Dr Kadiatu Kanneh-Mason has been announced as Music Mark’s first Champion – a voluntary advocacy-based position renamed from the previous title of ‘patron’.
Dr Kanneh-Mason will be joined by a number of other appointed Champions over the course of the year, in the lead up to Music Mark’s 10th birthday in February 2023.
Mother of seven talented young musicians and winner of the Action for Children’s Arts JM Barrie Award, Dr Kanneh-Mason has appeared previously in a keynote presentation at Music Mark’s digital annual conference in 2020.
Speaking to MT, Dr Kanneh-Mason said: 'I’m delighted to join Music Mark as a Champion. Having given the Keynote speech at the Music Mark conference in 2020, I was well aware of the important role Music Mark has in promoting music education, and in celebrating the value of music in children’s lives, particularly at such a critical time.
'Music was (and is) at the centre of how we brought up our seven children and we were brilliantly supported by their schools in Nottingham, for which we are very grateful. It is vital to me to continue being a torch-bearer for excellence in music education and access for all.'
Music Mark’s CEO, Bridget Whyte, said: ‘We are thrilled that Dr Kanneh-Mason, who is such an inspiration in her role as a parent of young musicians, has agreed to join us as a Music Mark Champion, helping us to advocate for a high quality, diverse and inclusive music education for all children and young people.’
‘Her experiences will help us to further amplify our Get Playing campaign which supports music services and others working to provide musical learning and articulate the benefits of study.’
The title of the role was changed by Music Mark this year to reflect the current ethos of the organisation. The word ‘champion’ was chosen to reflect the passion that the appointed individuals have within music education, and steer away from the connections with royalty that ‘patron’ has.
Find out more on Music Mark's latest blog post: www.musicmark.org.uk/news/bridgets-blog-meet-music-marks-newest-champion/
