A warm welcome to this bumper issue of MT marking the start of a new academic year. I trust you enjoyed the summer recess and are returning to classes with vigour and optimism following various announcements, including on pay, HLOs, policy reviews and fresh faces in government. I haven’t even mentioned the improving economy or GB’s impressive medal haul (again) in the cycling. Yes, we’re back in the velodrome but with a few more bikes, fresh Lycra and more supporters sat track-side.
MT this month carries not one but two main themes: ‘back to school’ and ‘musicals’. In some ways, these merge if thinking about curtains rising, first-night jitters and remembering our lines. In a similar vein, we look ahead to Christmas (sorry), but with exciting freebies in the form of scores and audio for school carol concerts.
For the musical theatre theme, Bryan Husband and Ben Costello are on hand to explain glottal onsets, vocal fry and other considerations that went into the new vocal exercises supporting LCME’s Musical Theatre syllabus. Robert Legg considers storylines and texts from historic shows and how to make these palatable for modern audiences. Dan Fisher-Wienesen provides useful technical advice on sound design for school productions. And Northern Ireland’s leading vocal coach and MD, Ashley Fulton, shares thoughts on a few age-old debates in musical theatre.
For the back-to-school theme, Katie Teage considers the untapped potential of singing assemblies. Tolu McCarthy and Dafydd Williams take a moment between classes to discuss the importance of collaboration, addressing the sense of isolation felt by some teachers. Jonathan Savage provides an excellent overview of adaptive and inclusive instruments for schools, in time for new HLO spending. And, for those thinking about career goals, Eiron Bailey has some valuable advice on applying for senior leadership roles and where to start. There’s never been a better time to consider moving to ‘the dark side’, Eiron explains, if you’re a ‘creative’ and have a music teacher’s skill-set.
This bumper issue also carries new research. We learn about child-led learning in early years; about voice change in adolescent girls – ‘Yes, it’s a thing!’ explained Jenna Brown, having covered boys’ changing voices in the June issue; and about Covid-19’s legacy in terms of the curriculum. For the bigger picture, we also learn what recent DfE datasets tell us about secondary school music.
We’re delighted to include, also, BEd student Anya Galloway’s observations on decolonising the SQA music curriculum.
Back at MT HQ, meanwhile, I share sad news that assistant editor Michael Pearce is leaving us, having worked on both magazine and Expo since May 2023. I’d like to record my thanks for his unwavering support and commitment. We’ll miss him for sure, but take comfort knowing he’ll still be writing for the magazine from time to time.
Finally, watch out for the announcement of the exciting Expo 2025 programme in the next few weeks. It’s another big show!
– Phil Croydon, editor
