The situation facing professional musicians today is desperate. According to research done by our partner, The Musicians’ Union, one-third of professional musicians in the UK are considering giving up their careers because of the COVID-19 pandemic. They are facing financial difficulties due to the severe restriction in performance opportunities. 70% are unable to do more than a quarter of their normal work and around half have already had to take on work outside of the music industry to help make ends met. 87% of musicians who are covered by furlough or self-employment support schemes say they will face financial hardship when these schemes come to an end.
Here at UCan Play, we have thought long and hard about how we can help our professional musicians. We wanted to find a way to support them as they relocate their work into the online space – whether that be for the short term because of COVID-19 or even as part of a longer term change to their working practices.
Interface:Response was our response. With funding from Innovate UK and support from The Musicians’ Union and NYMAZ, we have produced a set of resources for musicians to help them develop their digital skills and work productively in new ways. We have put together a team of mentors to provide one-to-one or small group support for those that need specific help with particular issues that they are grappling with. This mentor support is offered free of charge for all musicians within the UK until the end of the year.
Please do what you can to help us promote this new set of online resources and mentorship programme. Full details about Interface:Response can be found here: www.interfaceresponse.com.
Also, do consider signing up to the associated forum and share your advice and expertise with others there. We are sure that it will be greatly appreciated.
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