I began writing blogs as a means of recording my Churchill Fellowship to New York in November 2019. All fellows are required to produce a formal report after their travels, and I was worried I might not remember all my experiences. Blogging every evening in my hotel room was very cathartic for me so I continued upon my return. Sixty blogs later, I now have a written record of my 25 year long campaign to bring accessible music to people with learning disabilities across the UK and around the world. Perhaps one day this blog might end up in a book!
I challenged my students like never before in 2024. They worked harder and for longer. They played to their biggest ever audiences. They travelled thousands of miles across the UK and around the world. They shared the stage with musical legend Michael Ball, the Royal Marines and the RAF. They performed to Royalty and to Government Ministers. They were interviewed for international TV, radio and press. Their education workshops inspired future generations and they raised tens of thousands of pounds for charity.
2024 Highlights
Music is Magic at the Royal Albert Hall. Three hundred musicians with learning disabilities performed to 4000 people, supported by Michael Ball and the Band of His Majesty’s Royal Marines. What a night!
(Video by TEAM LEWIS Foundation)
ITV's Good Morning Britain Interview with Michael Ball. Music Man Project patron Michael Ball joined our ambassadors on ITV's Good Morning Britain for an interview about the big Royal Albert Hall show. Good Morning Britain are wonderful to work with. They're always so kind, patient and professional with our students. They regard us as friends of the show and we describe them as part of our musical family. In 2024, we appeared on UK TV twice and on both Canadian and Italian TV!
(Video by TEAM LEWIS Foundation)
Flying the flag for Britain at the Royal Nova Scotia International Tattoo, Canada. In June we gave five amazing performances to over twenty thousand people at our first Military Tattoo, accompanied by the Central Band of the Royal Air Force. After each performance the announcer captured the mood of the arena perfectly with his closing words, “I think you’ll agree… the world needs more of this”. Our musicians stole the show!
(Video by TEAM LEWIS Foundation)
Music is Magic in Milan. In September we took part in a tremendous joint concert with Italian charity, AllegroModerato. Our students learnt so much from our Italian counterparts and we formed a wonderful friendship with their leader Luca, his colleagues and inspirational musicians. The trip marked the start of our International Alliance of Accessible Music (IAAM). Video coming soon!
(Photos by Jon Webber and Vasco Dell'Oro)
Normansfield Theatre Concert for National Down's Syndrome Association. First established in 1868 by Dr John Langdon Down, a Victorian physician, Normansfield was a family home and a place where people with learning disabilities could be cared for and educated at a time when most of them would have been condemned to life in an asylum. This was therefore a highly significant venue for us to perform in and a particularly proud moment for our musicians with Down's Syndrome.
(Photos by Jon Webber)
Royal Navy Gala Dinner at the Painted Hall, Greenwich in front of HRH, The Princess Royal. For the third year in a row, The Music Man Project performed at the historic Painted Hall for the HMS Oardacious Gala Fundraising Dinner. We sang 'Have You Ever Stopped to Think' and 'Drunken Sailor', accompanied by His Majesty's Band of the Royal Marines. This year was extra special because as we met HRH, Princess Anne. We received another standing ovation!
(Photos by Jon Webber)
Winter Wonderland with Michael Ball. To top off the year we were invited to perform 'When A Child is Born' with the amazing Michael Ball at a prestigious Winter Wonderland Charity Reception in the Strand. It was brilliant to be reunited with our famous patron. He even invited Wendy up on stage to join him for his 'Love Changes Everything' finale. It was another pinch me moment! The evening raised over £7,000 for our charity.
(Photos by Jon Webber)
So much of this work was driven by The Music Man Project Global Ambassadors who, like me, volunteer for the Music Man Project charity every day to make the impossible possible. These remarkable musicians were chosen for their experience, dedication, energy, and the support of their families. They're not just role models for the disabled community but for 'mainstream' society too. They embody the UK's global leadership in accessible music-making.
The ambassadors also continued to support me in my role as the UK Government's Disability and Access Ambassador for Arts and Culture, a tenure that was extended by six months following the election of the new Labour Government in July. The ambassadors represent the authentic voices of the disabled people I advocate for across the nation.
I was hugely proud that The Music Man Project Ambassadors received the King’s Award for Voluntary Service in November.
(Photo by Jon Webber)
On a personal note, I was deeply honoured to receive the Prime Minister’s Point of Light Award from charity patron, Anna Firth, at the Royal Albert Hall in April. Awards recognise past achievements, but their greatest gift is to open doors to future opportunities for the people I serve.
(Photo by Jon Webber)
2024 was captured on film by the TEAM LEWIS Foundation. I’ve can't begin to describe the kindness that this organisation has shown to me and my community. They guided us through the year, providing constant reassurance, inspiration, mentoring, media support and funding to elevate our cause to even greater heights. Without them we would not have been able to take part in the Nova Scotia Tattoo in Canada. Without them we would not have met Italian charity AllegroModerato. It was such an honour for The Music Man Project to open TEAM LEWIS’ new global headquarters at Battersea Power Station in London in December. They put people and purpose above profit. They are ahead of their time. One day the rest of the corporate sector will catch up.
(Photos by Jon Webber)
Given my immense gratitude to TEAM LEWIS’ CEO Chris Lewis, I was overwhelmed to be included in his latest book, “The Silent Rebellion – Becoming a Modern Leader” (published in September by Kogan Page). My favourite composer is Gustav Mahler and many of the most influential people in my life share my passion for his music. It was therefore thrilling to read this quote on the first page:
Tradition is not the worship of ashes, but the preservation of fire.
Gustav Mahler
Another quote, on the front cover, by Sir Anothony Seldon says:
I do not know any leader in any sphere who would not be better for reading this wise book.
I would go further. I do not know anyone who would not be better for reading this wise book. Leadership is the book’s focus but the lessons are for us all. The Silent Rebellion is a must read for leaders who don’t know they’re leaders yet! It might surprise them to learn that emotional intelligence, compassion, imagination, endurance and humour are more vital than ever in today’s world.
My own journey began as a teenager when I realised the impact of my music on vulnerable people, specifically senior citizens in care homes and later, people with learning disabilities. These moments shaped me forever and gave my musical ability and training a far greater purpose. After finishing my formal music studies I dedicated 10 crucial years to state education, during which time I overcame numerous challenges and learnt about leadership, responsibility, accountability, integrity and adaptability. This is when I matured and gained the necessary skills to transform my dreams into professional reality, with significant help from individuals like Sir David Amess along the way. I continued teaching people with learning disabilities and never stopped entertaining elderly people from nursing homes (I still do this now!). I eventually left the state education sector as a qualified headteacher to forge my own unique career path and guide others to replicate my success.
I ignored the naysayers. I was unphased by my failed audition for a Music Therapy course (my feedback was that I was too positive), and I simply kept going. I disrupted the status quo which said music could only be used as therapy for disabled people, that prestigious venues could only host elite mainstream performers, that audiences would not pay to watch learning-disabled musicians. The list goes on. My only real skills were tenacity and the ability to maximise my potential and the potential of those who supported my cause. A good example was when I received a supportive letter from Prime Minister David Cameron in 2012. He said “I hope you can duplicate your success around the country”. I immediately declared that I had personally been instructed to expand The Music Man Project on behalf of the UK Government! Without knowing it at the time, I was leading my own silent rebellion on behalf of a once-silenced community. Purchase your copy of The Silent Rebellion here.
As each year passes, I discover again and again that people with special educational needs are differently-abled, rather than dis-abled. My life’s work has been to reveal their unique qualities through music. I had no idea the impact I would have when I started with one student a quarter of a century ago. The world has changed in ways I could not have imagined back then. The learning-disabled community can teach us how to thrive in the face of today’s complex challenges. Their magical gift is to disarm, reassure and inspire.
If you don’t believe me then I invite you to meet the musicians of The Music Man Project. Their affection, innocence and authentic humanity (so lost in today’s world) will melt your heart. You will smile from ear to ear. You will forget your own privileged problems. You will lose your fear and remember what really matters in your life – whatever that may be. I’ve seen this reaction a thousand times over – from disturbed young school children on the verge of exclusion to millionaires, TV celebrities, decorated military personnel, Prime Ministers and the Royal Family. The Music Man Project has touched them all. Through music, love, patience and support, their beautiful unbroken spirit overcomes their obstacles every single day. In this way, people with learning disabilities represent the best of us and hope for a better future.
(Video by TEAM LEWIS Foundation)
Please support The Music Man Project's next dream of reaching Broadway in memory of our late President, Sir David Amess. Click here to donate to our GoFundMe page.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from The Music Man!
(Photo by Jon Webber)
David Stanley BEM
Thanks for everything you do. Thanks for everything you are.