MT: Before setting up the charity, you were Head of UK Power for Spectron Energy, a City broking firm. How did this role prepare you for a career in music education?
PM: It taught me to maintain flexibility in my approach to any problem, and to consider the problem from all angles before deciding how best to address it. I engaged with a range of people from differing backgrounds, industries and abilities, through which I learned to genuinely respect the value of every individual – as much for their differences as the qualities we held in common. Ultimately, it taught me the value of building authentic relationships that require effort and investment but through which we gain the support and confidence to challenge the status quo.
MT: What inspired you to start Restore The Music?
PM: In short, the realisation that the musical education and opportunities that I had grown up with were no longer the norm for the majority of kids at school. I remember the first time I walked into a music department and realised that it contained no instruments at all. I could not believe that the teacher was being expected to convey the magic and brilliance of music without having the resources to do so. I was convinced that many others would feel the same and felt confident of my ability to build a funding programme that would address the problem.
The name of the charity came from wanting to restore music to its rightful place – at the heart of every single school and child. It's about restoring music to the heart of life, encapsulated in three simple words.
MT: RTM was initially London focused, then expanded to take in Newcastle, Manchester and Birmingham. How did you select these cities? Are there plans to add more?
PM: In an ideal world, we would be in every city! During our initial expansion we chose to focus on areas in the north of England suffering from acute deprivation. We also chose three cities with a legacy of music creation and cultural heritage, as well as for their music conservatoires, performance spaces and higher education institutions. This was key to helping us identify and deliver partner opportunities to our grantees, involving outreach programmes and further learning pathways.
Our ambition is to expand across the UK, but we only move into a new city once new fundraising streams have been identified, to help support our grant programme in that area. It would be a waste of everyone's energies were we to expand into a new region only to pull out shortly after, due to a lack of funding.
MT: In music education we often talk of ‘pathways’, whether into higher education, teaching or the music industry. You’ve written about wanting to build ‘just and accessible’ pathways. Can you give a flavour of RTM’s support?
PM: A literal demonstration of this is inviting students to a Steinway masterclass, or facilitating outreach opportunities with centres of musical excellence, for example. A less obvious example is giving a head of music the freedom to choose which resources will be of most interest to their demographic and therefore most likely to draw in students. Engaging students within the music department means introducing them to a new language, offering a completely different way to communicate and express themselves. This in turn develops their feelings of confidence, self-belief, identity and ambition. Quite simply, by the act of accessing music they are unlocking their potential. This should be an opportunity presented to every child when they are in school.
MT: RTM's funding programme grew from £0 to £1m in less than five years. What do you put this success down to?
PM: From the outset, taking time to understand the problem we wanted to address and the best way of achieving this was key. We did not want to waste money building resources that already existed (i.e. schools and teachers) or reinventing existing programs. Nor did we want to impose our own views on what music education should look like. We just wanted to ensure that music departments actually contained the resources needed to make music.
This focus, and understanding what our goal should look like, helped us to shape a high-impact, low-overhead organisation offering grassroots funding with an almost immediate donor-to-delivery pathway. Efficiency in how we ran things also allowed for fast growth and, with it, the amplification of our profile and reputation.
DJ Schak at Walker Riverside Academy (Newcastle), which received £20K in the latest funding round. Credit: BDMedia
MT: You've successfully enlisted supporters as diverse as Sony Music, Fishmongers’ Livery Company, Blavatnik Foundation and singer-songwriter Sam Fender. Last month MT covered the story of Manchester City player Nathan Aké working with RTM and Casio. How have you achieved this?
PM: It's true that we do have a very diverse range of supporters and partners, and that in itself reflects our mission statement of embracing all music for all young people. We are not tied solely to classical, rock, pop or jazz, nor to one type of instrument. Music obviously comes in all forms and our aim is to enable the introduction of as many of these as possible – according to the interests and preferences of a school's specific demographic. As a result, we attract people from all walks of life who have found their own pathway through music and see the value in enabling the same for the next generation.
MT: Do sponsors specify a time-frame for their involvement?
PM: Generally, a potential sponsor becomes committed as soon as they see for themselves the dynamic impact of learning music. Our priority is always to showcase the students and let them sell the vision. Beyond this, the time-frame varies, but our preference is always for longer-term involvement so that both parties have an opportunity to build a relationship, and to understand how best we can support and assist each other.
MT: RTM's latest funding round, which awarded £180,000 in grants to 11 state schools, included Birmingham's Ark Kings Academy. Will you be making special effort to support areas worst affected by the cost-of-living crisis and cuts by city councils?
PM: The very nature of the eligibility criteria and selection process for a funding award means that schools who are in areas worst affected are the schools that are applying to us, or are grant recipients already. The eligibility criteria depends on a number of factors, but the key one is the percentage of children on free school meals.
MT: What do you see RTM's priorities being over the next five years?
PM: Continuing to champion the need to fund music education, the need to prioritise music within the curriculum and the environment of the school as a whole. Also, identifying new partnerships to fund our growth into areas where we're most needed. And to establish RTM as the leading social impact funding vehicle for young people within music education.
MT: Can you give a flavour of the range of events organised by RTM, including upcoming ones?
PM: We hold fundraising events such as the annual Gala Dinner in May and the Steinway Christmas Cocktail in December – both of which act as a showcase for grantee schools. Then we have grantee-focussed events such as the Steinway Masterclass in April and Battle of the Bands in July. We also hold a special Celebration Dinner for all the heads of music in October, because without them Restore The Music could not exist. They are the magic ingredient which transforms our funding into potential lifelines for over 100,000 young people across the UK, and we could not be more grateful to them.
All information about the RTM Grant Programme, including the eligibility criteria, application process and details of upcoming funding rounds, can be found at restorethemusicuk.com/grants
