Sound Sense :: Resources & Publications :: supporting community music

Invitation to our 2026 AGM

Sound Sense members are all warmly invited to attend our Annual General Meeting, which will be held online on Monday 9 November 2026 at 1pm UK time.

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Sounding Board 2026 Issue 3: Knowing community music today

Youth Voice and TRACKS Sheffield An interview with Tessa Sawyer Emily Crossland and Tessa Sawyer
Artist's Care event report Reflections on the event 'Artists' Care: Supporting Musicians Working In Challenging And Complex Contexts' Carol Bowden
Learning together through song In Australia, we hear about a long-standing collaboration with Gumbaynggirr Songman and cultural educator Uncle Micklo Jarrett Pru Borgert
Bringing creativity into community music research Using creative practices to support rigorous research and personal creative wellbeing Cynthia Kinnunen
Singing for hypertension with MediSing How a community singing project in Bromley is improving health and wellbeing Nicola Wydenbach
Knowing community music: a situated perspective Exploring the evolving relationship between community music practice and research Dave Camlin

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Sounding Board 2026 Issue 2: Sounds of community music today

Where food, music and memory meet RASOI explores how the rich food heritage of South Asian communities is deeply intertwined with music Supriya Nagarajan
A fun fiddle story Grassroots community music-making at the heart of a resilient community fiddle project Gica Loening
Striking a balance Listen to the vibrant spectrum of community gamelan practice in the UK today Emily Crossland
What Can We Do Here? Why where music is located may matter more than ever Duncan Chapman
Drum Runners call An invitation for musicians and other creatives to join the Drum Runners teamPaul Midgley

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Sounding Board 2026 Issue 1: Community music in schools

Behind the scenes of 'Creative Music Nurture Groups' Music-making as intervention with Creative Music Nurture Groups in Sunderland primary schools Carol Bowden
Sounds, stories and senses Folk music and dance in inclusive settings with the EFDSS Emmie Ward and Lucy Stiles
Creating nurturing musical spaces in education Xenia Horne offers reflections from thirty years of community practice Xenia Horne
New ways of working Lifesize detail their work in SEN primary schools in East Sussex Sam Dook and Angela Wym
A report on Inclusive Practice in Action 2026 Key learnings from the event hosted by Sound Connections in partnership with Drake MusicEllie Knott

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Sounding Board 2025 Issue 4: Radical acts of community music

A prefigurative perspective / Community music in Edinburgh College Thoughts and experiences from our guest curators Rory Wells & Jess Abrams
Community music as artistic practice Recovering our radicalism Dave Camlin
Creating regenerative culture A conversation on equity, justice and representation in community music Alex Etchart & Jess Abrams
Oi Musica and Brass Blast What can instrumental teaching practice learn from community music? Oli Furness
Confidence and connection Q&A with Jed Milroy of Tinderbox Collective Jed Milroy
Which side are you on? Reflections on decades of community music and activism Pete Moser
Who is missing out? Making a difference working one-to-one in residential care Thea Jacob
A unique partnership approach Saffron Centre for Young Musicians and a sense of community with purpose Kate Llewellyn
Radical acts of community music: a few thoughts How do we define and perceive radical acts in our practice? Hugh Nankivell
Informal work in formal settings Community music in the gaps Erika Severyns
Behind the brand with Musical Moments A journey of regrowth following the pandemic for a community music business and franchise Maggie Baker
Musical Anarchism Phil Mullen on the ideology that guided his work together with the late Graham Dowdall Phil Mullen

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Sounding Board 2025 Issue 3: Duty of care

Who cares? Working towards a culture of care for community musicians Annette Burghes
When is a violinist not a violinist? Intergenerational music making - an emerging practice Hugh Nankivell
Inclusive voice work: a duty of care Exploring the ethical implications of inclusive practice, particularly within voice work Abigail Mann-Daraz
Navigating care setting contracts and duty of care How to prepare a contract document for community musicians Thea Jacob
Mental Health First Aid The importance of emotional safety for community musicians Hannah Dunster & Rachael Perrin
Counteracting the narrative Yorkshire Youth & Music is interpreting duty of care towards young people as counterbalancing divisive rhetoric Gail Dudson
An introduction to clinical supervision in creative practice Read Blue Cabin's blog resources on clinical supervision Jenny Young
We Make Music Scotland's National Music Education Conference 2025 A report from day one of the event Jess Abrams

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Contract template for community musicians

In the latest issue of Sounding Board journal, Thea Jacob MA shares her tips and advice for preparing a contract that establishes, delivers and protects your professional services

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Sounding Board 2025 Issue 2: Community Music Now

Early years song share session Reflections on the presentation at Community Music Now - Dr Jessica Pitt
ICCM presents: How has research informed our work? Discussing work as practitioners and researchers - Lee Higgins, with Rory Wells, Catherine Birch, and Wayne Dawson
The power of listening Outlining the work of Liquid Listening and talking about their music-making practice - Lawrence Bradshaw
Deep listening with Lullaby: Sonic Cradle Some thoughts about the performance and project - Supriya Nagarajan and Duncan Chapman
Music Making and Terrapolis A short video on music making as form of civic imagination - Dave Camlin
Music Making and Civic Imagination: A Holistic Philosophy A review of the book by Dave Camlin - Liv McLennan
Steelpans and the Foxwood Songsheets The history of steelpans in UK and The Foxwood Songsheets - Victoria Jaquiss
Filling the business gap The team at AV-at-it present some practical ways to find a niche when setting up your own business - AV-at-it
Collaborative audio-visual composition An overview of an audio-visual composition workshop - Joanna Gawthorpe

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Banner Photo Credit: More Music, Robin Zahler.