MusicLeader you were Amazing!

The next best thing to being a doctor …

This week I’ve been wishing I was a Doctor. I could express the reasons why, but maybe for now we won’t go there. Thing is though, like many here I am a creative individual who, thanks to those who’ve empowered me, has the next best thing – the desire and some ability to share a love of music.

The MusicLeader ‘project’ came into being to, first and foremost, improve the standards of music education ‘delivery’. Or to put it another way, to develop and advance further the teaching or ‘leading’ skills of musicians, to the benefit of young learners.

Over the last few years, via UK regional networks, training events have taken place, individuals have been interviewed, assessed and personally advised on career development, organisations have grown stronger with a more professional workforce, and music learning maps have been drawn up, coloured in and allowed to grow.

We as music leaders, and more importantly young people across the UK, have benefited greatly from this initiative, and will continue to do so for quite some time. For some of us, there’s been an incredible career change; for others a range of exciting opportunities via networking events and bespoke courses; many have sought and recieved advice and guidance; and for all who need a spark in the dark, there’s always the Music Education Code Of Practice.

It’s too early to say what lasting legacy will come from this project, especially as we are in the immediate wake of the project’s closure, but in the short term there’s a clicking of mouse in this direction, as we wait to see how many great new Youth Music-led initiatives are allowed to breathe and grow during this current austerity drive.

Maybe now more than ever it’s up to us to work within our own circles, communities and learning environments, and to use the incredible power of the internet more so to share, encourage and develop best practice, and maybe just as importantly, to tell our personal stories.

I can share a little of my own story here and now. My family history has it’s fair share of tragedy and trauma, and having the confidence and skills to work with children in care is a healing process that medication cannot replace. I also this week shared an emotional and incredible musical stage with a friend who is undergoing chemotherapy, and to say that playing, sharing and leading with music is amazing is my proudest statement.

I am not a Doctor, although right now maybe I wish I was, working day and night to find cures for friends and family alike. If, just by twist of fate I was a Doctor though, you can bet I would have music in my life, reminding me of the value of life.

I guess MusicLeader has given me the next best thing; the value of music ... learning, sharing, teaching.

Reference: MusicLeader Music Education Code of Practice An Interview with Darren Poyzer (MusicLeader / Youth Music Network)