An exciting campaign to champion the importance of music education for everyone was launched on 30 January at the 2025 Music & Drama Education Awards.
Growing Musicians, Shaping Lives, to be run jointly by Music Teacher (MT) and Gramophone, was announced by MT editor Phil Croydon as part of an evening celebrating outstanding contributions to the UK’s performing arts education sector.
The campaign is prompted by recent reports that the number of students taking arts subjects at GCSE has reached a 15-year low, while uptake of A Level arts subjects has fallen by 31% since 2010. Concern at these figures has been voiced by commentators from both the classical music and music education sectors; winners at the 2024 Gramophone Awards, including violinist Hilary Hahn and Gabrieli Consort artistic director Paul McCreesh, used their acceptance speeches to advocate for music education.
Gramophone’s Artist of the Year, soprano Carolyn Sampson, said: ‘I am a product of what was then Bedfordshire County Youth Music … What you see over the years is these services really struggling, and there are some really wonderful people in Bedfordshire trying to keep the threads of these things going, so that other people can grow and become future Artists of the Year.’ She highlighted how Andrew Manze, another recipient of a Gramophone award, was also a product of Bedfordshire County Youth Music.
Through Growing Musicians, Shaping Lives, Music Teacher and Gramophone will share inspiring stories of how music education has transformed lives, shine a spotlight on musical opportunities for children and young people, and urge policy makers and funders to increase support for music education.
Planned content includes a continuation of Music Teacher’s work highlighting the exceptional – and often unrecognised – projects within the sector, giving ideas and support to teachers who go above and beyond, often with limited budgets. Gramophone will regularly include music education in interviews with high profile performers from across the industry.
For stage 1 of the campaign, educators from across England and Wales are invited to share their views of music teaching – including access, participation and support for teachers – in an online survey. The findings will be shared in Music Teacher, inform the campaign, and contribute towards both magazines’ coverage over the coming months.
Deadline for completing the survey: 31 March.
