Are you a musician or music industry worker in the UK?
Do you hire or promote people in the music industry?
We want to hear from you!
The Baluji Music Foundation wants to know what can be done to increase the numbers of blind and partially sighted people working in the music industry in London and across the UK.
As a charity that has been working to support blind and partially sighted musicians over the last 15 years and founded the only orchestra of professional blind musicians in the world - the Inner Vision Orchestra - we have the opportunity to make a big difference.
Add your voice to our survey and let’s increase opportunities for blind and visually impaired people in music.
The survey is being carried out by Dr Claire Castle, Baluji Music Foundation Research Fellow and Senior Scientist (Social & Welfare) BRAVO VICTO, who has a PhD in music and visual impairment and Dr David Baker - Associate Professor at the University of London Institute of Education. Dr Baker was the Principal Investigator for UCL Project "Visually-impaired musicians' lives” and is on the board of the Baluji Music Foundation. The project is funded by UK charity, the Vision Foundation.
Our easy to complete survey will be open from 20th February to 3rd April and can be completed online at https://www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/blindtothefacts/ , over the phone or as a word copy. Please contact Dr Claire Castle at blindtothefacts@bravovictor.org or on +44 (0) 7710859149 for more information. Data will always be made confidential, and participants will not be identifiable by name. Participants can request a copy of any report or publication produced during this project by contacting the lead researcher.
The results from the study will be written up in a report for the Baluji Music Foundation. Findings will also be written up in an academic article for publication in a peer reviewed journal and may be presented at research conferences.
If you’d like to talk to the Baluji Music Foundation about our work supporting blind and partially sighted musicians, please visit https://www.balujimusicfoundation.org/, email baluji@baluji.com or call 020 7226 2094. We would love to hear from you!
About the Baluji Music Foundation:
Founded 15 years ago by blind Indian multi-instrumentalist and composer Baluji Shrivastav OBE and Linda Shanson, the Baluji Music Foundation is an arts charity programming and promoting events featuring blind and partially sighted musicians and advancing access to musical and artistic experiences for blind and partially sighted people. Its showcase project is the Inner Vision Orchestra of professional blind musicians which performs nationally and internationally and has released music on Arc/Naxos. www.balujimusicfoundation.org. Registered charity number 1130985
About The Vision Foundation:
Formerly the Greater London Fund for the Blind (GLFB), the Vision Foundation has distributed more than £30m to sight loss organisations across London. They have sustained essential grassroots activities working at the heart of their communities, and been the first to support innovative new projects boosting the quality of life of the visually impaired community. Find out more at visionfoundation.org.uk. Registered charity number 1074958
About BRAVO VICTOR:
A research organization existing to inspire, facilitate and focus the world’s best research scientists to improve the lives of veterans and people living with visual impairment https://www.bravovictor.org/. Registered charity number 1195189