We Can All Make Music.

Community music around the world

While there isn't an organisation that does exactly what we do, there are individuals and groups all over the planet who share much of our understanding. Here are a few of them:

Frankie Armstrong (UK)
One of the key initiators of the modern revival of group singing. Co-founder of the Natural Voice Practitioners Network and co-editor of Well Tuned Women - Growing Strong through Voice Work. Continues to present workshops around the world.

CM (UK)
Started life as Community Music Limited in 1983. At the time there were no similar music projects and CM became the pioneer of what is now a growing industry. Established by John Stevens (who died in 1994) and Dave O' Donnell, the project grew rapidly in the 80s until it was employing over 180 musicians, including the young Courtney Pine, to run music workshops around London. Among a huge variety of initiatives, CM offers a two year, part-time 'Music Leader' training course. John Stevens's seminal work, Search and Reflect: A music workshop handbook, has just been re-issued.

Community Choir Leadership Training (CANADA)
Program operated jointly by Denis Donnelly and Shivon Robinsong.

The Community Music Activity Commission (International)
Part of ISME, the International Society for Music Education. Founded in 1991, its members are: Phil Mullen, Chair (Ireland/UK), Tatsuko Takizawa (Japan), Lee Higgins (UK), Sylvia Chong (Singapore), Nur Intan Murtadza (Canada/Malaysia), Joel Barbosa (Brazil).

Community Music Wales (UK)
Provides trained and experienced community tutors, equipment, advice and support to give people the opportunity to write, play, record and / or perform their own music.

Communitydrumming (USA)
”Group drumming succeeds when participants play their parts with a spirit of community, which will create rhythms that groove and unite. Individual practice is also suggested to help build skill and confidence” – communitydrumming website.

Communitymusic (UK)
UK website built by Vic White.

Denis Donnelly (CANADA)
See also soundingsmusic and choralsongs. Denis Donnelly is a singing group leader and choral arranger whose work “centers on bringing people back to the joy that comes from singing and making music together. I believe that in our North American culture we often tend to forget the joyful awareness of community that arises when we allow ourselves to work together in this way.” Co-directs the Gettin' Higher Choir with Shivon Robinsong.

Drum Circle Music (USA)
From their website: People from all walks of life are unlocking the potential of guided music and movement in a variety of settings, from the classroom to the boardroom. The DCM approach helps teachers, trainers, drum circle facilitators, therapists, coaches, and community music makers expand their bushiness and love for their work.

Drum Jam (UK)
British affiliate of the Village Music Circles (Arthur Hull) movement.

Matthew Fargher (Tasmania, Australia)
Composer, musician and vocal teacher in a wide range of areas including theatre, film and community contexts. Companies he has worked for include Company B Belvoir, Circus Oz, Stalker and The Sydney Theatre Company. He is the musical director of Marrugeku Company, and was a founding member and composer for 'Voices from the Vacant Lot' choir for over ten years. Currently working at the Pulse Youth Health Service in Glenorchy, Tasmania, he is an innovative practitioner of group music making.

David Gadsby (UK)
Compiler and publisher of songs for children.

Grass-Root (UK)
Community music network based in Liverpool.

Groove On Music for the Future (UK)
London-based community music organisation which aims to: bring people together through music making; raise the status of community music making through collaborations with artists of international renown; further develop innovative approaches, skills, concepts, materials and repertoire, which make inclusive music making possible.

Guildhall School of Music & Drama (UK)
Offers an MMus in Leadership. Includes a module entitled Creation and Performance in Community Settings.

Joanne Hammil (USA)
Nationally renowned music educator, performer, songwriter and choral director from Boston, who is a major figure in community and children's music. She directs several Inter-generational and children's choruses in the greater Boston area and presents dynamic, participatory concerts and workshops across the country. Her songs, which have been performed and recorded by many artists, have been widely published, and her rounds have become exciting standards in books and harmony circles.

HealthArts @ Melbourne Health (Victoria, Australia)
Website of the organisation running Melbourne's major public hospital. It describes their art / health activities.

International Journal of Community Music
From their website: An open-access, peer-reviewed academic journal that publishes research articles, practical discussions, timely reviews, readers' notes and special issues concerning all aspects of Community Music. Founded and edited by David J. Elliott (NYU).

Irish World Academy of Music & Dance, University of Limerick (EIRE)
Offers an MA in community music.

The Jericho Harmonics/Singing For Peace Project (USA)
Brainchild of Betsy Rose, the website for the project includes scores of lyric sheets and mp3s of peace songs.

Kindermusik Australia (Australia & International)
As quoted from the kinermusik website, “Kindermusik Distribution Australia/New Zealand is the Australian owned affiliate of the well-known US company, Kindermusik International. We are based in Queensland and are dedicated to bringing the benefits of our program to all young children via their parents and our educators. The core belief of the Kindermusik approach is that musical learning is more than music alone. Our proven method is built on the music education philosophies of Orff, Kodaly, Laban and Dalcroze and the work of early childhood experts like Piaget, Montessori, Greenspan and Brazelton. We continually incorporate current research that shows music is a powerful stimulant for a child's total development. A wide array of well-known experts in the field of early childhood development inform and advise the development of Kindermusik curricula, including such specialists as Dr. Carla Hannaford (author of Smart Moves), Anne Green Gilbert (movement specialist and author of Creative Dance for All Ages), Dr. Melissa Johnson (paediatric psychologist at the University of North Carolina) and many others. We have distilled this research into "Kindermusik Foundations of Learning", translating complex concepts into easy-to-understand language that our educators share with parents. Every lesson includes these practical principles that parents can apply to learning activities at home. This builds the parent-teacher partnership that is so important to a nurturing, learning environment for the child.”

Leeds College of Music (UK)
Offers an MA in community music.

Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts (UK)
Offers an MA in community music.

MADD House Studios (Antrim, N. Ireland)
Offers community music training.

Making Music (The National Federation of Music Societies) (UK)
Represents and supports over 2,350 voluntary music groups throughout the UK, including choirs, orchestras, and music promoters.

May Day Group (UK)
Founded by Thomas A. Regelski and J. Terry Gates in 1993. It continues to function as an international think tank, connected through email, the Internet and by regular mail. Members are concerned with attempting to identify, critique, and change taken-for-granted patterns of professional activity, polemical approaches to method, and social, musical and educational philosophies, educational politics and public pressures that have threatened effective practice and stifled critical and open communication among music educators. The on-going debate about these matters has resulted in a two-fold purpose: to apply critical theory and critical thinking to the purposes and practices of music education, to affirm the central importance of musical participation in human life and thus the value of music in the general education of all people.

Melodious Accord (USA)
A New York Sate-based non-profit organisation which presents choral concerts, sponsors workshops, symposia, and the professional appearances and teaching sessions of its founder, Alice Parker. As quoted on the website, M.A. “believes that melody is an unparalleled means of communication for human beings; that when we use our ears and voices we enrich our lives through creating communities of sound; and that singing together brings immediate benefits - physical, mental and spiritual - to those who join in this most participatory of all the arts.”

Fiona Moore (UK)
Community musician, specialising in vocal skills, harmony singing, improvisation, and running community choirs.

Phil Mullen (UK)
Phil has been a music workshop leader based in London for the past 22 years. With his workshop group SoundPeople he has worked with young people, offenders of the law, the elderly, people with disabilities and homeless people extensively, as well as many other community and education based groups. He has also worked at primary, secondary and tertiary educational institutions. Since 1990, Phil has been training musicians as workshop leaders at Goldsmiths College, University of London and has also developed similar training in Thurrock, Hull, Northern Ireland, Limerick, Cork and Galway in Ireland, and run a pilot training programme in the West Bank in Ramallah. Phil runs workshops and lectures internationally and has delivered talks on music workshop leader training in Spain, Ireland, New Zealand, Palestine, South Africa, Holland and Norway. He also works as a freelance workshop leader, with current clients including Brighton and Hove Music Service and the London Philharmonic Orchestra.

Music Education Program, School of Music (Canberra, Australia)
Encourages music-making as a part of the normal social and cultural lives of all those involved. The program was inititiated by Susan West and is described in this pdf document.

Music for People (USA)
Non-profit organisation which promotes self-expression through music and improvisation. Momentum gather over more than 20 years of workshop and concert experience of cellist and teacher David Darling, MFP was founded in 1986 by David Darling and Bonnie Insull. Based on the principle that music is a natural creative expression available to everyone, this right to creative expression is documented in their Bill of Musical Rights.

Music for the love of it (USA)
”Newsletter and workshop guide for everyone who loves to make music.”

Music Manifesto (UK)
An initiative designed to focus action on stimulating music making opportunities for young people in Britain.

Music.Play for Life (AUSTRALIA)
As quoted on the website, “Provides advice, information and inspiration to encourage more Australians to make music.”

Music Together (USA)
An early childhood music program.

Music Together Program; Connections (UnitingCare) (Victoria, Australia)
Report from the Australian Journal of Music Therapy, v16, 2005 by Janeen Mackenzie (Royal Children's Hospital, Melbourne) and Karen Hamlett (Cavalry Health Care Bethlehem). Music Together is a community-based music therapy program for “well” families with pre-school aged children. The program reflects a developing perspective that music therapy can be a preventative intervention. Music Together is available to all families within the community, not just those with a diagnosis, disability, or identified as being “at risk”.

MusicLeader (UK)
A support service dedicated to the professional development of UK music leaders. Ran the conference Sing for Health in February 2007.

The Natural Voice Practitioners Network (UK)
As quoted on the website, “An organisation for practitioners who share a common philosophy and approach to voice work. We believe that singing is everyone's birthright and we are committed to teaching styles that are accepting and inclusive of all, regardless of musical experience and ability.”

New Horizons International Music Association (USA)
Provides entry points to music making for adults, including those with no musical experience at all and also those who were active in school music programs but have been inactive for a long period.

Nordoff-Robbins (UK)
As quoted on the website: “The deadline for applications for the new Manchester-based MA in Music Therapy (Community Music Therapy / Nordoff-Robbins) is now 20th December 2007 (for February interviews). The course will be hosted by the Royal Northern College of Music, beginning in September 2008. Please note that this is a one-off opportunity to undertake this training in Manchester as there will NOT be a yearly intake for the programme. A second round of interviews may take place in April, but only if places are unfilled. Bursaries are newly available.”

Orff Schulwerk Association (Victorian branch)
Fosters a holistic approach to music education, integrating singing, speech, movement, folk dance, tuned and non-tuned percussion instruments to develop creative music making. It can be applied to all educational levels and community music. From the earliest stages, singing, nursery rhymes, speech and movement are combined with sound or body percussion (clapping, stamping, finger-clicking, etc.). These practical activities lay the foundations for broad musical development which transfers easily to the range of 'ORFF' instruments, from simple non-tuned percussion (eg. tambourines) to xylophones, glockenspiels and recorders. It was Carl Orff who originally adapted tuned and un-tuned percussion instruments for use by children. Now, these instruments are part of virtually every school music programme.

Nick Page (USA)
As quoted on the website, “Believing that there should be no separation between the talented and the untalented, Nick Page makes his living as a song leader. He works with children who have an inborn love of singing and he works with adults, many of whom have lost their love of singing a long time ago. Nick renews the love. He also works with educators, both classroom teachers and music specialists. The main themes in his teacher workshops surround the perspectives of multi-cultural and multi-sensory learning, particularly with the aid of singing.

Pass It Around (USA)
”Helping to Heal the World Through Music”. California-based non-profit agency established in 1998. “Uses group-singing to support people who are elderly, chronically or terminally ill, suffering from chronic depression or anxiety, recovering from substance abuse, imprisoned, physically disabled or economically disadvantaged. We provide these folks the opportunity to sing together.”

Annie Patterson & Peter Blood (USA)
Compilers of “Rise Up Singing: The Group Singing Songbook” and constant group singing leaders.

Recreational Music Making (USA)
A loose movement supported by NAMM and the American Music Conference that encompasses enjoyable, accessible and fulfilling music-based activities which unite people of all ages regardless of their challenges, backgrounds, ethnicity, ability or prior experience. RMM is distinct from "regular" music making as its purpose is the enjoyment and wellbeing of the participant and the group, not an artistic or aesthetic outcome. Of particular importance is the fact that participation does not require talent or training. Exemplary performance is not the motive - fun and relaxation are the key drivers.

Rhythmweb (USA)
As quoted on the website, “Musician, spread the vision, that music and dance are BIG MEDICINE for the people of 21st century Planet Earth. Use it right! We thank all our Teachers, and all the PEOPLE, too many to name, from whatever country or walk of life, who have helped us learn the ins and outs of drumming. May we prove to have been worthy of your time.”

Shivon Robinsong (CANADA)
As quoted on the website, “Building community though vocal harmony Anyone Can Sing! And singing together in harmony is a vital source of energy and connection, accessible to everyone. Singing is about listening, making friends with the sound of your own unique voice, and finding your place in a vocal community. Discover how singing together enhances any kind of gathering, whether for business, self-exploration, or just plain fun! Shivon has yet to meet someone who can't sing. She has a unique ability to help individuals and groups discover the power of their singing voice. Through workshops, keynote speaking, and conference facilitation Shivon provides tools for building harmony and better communication. Shivon also co-directs the Gettin' Higher Choir (with Denis Donnelly), a three-hundred voice no-audition choir which she founded in Victoria, B.C., Canada, in 1996. Her work with the choir is featured in the television documentary, Sing!: healing community, celebration.”

Chris Rowbury (UK)
Freelance singing leader who writes a prolific and always interesting blog.

Sacred Harp (USA)
As quoted on the website, “A uniquely American tradition that brings communities together to sing four-part hymns and anthems. It is a proudly inclusive and democratic part of our shared cultural heritage. Participants are not concerned with re-creating or re-enacting historical events. Our tradition is a living, breathing, ongoing practice passed directly to us by generations of singers, many gone on before and many still living. All events welcome beginners and newcomers, with no musical experience or religious affiliation required - in fact, the tradition was born from colonial "singing schools" whose purpose was to teach beginners to sing and our methods continue to reflect this goal. Though Sacred Harp is not affiliated with any denomination, it is a deeply spiritual experience for all involved, and functions as a religious observance for many singers. Sacred Harp "singings" are not performances. There are no rehearsals and no separate seats for an audience. Every singing is a unique and self-sufficient event with a different group of assembled participants. The singers sit in a hollow square formation with one voice part on each side, all facing inwards so we can see and hear each other. However, visitors are always welcome to sit anywhere in the room and participate as listeners.”
The Wikipedia entry explains shape note ('fasola') music and its relation to the Sacred Harp tradition; David Warren Steel's website incudes MP3 samples and there's a documentary film, Awake My Soul.

Sidney de Haan Centre for Arts and Health (UK)
Primary aim is to promote the value of music and the arts for the wellbeing and health of individuals and communities.

Sing Australia (AUSTRALIA)
Sing Australia community choirs do not require people to audition or to attend regularly. They are choirs which offer the opportunity to learn songs as much as they do the typical choir repertoire that requires part singing. The concept also accepts that not everyone can read music, not everyone can sing in tune, and not everyone has yet made contact with their singing voice. However, by being accepting of everyone as individuals, who are all equal in their desire to sing, the concept has proven that most people acquire singing skills at least to a level where they can enjoy themselves immensely in a choral environment, or simply for their own enjoyment at home. High among the organisation's priorities has been the encouragement of people to sing using a unique style of teaching for large groups.

Sing for Your Life (UK)
In partnership with Making Music and the Sidney De Haan Research Centre for Arts and Health, this organisation has developed a highly successful model to deliver programmes of participatory music for older people who may be lonely or suffering from age-related health problems.

Sing & Grow (Queensland, Australia)
An early intervention music therapy program working with families with children aged 3 years and under which provides age-appropriate stimulation and encourages play-based learning. The program uses music to encourage increased interaction between the parent and child in an enjoyable way. The benefits are that children are involved in developmentally stimulating activities while parents have an increased understanding of the importance of their active participation in helping with their child's development. The program, which was established in 2001, is being offered through playgroups and will consist of weekly one-hour music therapy sessions over a 10-week period. As at June 30, 2008, at least 2,200 children across Australia will have benefitted from the program.

Sing Online (AUSTRALIA)
The ABC's song listing, taken from its annual singalong books for primary schools. The list covers 30 years of publication and includes over 1,500 songs.

Sing the Nation (UK)
The next stage of Sing London, a non-profit organisation set up in 2006 whose purpose is to use collective singing to connect people to each other and to the spaces around them. In 2007 they delivered Sing London - over 120 collective singing events held across London. All kinds of singing were offered, including spirituals at the British Museum, opera with the Royal Opera House and R&B with Omar at the Jazz Café. There were singing supermarkets, singing shopping centres and you could even catch a singing bus down Oxford Street! Now they’ve moved-on to deliver Sing the Nation in August 2008. Other projects in store involve Singing Flashmobs in partnership with the Royal Albert Hall, Singing Histories with libraries and Complaining in Harmony (a teen complaints choir).

Sing Up (UK)
Launched in November, 2007, this is the Music Manifesto's National Singing Programme. As quoted on the website, “It's a programme to make sure that singing is at the heart of every primary school child's life. We believe that singing has power to change lives and help to build stronger communities.”

Singing Communities (UK)
A project involving young people, run between 2003 and 2005 by ContinYou and YouthMusic.

Singing for Fun (USA)
As quoted on the website, “For adults who think they can't carry a tune in a bucket or anyone who wants to have fun singing in an ensemble. These workshops and classes focus on the enjoyment of singing while also working with the basics of breath, muscle control, tone production, and vocal technique. Repertoire includes rounds and songs from around the world. Music reading is not a pre-requisite. Even self professed 'non-singers' find themselves at the end of the first hour singing in glorious 3-7 part harmony.”

Singing in the Round (UK)
From Candy Verney's website: Singing in the Round choirs are different to other more formal choirs. There are no auditions and in a relaxed and informal atmosphere Candy encourages us to let go of inhibitions and learn to really feel the music. Singing a cappella (with no accompaniment) and with no written musical notes allows us to absorb the music through our ears and our whole body.

el Sistema (VENEZUELA)
Over the last 32 years, 'el Sistema' (shorthand for the Fundacion del Estado para el Sistema Nacional de las Orquestas Juveniles e Infantiles de Venezuela), led by Jose Antonio Abreu, has trained over 400,000 kids in orchestral music-making (see Guardian, 24/11/06 and The Times, 13/8/07). Now funded by Venezuela's Department for Social Development and Popular Participation (NOT its Department of Culture), it reached 250,000 kids in 2006. In September 2007, President Chavez announced massive community-based music support through 'Mision Musica'; this will continue and expand el Sistema by supporting each of the thousands of newly formed communal councils (the engine of Venezuela's socialist revolution) to set up a music centre.

SmoothStream Band (NZ)
Established in 2005 “to promote mental well-being and quality of life of migrants in New Zealand through arts participation especially music to help them increase control over their own mental well-being.”

The Song Room (Victoria, Australia)
Not-for-profit organisation dedicated to providing music and arts programs in Australian schools and communities. So far, The Song Room has provided the gift of music and performing arts to over 50,000 students, and continues to develop innovative new programs to suit a wide variety of communities.

Sound Circles (Queensland, Australia)
The 'Sound Circles' developed by Access Arts are “not quite choir, not quite performance, but a meeting of hearts, minds, bodies and voices'. They are “an exciting new model of individual expression in a group context. Based on the simple idea of combining sound, percussion and body movement; all participants contribute freely, producing some amazing results”. They combine “freeform arts workshops, Indigenous storytelling and strong community participation. Each Sound Circle is a unique event, engaging people of all ages and abilities in an experience of self expression.”

Sound It Out (UK)
Employs professional musicians with skills in all sorts of music - drummers, singers, bass players, songwriters, composers, classical musicians, keyboard players, guitarists, tabla players, music technicians and many more. The organisation works with people with any level of musical experience (or none at all) to create and perform music throughout Birmingham and beyond.

Sound Sense (UK)
Developmental agency for community music which supports organisations and individuals who help people make music in their communities through leading music workshops and teaching.

Soundhouse (Plymouth, UK)
As quoted on the website, “A unique centre for community music making, music education and training.”

Tipping the Scales: Fostering a healthy adolescence through musical participation (Victoria, Australia)
Research project headed by Katrina McFerran, (Faculty of Music, University of Melbourne) funded by the ARC(ref:DP0666735; $73k, 2006-2008). Previous research suggests that active participation in structured leisure activities, such as music, can help teenagers to cope with adverse experiences. In contrast, lack of connection with peers through such activities can hinder the ability to cope. This is particularly relevant when considering bereaved adolescents because the un-successful management of a significant loss can trigger mental illness in the worst of circumstances. This project evaluates the benefits of a structured music therapy group intervention to foster resilience and enhance self worth. Innovative strategies of musical data analysis will be used to supplement traditional measurements, providing multiple perspectives on the relationship between creativity and resilience.

Ubuntu Choir Network (Canada, USA, South Africa)
As quoted on the website, “A registered non-profit society in British Columbia, Canada. The purposes of the society are: To foster the practice of people singing together as an essential tool for connecting to each other, and for building community locally, regionally and globally; To encourage and facilitate these choirs to support charitable work, both locally and globally.” The Founding Directors are Denis Donnelly, Gloria Hansen, Blaise Salmon, Ann Mortifee and Shivon Robinsong

University of Edinburgh (UK)
MSc / Dipl in Music in the Community “Designed as a programme in advanced practical skills, personal creative development, applied research and assessment methodologies, and understanding current scientific and theoretical frameworks for human musicality.”

University of York (UK)
Offers an MA in community music.

Village Music Circles (USA)
As quoted on the website, “A Village Music Circle is a group of people having fun creating simple parts on a chorus of tuned drums, percussion and musical instruments. The simple act of playing music together profoundly teaches the skills inherent in becoming a strong and thriving community. Utilizing the motivational techniques and rhythm facilitation skills developed by Arthur Hull, Village Music Circles infuses events with vitality, spirit and purpose.”

Village Square (CANADA)
Unique celebration of Community Singing Traditions from around the world, including Shapenote (Sacred Harp), Shaker tunes, South African choruses, Balkan and Georgian styles, Favourites, Old and New. "We gather to sing together, for pleasure... without the anxieties of public performance," explains Alan Gasser, one of the project's leaders. Public performances are not the objective of this new Toronto-based gathering, which is open to anyone who likes to sing. The group meets to sing with and for each other, and warmly welcomes new singers.

Vocal Force (UK)
The singing training component of the Sing Up initiative. Offered and developed by Sage Gateshead, Vocal Force is an expansion of their Vocal Union programme which “aims to investigate and develop approaches to singing in schools, for children, teachers and the school community and to support and establish whole school singing as an integral element of school culture.”

The Voices Foundation (UK)
Mission: “To enable all children to realise their full potential through a singing-based music curriculum, and to influence national perception of the vital importance of music in education.”

Doug von Koss (USA)
As quoted on the website, “Artistic Director of the Noah Project, a men's ritual performance group in the San Francisco Bay Area. Through a magical blend of chant, movement, poetry and ritual, Doug weaves a spell that encompasses the estatic, the sacred and the wise fool.” See YouTube for an example of his work.

Youth Music (UK)
”Works alongside the formal and community-based sectors to support music-making and training.”

CMV - making a sound world together.