Mission, Vision, Goals and Values
Mission Statement
We are an independent, international, grassroots research centre fostering communication and collaboration through practical research and pedagogy projects to improve the quality, rigour and prestige of 21st Century music-making. We provide a community, support and opportunities to publish and collaborate on research projects for educators, students and researchers of any musical practice, in any musical style and in any part of the world.
Vision
Our vision is to promote and disseminate the methods and practices of high quality music-making that demonstrate the deep reflection, critical thinking and evaluation skills that it requires and to bring them to the fore in education, research, professional practice and policy-making. While specific instances of musical practice have different cultural, social and economic value associated with them, we believe that all forms and styles of music making are valuable and important. We are part of a wider movement promoting the importance of arts education and are particularly focused on the practical and vocational.
Goals
To achieve this vision we aim to:
- Develop our existing network of educators, researchers and students into an international community of highly engaged and mutually supportive members who work together to share best practice and new ideas.
- Publish new multimedia work and promote existing material that shed light on contemporary music practice in all of its forms
- Share, produce and disseminate resources that support and mentor the development of more rigorous and engaged educators and students as well as new researchers and research practitioners
- Foster critical discussion, practical demonstrations, experiments and collaborative projects that produce new knowledge and understanding about ‘doing music better’ – including what ‘better’ might mean to different individuals in different contexts.
- Engage in networking activities with a wider group of stakeholders – from instrument and gear manufacturers to management companies and venue owners, from school and college educators to education policy makers, and from higher education providers to music professionals.
Values
Equity
- The study of music practices needs to be unhindered by hierarchies and elitism but it also needs to ensure that pedagogy and practice are informed by high quality critical thinking and rigour – albeit forms of critical thinking and rigour that are not imposed upon it by convention rather than evidence.
Inclusion
- Being inclusive requires not only a wider repertoire but also a wider theoretical frame that is appropriate for that broader range of repertoireÂ
Diversity
- We are also aiming to create a space for all in terms of geographies and musical traditions / styles.
- We are reaching out to all levels of music practice research and pedagogy – initially more focused on undergraduate and postgraduate degree level education – around the world to create a community of researchers and to share good pedagogical practice from the most prestigious institutions to the smallest local and private providers.
Independence
- The Virtual Research Centre is deliberately not tied to a single or small group of institutions (or a scholarly association) to provide a level playing field of access and ownership.
- We are a not-for-profit company organised by academics, for academics; based in the UK but operating internationally.Â
Rigor
- We conduct, publish and promote practice research and research about practice based on evidence and rigor.