El Sistema at 50: the rise and fall (and rise again?) of Venezuela’s controversial music programme

I recently published a feature article in Classical Music magazine entitled El Sistema at 50: the rise and fall (and rise again?) of Venezuela’s controversial music programme. You may need to register to read it, but it’s quick… Read More

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 Posted on 13th Feb 2025 by

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Classical music gatekeeping

There has been a lot in my social media recently about the inglorious ways that the classical music sector has historically dealt with open secrets and concrete allegations of sexual harassment and abuse. The same themes keep coming… Read More

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 Posted on 11th Feb 2025 by

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El Sistema at 50: a response to Marshall Marcus

This week, the Guardian published a long article entitled “Venezuela’s Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra at 50: is it time for brickbats or bouquets?” Despite the title’s implication of an even-handed assessment of pros and cons, there was never… Read More

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 Posted on 17th Jan 2025 by

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What does it mean to pursue social justice through music?

For the past couple of weeks, I’ve been glued to Katherine Needleman’s Facebook page. In the wake of the NY Philharmonic’s sexual assault scandal, Needleman – a top US-based oboist – has become a kind of clearing-house for… Read More

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 Posted on 8th May 2024 by

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The NY Philharmonic scandal and its implications for social action through music

It’s been a bad week for orchestras. An old sexual assault scandal at the New York Philharmonic hit the headlines again. But what could have come and gone quickly as a “bad apple” story – one that was… Read More

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 Posted on 21st Apr 2024 by

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Relational being and social action through music

Relational Being: Beyond Self and Community, by Kenneth J. Gergen, is a major work of scholarship in social psychology. It has a lot to offer the field of social action through music (SATM), despite saying nothing about it… Read More

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 Posted on 15th Mar 2024 by

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Rethinking social action through music: an update

In 2021, I published my book Rethinking Social Action Through Music, which laid out both an ethnographic study of the Red de Escuelas de Música (Network of Music Schools) of Medellín, Colombia, and a broader case for reforming… Read More

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 Posted on 6th Dec 2023 by

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Geoff Baker

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