Today we are delighted to announce that the Ligeti Quartet, London Symphony Orchestra and English Folk Dance & Song Society have joined our launch partners in signing up to our Fair Access Principles. Designed in consultation with a broad range of composers and organisations, Sound and Music’s Fair Access Principles are designed to act as a code of best practice for running successful, open and inclusive artist development programmes, competitions and awards for composers.
We’re actively looking for more partners to join us in committing to these principles. Find out more about how to get involved by emailing Co-Head of Artist Development, Will Dutta at will.dutta@soundandmusic.org
The LSO said, “The London Symphony Orchestra has a profound commitment to diversity and inclusion, including in LSO Discovery’s artist development schemes. The Fair Access Principles will help bolster our efforts to reach out to and work with a more diverse range of artists. We are proud to collaborate with Sound and Music and its partner organisations in tackling the issues many face when building careers in music, and uphold new standards for the industry.”
The EFDSS said, “Inclusion and access are central to the English Folk Dance and Song Society’s aims and objectives. We strive to engage with the widest range of people and to ensure that we remove any and all barriers to engaging with our work and the wider folk arts sector. We are delighted to sign up to the Fair Access Principles and look forward to working with Sound and Music and other partners on increasing diversity and access to folk and the wider music sector.”
The Ligeti Quartet said, “We have benefited from many publicly offered schemes and residencies in the past – these are sometimes the only way to gain education, experience and exposure in the world of music. We believe the Fair Access Principles are really important for helping ensure that everyone has a fair chance at these opportunities. We wholeheartedly commit to the principles for schemes that we provide.”
Read our Fair Access Principles
Sound and Music’s Fair Access Principles are designed to act as a code of best practice for running successful, open and inclusive artist development programmes, competitions and awards for composers. (The definition of “composer” varies between organisations; at Sound and Music we mean “anyone creating their own music, in any style or genre”).
Sound and Music has developed the Fair Access Principles through consultation with a broad range of composers and organisations, as well as from our experience of running open call programmes.
Composer and founder of Manasamitra, Supriya Nagarajan, said, “The Fair Access Principles that Sound and Music have put forward are long due… I hope more and more organisations look at it and take it up, because that will boost the music sector like nothing else.”
Read our Fair Access Principles
Learn more about our Fair Access Principles and partners
Contact us about getting involved