Music in Society - Nurturing the entrepreneurial mindset in Higher Music Education AEC - European Association of Conservatoires

The COVID-19 crisis has hit the culture sector very hard. Concert halls, venues, festivals were the first to close and the last to reopen, with a part still not operating at all. Despite strict confinement to temper the pandemic, music didn’t stop, including live music! There is a need for a new approach to career-related education in conservatories. Knowledge, skills and mind-set is important for all not only to cope with change but to see change as opportunity.

In the framework of the project Strengthening Music in Society (SMS), the Working Group on Entrepreneurial mind-set for musicians is currently developing a set of podcasts addressing relevant topics on this subject.

In this fifth episode, titled Decolonising canon, you will listen to Nathan Holder and Viola Cheung.

All podcasts are designed and prepared by the members of the WG and recorded and led by Olaf Bruns. The musical introduction and closing was composed by Camilla Overgaard and the voice was Vourneen Ryan (WG 3 members). Other episodes of this series of podcasts are available here.

Olaf Bruns is a Brussels-based journalist. A former Deputy Head of the Brussels office of the international TV news broadcaster Euronews, he now works as a freelancer. Amongst others, he writes for the European Green Journal and is the deputy editor-in-chief of the quarterly magazine Progressive Post. He provides Media Training via Crown Media and teaches journalism at the Brussels-based media school IHECS. He holds a master’s degree in Social Anthropology from Paris XIII University with several years of social science research work in various African countries.

The COVID-19 crisis has hit the culture sector very hard. Concert halls, venues, festivals were the first to close and the last to reopen, with a part still not operating at all. Despite strict confinement to temper the pandemic, music didn’t stop, including live music! There is a need for a new approach to career-related education in conservatories. Knowledge, skills and mind-set is important for all not only to cope with change but to see change as opportunity.

In the framework of the project Strengthening Music in Society (SMS), the Working Group on Entrepreneurial mind-set for musicians is currently developing a set of podcasts addressing relevant topics on this subject.

In this podcast we explore what it means to have agency in learning and how it can be fostered. Our starting point is the idea of the student as a researching artist who shapes her own education and takes responsibility for her own learning. What role does having an entrepreneurial mindset play in this context? Could embedding entrepreneurship in the main instrument teaching foster agency? What makes you feel ownership towards your education? What does it mean to be responsible for your own learning? In this episode you will listen to Lia Pale and Berginald Rash.

All podcasts are designed and prepared by the members of the WG and recorded and led by Olaf Bruns. The musical introduction and closing was composed by Camilla Overgaard and the voice was Vourneen Ryan (WG 3 members).
Other episodes of this series of podcasts are available here.

Olaf Bruns is a Brussels-based journalist. A former Deputy Head of the Brussels office of the international TV news broadcaster Euronews, he now works as a freelancer. Amongst others, he writes for the European Green Journal and is the deputy editor-in-chief of the quarterly magazine Progressive Post. He provides Media Training via Crown Media and teaches journalism at the Brussels-based media school IHECS. He holds a master’s degree in Social Anthropology from Paris XIII University with several years of social science research work in various African countries.

The COVID-19 crisis has hit the culture sector very hard. Concert halls, venues, festivals were the first to close and the last to reopen, with a part still not operating at all. Despite strict confinement to temper the pandemic, music didn’t stop, including live music! There is a need for a new approach to career-related education in conservatories. Knowledge, skills and mind-set is important for all not only to cope with change but to see change as opportunity.

In the framework of the project Strengthening Music in Society (SMS), the Working Group on Entrepreneurial mind-set for musicians is currently developing a set of podcasts addressing relevant topics on this subject.

In the second episode, titled Let’s talk about #Mindset : a psychological perspective, you will listen to Gerry Fitzpatrick (coach, educator and sports psychologist) and Vourneen Ryan (member of the Working Group on Entrepreneurial mind-set for musicians). Gerry will introduce us to the fundamentals of mindset and show us how crucial it is for performers (in sports and the arts) to be self compassionate, self aware and mindful of their mentality in relation to  performing, work, life and sports. This is an episode not to be missed if you are fascinated with the human condition and how we can achieve our full potential in our careers as performing artists and creative entrepreneurs.

All podcasts are designed and prepared by the members of the WG and recorded and led by Olaf Bruns. The musical introduction and closing was composed by Camilla Overgaard and the voice was Vourneen Ryan (WG 3 members).
Other episodes of this series of podcasts are available here.

Olaf Bruns is a Brussels-based journalist. A former Deputy Head of the Brussels office of the international TV news broadcaster Euronews, he now works as a freelancer. Amongst others, he writes for the European Green Journal and is the deputy editor-in-chief of the quarterly magazine Progressive Post. He provides Media Training via Crown Media and teaches journalism at the Brussels-based media school IHECS. He holds a master’s degree in Social Anthropology from Paris XIII University with several years of social science research work in various African countries.

The COVID-19 crisis has hit the culture sector very hard. Concert halls, venues, festivals were the first to close and the last to reopen, with a part still not operating at all. Despite strict confinement to temper the pandemic, music didn’t stop, including live music! There is a need for a new approach to career-related education in conservatories. Knowledge, skills and mind-set is important for all not only to cope with change but to see change as opportunity.

In the framework of the project Strengthening Music in Society (SMS), the Working Group on Entrepreneurial mind-set for musicians is currently developing a set of podcasts addressing relevant topics on this subject.

In the first episode, titled The entrepreneurial mindset in time of uncertainty, you will listen to Libby Percival and Canberk Duman who used their creativity, imagination and entrepreneurial mindset to explore new business models, to build new communities, to take their social responsibility, to create new artistic work, and so much more.

All podcasts are designed and prepared by the members of the WG and recorded and led by Olaf Bruns. The musical introduction and closing was composed by Camilla Overgaard and the voice was Vourneen Ryan (WG 3 members).
Other episodes of this series of podcasts are available here.



Olaf Bruns is a Brussels-based journalist. A former Deputy Head of the Brussels office of the international TV news broadcaster Euronews, he now works as a freelancer. Amongst others, he writes for the European Green Journal and is the deputy editor-in-chief of the quarterly magazine Progressive Post. He provides Media Training via Crown Media and teaches journalism at the Brussels-based media school IHECS. He holds a master’s degree in Social Anthropology from Paris XIII University with several years of social science research work in various African countries.

The COVID-19 crisis has hit the culture sector very hard. Concert halls, venues, festivals were the first to close and the last to reopen, with a part still not operating at all. Despite strict confinement to temper the pandemic, music didn’t stop, including live music! There is a need for a new approach to career-related education in conservatories. Knowledge, skills and mind-set is important for all not only to cope with change but to see change as opportunity.

In the framework of the project Strengthening Music in Society (SMS), the Working Group on Entrepreneurial mind-set for musicians is currently developing a set of podcasts addressing relevant topics on this subject.

In the third episode, titled Institutional change – in relation to teaching entrepreneurship, you will listen to Martin Prchal (Vice Principal Royal Conservatoire The Hague) and Roxanna Albayati (a cellist and co-researcher at Trinity Laban).

All podcasts are designed and prepared by the members of the WG and recorded and led by Olaf Bruns. The musical introduction and closing was composed by Camilla Overgaard and the voice was Vourneen Ryan (WG 3 members).
Other episodes of this series of podcasts are available here.

Olaf Bruns is a Brussels-based journalist. A former Deputy Head of the Brussels office of the international TV news broadcaster Euronews, he now works as a freelancer. Amongst others, he writes for the European Green Journal and is the deputy editor-in-chief of the quarterly magazine Progressive Post. He provides Media Training via Crown Media and teaches journalism at the Brussels-based media school IHECS. He holds a master’s degree in Social Anthropology from Paris XIII University with several years of social science research work in various African countries.