Diversifying music services – beyond representation

In a recent issue, Music Teacher referenced Changing Tracks in an article about diversifying representation within orchestral music. To find out more about the Changing Tracks approach to diversity, representation and inclusion, we caught up with Hertfordshire Head of Rock, Family and Community Music Michael Davidson, and Workshop Leader and Project Manager Ije Amaechi.

What’s Changing Tracks, and what are it’s aims?

Michael: Changing Tracks works with music services nationally in order to diversify practices, pedagogy and progression routes more widely, in order for services to engage a wider range of young people.

It uses action research as a catalyst for change, and has an overall research question of ‘what are the challenges, enablers, and benefits of music services embedding musical inclusion practice?’

When music services start thinking about musical inclusion, they often begin by working to increase representation of potentially marginalised groups (e.g. Free School Meals Pupils) in an existing offer. This is a great starting position, but we’ve found there’s benefit in a wider approach. For instance, one previous project began by seeking to increase representation in school orchestras, but we found that when we asked them, pupils wanted to progress in different ways.

Read more here.