The Empowered Musician 3

From metaphors about herds of buffalo and anecdotes about writing music for royalty, to learning about developments in immersive audio and performances involving flowerpots, The Empowered Musician ( TEM) 2023 was incredibly wide-ranging. The thread linking these seemingly disparate topics was outlined by ISM Chief Executive Deborah Annetts in her opening welcome. With advancements in tech, such as the increasing use of artificial intelligence (AI), happening at such speed, it can feel like you’re swimming uphill just to keep up. The ISM, as always, is here to help members to understand the world around them and see where the opportunities and threats lie. We aim to provide practical support to help you look after yourself and build resilience in this fast-paced environment.

More than 100 people attended the event, held at the Royal Over-Seas League in central London. In her last duty as ISM President, Vick Bain compèred the day brilliantly, and it was noticeable how each of our speakers so willingly and openly shared their thoughts, wisdom and insight. There was ample opportunity to hear from membe too.

key takeaways from TEM3 prio pro usic from Kabantu followed after lunch, with new pieces written especially for the occasion – Delia Stevens’s ran the mounting interest in artificial intelligence, 5G and nonfungible tokens (NFTs). Panellists were invited to discuss the innovation and disruption that results from emerging technologies. Composer Robert Laidlow described AI as a creative tool that disrupts his creative process (in a good way), while Charlie Phillips of PTR Strategic predicted that it will increasingly create a divide between active and passive listening, depending on whether music is machine made or composed by people.

The event began with a rousing performance of Steve Reich’s Clapping Music and Nagoya Marimbas performed by two percussionists from the London Sinfonietta, before moving to the first panel which discussed Resilience. Chair Sarah Mohr-Pietsch opened the panel by recalling a conversation with an elder of the Canadian First Nation Blackfoot tribe who described buffalo huddling together when facing a storm. With the strongest at the front, the buffalo walk directly into the bad weather, which they instinctively know will get them out of it more quickly than running away. With analogies presenting the ISM as lead buffalo, the conversation covered everything from the importance of building your own support network, to creating small, sustainable habits to avoid burnout, finding foundations with shifting sands under our feet and managing finances. Particularly useful was insight from Arva Valika, Head of Clinical Operations, CiC, into the hierarchy of debtors and which bills should be ritised; she also highlighted schemes that exist to vide breathing space for debt and bill payments.

In the 5G sphere, Jamie Gosney, Creative Director at Sonosphere, tackled latency and immersive audio, describing how advances are now being made in delivering real-time, authentic experiences for musicians to play together and audiences to listen to performances remotely. This has the potential to be a (partial) solution to the problems Brexit has created for musicians, while also addressing concerns about the climate impact of travelling

During the highly anticipated ‘ in conversation with’ session, Debbie Wiseman OBE spoke to Michael Beek , sharing experiences, insights and anecdotes from her long-established and successful career as an awardwinning composer and conductor. Topics ranged from facing rejection of her work , to the prospect of having her music listened to by millions of people for the King ’s Coronation. Wiseman stressed the importance of resilience, taking risks and embracing new opportunities. Hearing her play the themes from some of her biggest hits, including the theme from Wolf Hall, was a hugely memorable experience.

The day ended on a high, with music from brand-new improvised groove collaboration Chief Frog, led by ISM member Vij Prakash. It was wonderful to see so many musicians gather together for what was a very special day –and remember, the ISM is your lead buffalo, ready to face life’s storms and offer you support and protection in the process.

If you are interested in working with the ISM on the impact artificial intelligence will have on the music sector, please email membership@ism.org

Watch the sessions and access related resources at ism.org/professional-development/theempowered-musician-2023