, and bits and pieces emerged along the way.

Now Music For Everyone has grown to the extent that it is seen as a community music school and a centre of musical activity that is a little different to but also complements, other existing Canberra community groups like youth orchestras, bands, choirs and also the work done in schools. MFE is certainly now like the community music schools of Europe.

We get lots of emails from MFE members who have moved interstate, who can’t find anything like MFE in their new home.  There are very few similar organisations in Australia that encompass the variety of activity we offer, and mostly all run under the one roof, which gives a wonderful feeling of community also.  A great advantage of having such a broad-based program accessible in the same building is that people will often start one activity, and then enrol in other programs as well that they get interested in along the way.

For example, you might start off as the parent of a 2 year old enrolled in our pre-school program MusicPlay, and then decide to resurrect your guitar-playing for yourself as an adult, and then you’ll also encourage your kids to take up instruments as they get older, so that the whole family is involved with MFE over many years.  And we have parents and kids playing alongside each other in our performing ensembles, which is always great to see.  But I’m also really impressed with the large numbers of adults that take up instruments as beginners, or go back to playing after a 30 year gap.

MFE also offers great opportunities to professional musicians and teachers in Canberra to broaden their skills and take on new challenges with their music, and in this way there is a big ripple effect out into the community.  We support the development of our own staff, who are definitely our most important asset. I find a lot of musicians have hidden talents as teachers or project leaders that just need some support and encouragement to produce great results.  And with so many different programs running, there is scope for cross fertilization.  We have MFE tutors teaching news skills to other MFE tutors: for example, a classical guitar tutor adds to his skills with some lessons from one of our jazz and electric guitar tutors; a tutor in our program of music for people with disabilities learns guitar so she can accompany the singing her group does, a violin teacher with a folk background increases her classical violin abilities with lessons from another more classical violin tutor and by playing in one of our adult string ensembles.  The sharing of skills and knowledge, and having an openness to all styles, genres and skill levels in music-making are two things that are very important at Music For Everyone.

Q. How do you feel you are improving community life?

MFE programs contribute so many positive community outcomes for the ACT and region.  As well as its own successful programs, MFE develops and facilitates music activities for other community organisations, especially social inclusion support groups for the disadvantaged and marginalised such as people with disabilities, youth at risk and the ageing.

For example, MFE has just started a training program for disability support workers from a community organisation that operates in South East NSW.  Their CEO was brought to tears when he attended an MFE music groups and saw what we achieve through music participation for adults with disabilities.  He immediately set up training for his non musical staff with MFE tutors, so that their organisation can provide music activities for the well being of the disabled in regional NSW.

A recent survey of MFE members provided these comments:

“I can’t begin to express the impact that MFE music groups has on each and every disabled client. The participants gain confidence, self esteem and feeling of well being which is invaluable.  My husband John has a profound acquired brain injury & has been attending these sessions for 5 years with amazing results.”

“lt has been a delight not only for the disabled participant but for the others in the session to witness people who were apparently mute start to sing words, people glow as they joined the dancing and learnt new steps, people concentrate so hard as they maintain a rhythm on a drum.”  - Parent of adult participant.

“It is a considerable challenge to find meaningful activities that combine a respectful way of working with people with disabilities and opportunities for development of individual skills. Music for Everyone consistently meets this challenge by providing skilled tutors and activities that are inclusive of all abilities. Clients also have a great time.” – Queanbeyan Respite Care.”

“MusicPlay and MusicCraft classes are brilliant  The entire family has been made to feel welcome to learn and participate in music.”  - Parent of pre schoolers.

When we ask people what they most enjoy about being involved in music and MFE, they provide a wide range of answers:

• the challenge and satisfaction of learning to read music and play an instrument
• to have musical and performance opportunities regardless of ability
• easily accessible, good value for money, embracing, with a great staff
• seeing children sing and dance and play musical instruments
• a supportive and non judgmental environment

Q. Is there something peculiar about Canberra which is a key to success for a venture like this or could it work anywhere?

There are so many things that have made it easier for Music For Everyone to grow and flourish in Canberra compared to other bigger cities or to smaller regional centres.  We’re definitely lucky in many ways.  Support from the ACT government through its arts, health and adult education grant systems has built up gradually over the years. It took a lot of hard work on the part of MFE staff and its volunteer board. MFE also provides incredible results for the amount of public money invested in us, so that helped us persuade the government to fund us better!

Funding support is critical for many of our programs, particularly those for people with disabilities, as for those programs we can’t recover the costs through what we can charge for fees.  The Australia Council has also funded us for special projects with composers and visiting artists, and have provided some support for our youth and disability programs, and that federal support is very important for Canberra, as surprisingly few arts organisations here have successfully accessed federal funding.  Without direct project funding from some source or other for specific creative ventures like commissioning a composer, we just wouldn’t go ahead with the project at all, as the costs are too great and in some projects, there is no commercial income involved at all.

The Snow Foundation, a wonderful local philanthropic group, has just started helping us financially with our programs for people with disabilities. They are our first philanthropic supporter, and we are their first venture into the arts.  It’s a great new relationship that was much needed. Our disability programs had been in deficit and eating up our reserves for many years, but we couldn’t raise the fees as those participants just couldn’t afford to pay any more.

The ACT Government has also provided important support in another way by providing a centre for MFE and other community music groups.  Our home is the Ainslie Arts Centre, a lovely old building that was one of the first ACT schools – it’s right in the heart of the city centre, but surrounded by parkland!   Very few cities have such a great centralized venue dedicated to the use of community music-makers. It has a large school hall for performances and for weekly rehearsals of orchestras and bands, plus eight or so classroom-sized spaces for other music-making activities.  We and other music organisations also have our offices in the same building, and very importantly we are able to rent rooms for storage of all our musical instruments and other equipment, to keep everything on site.  So the building is a luxury that would be very hard to find matched in other major cities.

Certainly the Canberra population is unusually interested in music-making opportunities, with parents prioritising their children’s participation in music both in school where possible and out of school, but also in Canberra so many adults make music their priority leisure time activity.  I believe Canberra has the highest number of people learning a musical instrument or singing in Australia, and certainly the demand for our tuition and ensemble programs bears that out.  We prepared for some down turn in enrolments due to the Global Financial Crisis, as we do charge fees for most tuition programs, but this year, as in previous years, numbers just keep building. This year we have seen a 20% increase over last year, and we thought it wasn’t possible to grow more than we had last year.

Canberra is unique in that it is really a large country town with some of the advantages of a big city and very few of the disadvantages, and I think that has certainly worked in our favour. Traffic and travelling around Canberra is a breeze compared to Sydney or Melbourne, so it’s a lot easier to commit to driving kids to music activities after school and for adults to make time to do music after work.  Everyone in the music scene knows each other and are used to working together as it’s a small city compared to Sydney or Melbourne, but we’re also big enough to have a university school of music and a part-time symphony orchestra, so there is a reasonable body of professional musicians living and working here, certainly more than in a regional country centre.

Q. Did you begin with a more commercial imperative? How long before you were self-supporting?

MFE’s activities are funded by a hard won jigsaw of arts, education and social inclusion grants from the ACT Government and sometimes from the Commonwealth Government.

MFE has never had a commercial imperative.  However, as a government funded organisation, MFE is expected to be very business-like in its operations, and we certainly have to work very hard to spread our funding resources a long way. We have to prepare business plans, detailed budgets and meet all sorts of criteria to get funding.  It takes a lot of time and energy sourcing the funding, then keeping it and then meeting all its requirements. But I think it’s very important for organisations like MFE to tap into government funds and thus make sure at least some of the taxpayer’s money is spent on worthwhile community cultural development, as other wise it just wouldn’t happen, and it would all be spent on sport and defence!

I don’t think community organisations like ours should ever have to be self-supporting, as that would radically change the focus of what we offer.  We give incredible value for money for every taxpayer dollar invested in us, and we certainly pick up the pieces and fill in the gaps of cultural development and opportunities that are just not being met by commercial businesses or by government agencies. Our efforts are most important in the disability sector (who always miss out), and in the education sector where, sadly, music is just not resourced and prioritised the way it should be.  If we see a need in the community for a program or activity, we rustle up funds and just make it happen, in a way that commercial businesses wouldn’t even consider doing because it wouldn’t be profitable.  And government entities often don’t have the grass-roots connection that we have that is essential in making community programs successful and relevant to the needs of people.

Q. Would MFE be able to be sustained on tuition fees alone, or is the local government and other funding support a critical part of the business model?

If we were able to keep our great venue, we could certainly run our tuition programs for youth and adults on a cost-recoverable fee basis, but it would be without all the extra opportunities we currently offer those people who learn instruments with us – the chance to perform in our concert program, to learn and explore new styles of music, and to work with visiting artists. We’d be just another commercial music teaching business.

Some of our most important programs could not be sustained at all on tuition fees alone; all our much needed programs for the disability sector, our programs for schools, programs for talented youth like Rock School and Act Up Sing Out, visiting artist workshops that increase the skills of teachers and arts workers out in the community, commissioning new music from great Australian composers for community musicians to play.  And wouldn’t our community be so much poorer if all those great programs ceased?

I wouldn’t really be interested in working for a purely tuition-based commercial organisation, as the main interest for me and many of our staff is in the special creative projects Music For Everyone produce. We bring really different cultural experiences to people in a hands-on way, and we provide music opportunities for people who would otherwise miss out.

Q. How has your program grown or changed over the last three years?

MFE prepared for some slowing of the rapid expansion of membership and participation we have experienced for the last four years, due to the economic climate, as our programs do charge fees. BUT 2009 has record enrolments with NO vacancies in most programs.  I’m delighted to say that people have not given up their music when making budget cuts.

MFE has seen an explosion in the number of adults taking up music for the first time. In 2008 our end of year adults’ concert had 86 adult performers on stage. Sixty of them had only been learning their instrument for less than 18 months.

We’ve added the Rock Academy program for 11 to 16 year olds. Five youth bands rehearse each week in an ongoing program and they perform more than 20 times a year at community festivals and youth events. We’ve had 120 youth participate in this program.

Other new initiatives begun in the past 18 months in partnership with other organisations include:

• School drumming music program, North Ainslie Primary
• Music and drama program for after school care, Ainslie Primary
• Drumming performance ensemble for disabled children, ACT Special Schools
• Music workshops for adults with disabilities, National Museum of Australia
• Weekly drumming workshops for disability clients, LEAD support agency
• Drumming workshops for youth at risk, Ted Noffs Foundation
• Professional development seminars, ACT Dept of Education music teachers.

Q. How you will use the prize money to advance music making in your community?

MFE is committed to expanding our award winning programs of music for people with disabilities as an area of high need. These programs provide amazing well being benefits plus positive outcomes for the whole community. We will support additional music activity groups for adults with disabilities, including new groups for regional communities who have requested this from MFE for several years. We will also use the money for our new drumming performance troupe of students from ACT special schools. This initiative starts in October with a six month pilot program, but it will need more support to become an ongoing opportunity for disabled children to achieve their potential as musicians and performers.

Hot on the heels of a very successful MICN regional conference in Wollongong, MICN is pleased to announce a Music In Communities Networking Conference in Brisbane at the Queensland Conservatorium of Music from 9am to 4pm, Saturday 25 September 2010. Bookings for this conference are open. Click here to register!

“The best part about the day was realising that I am on the right track,  sharing my musicality  with people who used to think they weren’t good enough to be involved and to sing out loud and long for the rest of their lives.  I want to do more and I feel this is the beginning of something great.”

The conference will be an invaluable opportunity for you to meet with other music makers in your community. You’ll hear great success stories from some wonderful community music champions, and learn the strategies and methods behind their success. You’ll have the opportunity to workshop your own challenges and share your successes with others.

“I enjoyed hearing about other projects that are happening in the community, putting faces to names and meeting new people.”

Who Should Attend: Leaders and administrators of community music groups, music therapists, music teachers, those considering starting a music group, local council cultural officers, delegates from cultural centres, conservatoria and music schools, and anyone with a passion for making music happen.

“The best thing for me was that, this day confirmed for me the desire in people for community music.  The second best thing was assuring me that there is a network out there that I can call on for help and advice!”

Early bird Discount: Those who book before Monday 30 August will be eligible for an early bird discount of $10.00.

Costs
MICN paid-up members $60 ($50 with early bird discount). Non-members $85 incl. 1 year MICN membership ($75 with early bird discount).

Registration: To register click here!

Music Council of Australia 17th Annual General Assembly
MICN Brisbane delegates who wish to attend the Assembly are eligible for a multi conference discount on their MCA Assembly registration fee. Click here for details.

Speakers

We are very pleased to be able to present a marvellous line up of community music leaders to share their success stories with you and to offer their invaluable insights and strategies for success in community music making.

Dr Brydie-Leigh Bartleet is a Lecturer in Research & Music Literature at the Queensland Conservatorium Griffith University. She is actively involved in community music activities both as a researcher and practitioner. She was Research Fellow on the Australia Research Council funded project Sound Links (2007-2008), one of Australia’s largest studies into the dynamics of community music. Her recent research focuses on a cross-cultural collaborative project with Indigenous musicians from Barkly Regional Arts in Central Australia and undergraduate music and education students from Brisbane (2009-2010). She is a Commissioner on the International Society for Music Education’s Community Music Activities Commission and has served as a National Judge for the Music Council of Australia’s Music in Communities Awards. She is also on the editorial board for the International Journal of Community Music. As a community music facilitator she has conducted a number of bands, orchestras, choirs, and jazz ensembles from Australia, Thailand, Singapore and Taiwan. She has worked as a sessional lecturer at the University of Queensland and a multi-instrumental teacher in schools in Brisbane and Bangkok.

Rhonda Davidson-Irwin has taught more than 10,000 children, performed for Queen Elizabeth, Bill Clinton and Muhammad Ali, composed more than 900 songs for children’s TV showsIn the Box and Puzzle Play and established one of Queensland’s most dynamic orchestras, Viva La Musica. Rhonda has written and directed thirty children’s performances with the Queensland Symphony, Philharmonic and the VLM Orchestras. She composed the music for the 2004 Athens Olympics and more recently, the Warner Brothers’ Great Outback Spectacular. A talented musician, Rhonda’s CDs have been distributed worldwide, one album going Gold. Rhonda initially qualified as a primary school music specialist and wrote both the Australian National Arts Curriculum and the Queensland Music Curriculum. For fifteen years she has also lectured part-time in early childhood and music education at QUT. Recently Rhonda has been working on the Music Council of Australia’s new national advertising campaign –Music. Play for Life. Rhonda holds a Bachelor of Music (Music Education).

Dr Susan West, B.Mus Performance (Melb.), Grad.Dip. (Kodaly Insitute, Hungary), M.Ed. Gifted and Talented (Charles Sturt); PhD (Music) (ANU).Dr Susan West brings to her role as Convener of the innovative Music Education Program over thirty years experience as a performer, educator, composer and arranger.  Her work in developing pre-tertiary music programs and post-graduate teacher-training is at the cutting edge of music education with wide-ranging influences from traditional music philosophies, both ancient and modern, to holistic and therapeutic uses of music.  Susan is trained in music performance, music education, and gifted and talented education. She played Principal Piccolo with the Western Australian Symphony Orchestra and then Associate Principal and Principal Flute with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra from 1981-1985 as well as touring as a member of the Australian Wind Virtuosi.She was invited to the Canberra School of Music in 1984 to help establish the Music Education Program and, in 1998, developed the Hand-in-Hand outreach program that focuses on uniting children and the community in shared, altruistic music-making.  Dr West’s work is studied by local and international students and the focus of a series of documentaries by Ronin Films. She has been recognised through various awards, including a National Children’s Week Award, a National Women’s Day Award, a citation for Teaching Excellence and a community award from the Music Council of Australia.

John Roderiquez facilitates public and private Playshops to help people explore their voice, and to build confidence in their innate ability to “Sing for Joy”. He has facilitated singing workshops for the Australian Acting Academy, Metagenics, Logan City Council and a number of allied health organisations. He is a singer/songwriter, twice awarded for songwriting in the international arena.  He is a member of the Freedom Train community choir, was a member of the QPAC Inaugural community choir and has recently returned from a community music Sing-posium run by Jonathan Welch in Melbourne.Passionate about social inclusion and social justice, he is now the Project Coordinator for Mixed Beans multicultural community choir. John is qualified in Human Resource Management and in Community Engagement, with 20+ years experience across a broad range of industry sectors and local government, also sitting on the board of a local community transport organisation.  You can read more about John’s work at singyourvoice.com

Cath Mundy is an internationally touring & recording artist, currently in MUNDY-TURNER and formerly in acclaimed female acappella trio Sister Moon Ensemble.  She has enjoyed the privilege of working as a professional performing artist in theatre & music for most of the last two decades as a singer, composer, vocal arranger, musical director, actor, musician, dancer, workshop facilitator and more!
As one half of acoustic music duo Mundy-Turner with British singer-songwriter Jay Turner, Cath has released 6 albums of original material, won a Sunnie Award for Best Folk album in 1998, toured festivals and music venues in six different countries and recently featured in the Q150 Shed Tour.

Michelle Leonard is the founding Artistic Director and conductor of the Leichhardt Espresso Chorus, the Moorambilla Voices Regional Children’s Choirs and Festival Director of theMoorambilla Festival.
As a board member of the Music Council of Australia and new national choral mentor for the Music in Communities Network, she is actively involved in advocating for choirs through articles, presentations and workshops.
Michelle is widely sought after as a choral clinician particularly on Australian repertoire and she facilitates compositional workshops for special projects.
Michelle’s career includes a period as assistant conductor of the Sydney Children’s Choir, she has been conductor in residence for Gondwana Voices (Junior 2008), was recently Choir Master for the Festival of Sydney’s Lost and Found Orchestra and also for the 2010 Edinburgh Military Tattoo. Michelle conducted the inaugural Moorambilla Voices touring choir for its 2008 Sydney Opera House performance that celebrated regional indigenous culture and reconciliation on the occasion of Patrick Dodson’s Sydney Peace Prize lecture.

Vivienne Winther is Artistic Director of Stopera, the ACT’s chamber opera company, and has played a leading role in the production and performance of more than twenty notable opera and concert events for the company since 1997. She is also Artistic Director of Music For Everyone, the ACT’s community music organisation and a part-time lecturer in piano at the ANU School of Music. She began her professional career as an opera repetiteur with Canberra Opera until moving to Hong Kong where she was Chief Repetiteur for the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts Graduate Opera School, assisting conductor Carlo Felice Cillario. Vivienne has accompanied and coached singers from Opera Australia, Victorian State Opera, ChamberMade Opera, Beijing Central Opera, and Cologne Opera. In November 2005, Vivienne was named The Canberra Times Artist of the Year, for her uncompromising vision and achievement in gaining national and international recognition for opera in the ACT.

“I am very pleased to take this exciting new role with the network,” Tony says. “Community music making is the hidden nine tenths of the iceberg of the music sector and I am very keen to help create a strong framework for this diverse, vibrant and exciting sector.”

Simply enter your email address and click the ‘Pay Now’ button. You will go to the PayPal site to complete payment. Once we receive your payment we will update you user status on the site to a full membership.

Thanks to host venue Wollongong Conservatorium and thanks to local broadcaster and musician Nick Rheinberger for sharing tales of vindictive nuns and summer camp crushes! He’s also agreed to be the inaugural patron of the Illawarra Network.

MICN Wollongong Conference delegates

The Music in Communities Network is Australia’s first national network linking community music leaders in towns, cities and villages all over Australia. The Network:

• CONNECTS you with other people working and volunteering in community music, through listings, blogs, forums,
• e-updates and events.
• IMPROVES your skills through the sharing of other people’s experiences.
• PRESENTS the latest research on music in communities.
• BRINGS you events and workshops to help you start and sustain your musical efforts in your community.
• REWARDS exemplary community music programs, through the annual Music in Communities Awards.

Join the Music in Communities Network and make a bigger difference in your community! Membership is only $25 per year. Email us here admin.mpfl@mca.org.au.

Sign Up as an online member at the button in the black menu bar above the header.

Inaugurated in 2008, the Awards offer a prize pool of $20,000 as an encouragement to groups that are often the unsung heroes of our national cultural life.  In 2009, the Awards carried a ‘wellbeing’ theme, to draw out stories of local music groups and programs whose activities contribute to the health and wellbeing of individuals and communities.  They attracted over 170 entries from diverse music groups including choirs, bands, orchestras, ukulele groups and drum circles; community and volunteer organisations delivering and supporting music programs in communities; local Councils; schools and individuals.

The Music in Communities Awards are an initiative of ‘Music. Play for Life’, the Music Council of Australia’s grassroots music advocacy program aimed at getting more Australians musically active.

“Research shows there are more than 5 million ‘lapsed’ players in Australia – people who used to learn a musical instrument but no longer play,” says Awards convenor, Tina Broad.

“The same research says that most people who don’t make music say that it’s because they regard music as something that only ‘gifted’ people do. This mistaken belief results in many people missing out on music’s proven benefits which include better mental and physical health and stronger communities.

“These Awards give us an opportunity to celebrate the groups and individuals doing their bit to get more Australians making music and singing together.”

The winners of the 2009 Music in Communities Award are:

Music For Everyone saxophone players

BEST ALL-ROUND PROGRAM             Music for Everyone, Canberra, ACT                         $5,000

Judges’ comment: “With a mission to make music accessible to everyone in the community, regardless of background, age or ability, ACT community music organisation, Music for Everyone, is a model of success: much loved and much used!  From humble beginnings, it now punches well above its weight and is an important ingredient in the cultural life of Canberra as the largest and broadest hands-on music making organisation in the ACT. It runs everything from  pre-school music groups for toddlers and parents, groups for people with disabilities, instrumental and vocal tuition for children, teens and adults to a youth-focused Rock Academy and drumming programs for schools. It also plays an important part in bringing adults back from a ‘lapsed’ musical life or helps unlock their creative lives by engaging older people in music making for the first time. It commissions new music, runs cross-cultural music workshops by visiting artists and provides school holiday programs, too. Take a bow, Music for Everyone!’

BEST PROGRAM – INNOVATION            Ambient Orchestras, Melbourne Vic                        $5,000

Ambient Orchestras

Judges’ comment: “Ambient Orchestras is a new and innovative music program that supports people with profound disability to give voice to the music within them. The brainchild of musician and disability support worker, John Edgar, it began modestly as a program of the Footscray Arts Centre, in metropolitan Victoria. Now Ambient Orchestras has 40 people with disabilities come together regularly to put their own stamp on the concept of ‘orchestra’. We were impressed by the way in which Ambient Orchestras’ innovative approach to unlocking people’s musicality could serve as a powerful model for therapists, musicians and community centres all over Australia. Instruments are modified, rhythms are loose and an environment is created which is totally at the service of each musician’s capabilities. The outcome is beautiful, 21^st century orchestral music: ambient and meaningful.”

Four Runners-Up in the 2009 Music in Communities Awards, each receive $2500:

Runner Up            Women in Harmony, Sunshine Coast, Qld

The Women In Harmony choir was formed in 2005 after several racist incidents had rocked the local community. The choir came together to enable women from all cultural backgrounds to celebrate diversity by learning music in each other’s languages  – at the same time sending a powerful message about tolerance and togetherness on its own doorstep.

Runner-Up            Melbourne Scottish Fiddle Club, Vic

Since 1995 the Melbourne Scottish Fiddle Club has been meeting monthly to learn and play the fiddle music of Scotland and the Scottish Diaspora. Since the beginning the group has had an inspiring commitment to bringing young and old together to learn from and with each other.

MSFCwere recently featured on ABC Radio National’s Bush Telegraph program. Listen or download transcript here:

http://www.abc.net.au/rural/telegraph/content/2010/s2872474.htm

Runner-Up            Willunga Academy of Rock, Regional SA

This community group provides tuition, mentoring, resources and facilities for budding young musicians in the regional town of Willunga. It has become an integral part of its community, helping otherwise socially-isolated young people connect with others through music and performance. Now Academy of Rock participants also range from complete beginners, experienced musicians looking to refine their skills and teenagers needing support with their high school music studies.

Runner-Up            Brunswick Women’s Choir

For over nineteen years The Brunswick Women’s Choir has been supporting women in the Brunswick area to sing, sing, sing.  The make-up of the Choir has changed over time but its commitment to social justice and affirming women’s experiences is as strong as ever.

Winners in the inaugural Awards (2008) included the Dandenong Ranges Music Council, the Leichhardt Espresso Chorus and Tutti, an Adelaide-based organisation for young people with disabilities.

Attend this special one-day community music conference to:

• Make Connections in and around the Wollongong region
• Develop Skills
• Share knowledge

When: Friday 21st May, 9am – 4.30pm

Where: Wollongong Conservatorium Theatre

This special one-day conference will feature:

• Music Therapist, Janet Andrews on the links between music making and individual and community wellbeing.
• Social Networking expert, Music Council of Australia’s Eve Klein on how to get Web 2.0 working for you and your group.
• Lliane Clarke, president of award-winning Leichhardt Espresso Chorus, on how amateur’ groups really CAN achieve musical and performance excellence – and how to bring your local Council along with you to help support your journey!
• Andrew Snell, Wollongong Conservatorium’s Director, on lifelong music learning.
• Alex Masso, Chair, Australian Youth Music Council, on regional performance opportunities: where to play and how to build your audiences.
• Tina Broad, national director of Music Play for Life, Australia’s grassroots music advocacy program, on a snapshot of national research: who’s making music, where and why.

Special Guest: Nick Rheinberger, ABC Illawarra

Who should attend: Anyone working or volunteering in a community band, orchestra, choir, drum circle, or other instrumental group; youth workers; local government cultural planners and arts officers; music therapists, teachers and anyone with an interest in advancing the cultural life of their community through musical participation.

Cost: $45.00. Price includes morning tea, lunch and annual membership of the national Music in Communities Network.

Thousands of people are signing up all over Australia to include their music concert, workshop, singalong, tutorial, open day or other activity as part of the week-long series of events.

This year it’s even easier to get involved, with lots more online support and automated registration and listing of your event/s.
Who can join in?

Whoever you are, wherever you are, hitch your wagon to Making Music Being Well 2010 and help raise awareness about how music can heal, connect and strengthen individuals and communities.

Past participants include people working or volunteering in nursing homes, hospitals, schools, music stores, disability services, community organisations, early childhood centres and music organisations. The old and young participated in events including musical morning teas, performances, music “jams” and improvisations, open music sessions, workshops and rehearsals, seminars, and open days – you can do whatever comes to mind, as long as it celebrates making music and being well!!

Plan one or more events for the week of the 17th – 23rd May 2010 and Register to join ‘Making Music Being Well’ here. When you sign up, you will be able to download a full range of support materials including posters, e-fliers and a publicity kit to help you organise and promote your participation. All MMBW registrants will be signed up to receive the MMBW newsletter to keep you up to date with the latest MMBW news. And if you sign up before April 30th you will also receive a promotional pack of fantastic MMBW and MPFL posters, stickers and brochures in your mailbox!

To register for Making Music Being Well visit: http://www.makingmusicbeingwell.org.au/

For only $25 per year we will continue to advocate for community music with government, large and small, generate training resources to help community music leaders, and help form connections between community music groups.

As a paid member of the MICN you also get access to these special benefits:

• Access to an archive of community music articles from Music Forum Magazine
• Access to the online Community Music Handbook
• Special members only emails

To join the network call our office with your credit card details on:
Tel: +61 (0)3 9507 2315
Fax: +61 (0)3 9507 2316

Or post a cheque with your details to our office to:
Sara Hood
Music In Communities Network
MBE 148/45 Glenferrie Road
Malvern VIC 3144

Online payment options will be added shortly.

The following is a special preview of the Music Forum community music articles, available only to our paid members:

His workshops cover a wide range of subjects from the physics of brass playing to leading a section effectively. He perform these workshops for all ages and skill levels. His playing covers all styles so will fit in with any group from jazz to classical.

Samples of John’s teaching and playing can be found by going to his websites:

www.youtube.com/johndovertrumpet and www.myspace.com/johndovertrumpet.

John Dover

Details of John’s workshops are in the PDF below.

Scroll down to view a preview and click on the links to view the whole article.

Music Forum, Volume 15 Number 1

ACCESS TO MUSIC FORUM ARTICLES IS RESTRICTED TO PAID MEMBERS ONLY. YOU MUST BE LOGGED IN TO VIEW CONTENT BEYOND THIS POINT.

Network membership is only AU$25 a year. To join the network call our office with your credit card details on:
Tel: +61 (0)3 9507 2315
Fax: +61 (0)3 9507 2316

Or post a cheque with your details to our office to:
Sara Hood
Music In Communities Network
MBE 148/45 Glenferrie Road
Malvern VIC 3144

Online payment options will be added shortly.

Scroll down to view a preview and click on the links to view the whole article.

ACCESS TO MUSIC FORUM ARTICLES IS RESTRICTED TO PAID MEMBERS ONLY. YOU MUST BE LOGGED IN TO VIEW CONTENT BEYOND THIS POINT.

Network membership is only AU$25 a year. To join the network call our office with your credit card details on:
Tel: +61 (0)3 9507 2315
Fax: +61 (0)3 9507 2316

Or post a cheque with your details to our office to:
Sara Hood
Music In Communities Network
MBE 148/45 Glenferrie Road
Malvern VIC 3144

Online payment options will be added shortly.

Music Forum Volume 15, Number 4

Scroll down to view a preview and click on the links to view the whole article.

ACCESS TO MUSIC FORUM ARTICLES IS RESTRICTED TO PAID MEMBERS ONLY. YOU MUST BE LOGGED IN TO VIEW CONTENT BEYOND THIS POINT.

Network membership is only AU$25 a year. To join the network call our office with your credit card details on:
Tel: +61 (0)3 9507 2315
Fax: +61 (0)3 9507 2316

Or post a cheque with your details to our office to:
Sara Hood
Music In Communities Network
MBE 148/45 Glenferrie Road
Malvern VIC 3144

Online payment options will be added shortly.

• Community music profiles
  
  

  Music Forum Magazine

• Community music research
• Music therapy
• Australian choirs
• Australian bands and orchestras
• Music in school communities
• The development of accessible music
• The preservation of music cultures
• Community music Advocacy

And we make them available to you here!

To view the latest additions to the Music Forum  Community Music Archive, scroll below.

To browse articles from a specific issues go the the “Resources” menu above, hold your mouse over “Music Forum Articles” and select an issue.

ACCESS TO MUSIC FORUM ARTICLES IS RESTRICTED TO PAID MEMBERS ONLY. YOU MUST BE LOGGED IN TO VIEW CONTENT BEYOND THIS POINT.

Click here to view a preview of the MICN Music Forum content.

Network membership is only AU$25 a year. To join the network call our office with your credit card details on:
Tel: +61 (0)3 9507 2315
Fax: +61 (0)3 9507 2316

Or post a cheque with your details to our office to:
Sara Hood
Music In Communities Network
MBE 148/45 Glenferrie Road
Malvern VIC 3144

Online payment options will be added shortly.