University News Last updated 06 December 2022
Research Assistant and member of Birmingham City University’s Birmingham Music Education Research Group Chamari Wedamulla recently took part in the Women’s Musical Leadership Online Network.
This Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC)-funded research network explores women’s musical leadership across the contemporary music industries and within music education.
The online event was hosted by the Open University on Friday 2 December, where the researcher was invited to join a panel of four experts who are leading Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) within music education.
The panel discussed ‘Women Musical Leaders within Music Education’ and alongside Chamari were music campaigner Jessy McCabe, educator and musician Brenda Rattray, and Music Therapist Davina Vencatasamy.
Chamari’s current research areas include studying the intersectionalities of music education and music therapy, and the ways in which current musical pedagogies and music therapy practices can be integrated to provide health-oriented benefits in educational contexts.
Chamari said: “It was great to be a part of this panel put together by the Women’s Musical Leadership Online Network. Musical leadership remains one of the most male-dominated musical areas. To have these active and stimulating discussions about EDI initiatives through the lens of women’s leadership, with other presenters from the fields of music education, HE music and music therapy was really inspiring.”