Speakers: Louise Henry (Independent Venue Community), Matthew Ward (Musician/Broadcaster), Lynne Maltmann (Music Support), Becci Scotcher (PRS Foundation) & Robbie Tolson (Turn the Tables).
Our panel discusses the various barriers and obstacles which face musicians and industry professionals. The music industry should and can be accessible for all. In this session we hear from artists, industry professionals and support organisations who are committed to breaking down barriers no matter what form they take; access to equipment, investment, mental health & wellbeing support, career planning, networking or anything else.
Louise Henry (Independent Venue Community)
Louise manages Independent Venue Community, the charitable arm of Independent Venue Week, working to support venues across the UK to engage with their local communities through a programme of daytime activity.
Prior to IVC, Lou’s worked as a Senior Grant Manager at Youth Music, overseeing their Incubator Fund, managed music education programmes at Generator and also offers freelance bid writing and consultation for small creative organisations. She’s a proud Geordie and is passionate about giving people a leg up in the music industry, especially those who’d otherwise miss out.
On top of that, she’s a yoga teacher too, helping people to wind down and chill out at studios, venues and music festivals across the country.
Matthew Ward (Musician/Broadcaster)
Mathew Ward is a blind musician and music tutor at Sense Scotland. He has a wide range of experiences, working in the music industry; from volunteering as a DJ and presenter at Sunny Govan community radio to employment with Sensatronic Lab from 2015 -2022.
From early childhood Mathew has developed a strong passion for any form of music which features an ambient quality or melodic overtone. This has led to a love for electronic dance music, the experimental approach of the BBC Radio-Phonic workshop and obscure library music from the 1970’s. As a music composer, Mathew is a passionate advocate for inclusive music and accessible technology with an interest in promoting music software that can be tailored for people who are visually impaired.
Robbie Tolson (Turn The Tables)
From DJ to award winning social entrepreneur. Robbie Tolson is an Edinburgh based DJ who founded Turn The Tables in 2020. Inspired by The Homeless World Cup and Street Soccer Scotland’s ability to use football to transform lives, Robbie believed there should be a DJ based organisation that could use the power of music to help people, with DJing being the perfect instrument for vulnerable people to participate in music. With the vision to offer both therapeutic DJ workshops as well as offering life changing experiences to perform live at events for people who are experiencing homelessness, social deprivation and mental Ill health. The idea began in 2018 when volunteering for a residential homelessness community and has grown into an award winning social enterprise that was named The National Lottery’s Scotland Project of the Year in 2021 for their Creative Scotland Funded project - The Homelessness DJ Project. Project participants have gone on to DJ with Red Bull, Johnnie Walker, Diageo, Riverside Music Festival, Hidden Door Festival and many more major events. Turn The Tables now works within homelessness, mental health and youth work services alongside partners NHS Lothian, Action For Children, Spartan’s Community Football Club, Street Soccer Scotland and many more.
Becci Scotcher (PRS Foundation)
Becci is the Senior Grants and Programmes Manager at PRS Foundation leading the planning, management and evaluation of all grants and programme activities, including the Women Make Music, PPL Momentum Fund and International Showcase Fund. With over 20 years’ music and arts industry experience in project management, international development, communications & events, she was a core member of the WOMEX 13 delivery partners; Cerdd Cymru : Music Wales team, and has consulted for clients such as JAAK, AmericanaFest UK, Help Musicians UK, Welsh Government, and Arts Council of Wales. She previously held roles at Roadrunner Records, Welsh Music Foundation, and Wales Arts International.
Lynne Maltman (Music Support)
Lynne spent 20 years working in music events from travelling the world as part of the Comms team at MTV to major festivals across the UK, creating award-winning brand experiences. Following her own version of burnout, she left the face-paced agency world to pursue a dream of working within the charity sector. She worked for Children with Cancer UK for two years before joining Music Support in 2020. Alongside this, Lynne accidentally quit drinking in July 2018 as a result of a 90-day alcohol-free challenge that turned her life around. She is proud to bring her experience of the highs and lows of working within the industry to Music Support, an essential charity that helps peers who work in music and live events affected by mental ill-health and/or addiction.