A Culture of Belonging

Aayushi

The Culture of Belonging weekend exceeded my expectations. I’ve really struggled with production in the past, but by the end I left the studio feeling confident and empowered as a female musician, and genuinely excited about music production - a combination of things I never thought I’d feel.

Francesca Knowles

This opportunity from the F-List, has so far been an invaluable resource for finding work as a woman in the UK music industry - I have gained both new session work and new collaborators through this database (by searching and being found).

Our flagship program, A Culture of Belonging, has given 28 women and gender diverse musicians the studio experience of a lifetime in its first two years.

The innovative two-day course at Miloco Studios’ Battery Studio 2 in north-west London has been designed to help musicians navigate their way around a world-class professional recording studio and foster a ‘culture of belonging’ in the space. Featuring an entirely female team, this opportunity has given artists greater knowledge of a professional studio set up and confidence in articulating ideas and opinions on production to help them retain creative control over their music. It has been a comfortable and safe space, giving artists a sense of community.

The two-day courses, running on select weekends through 2022 and 2023, were initially led by Dr Isobel Anderson and Dr Catherine Anne Davies. Going forward into 2023 we are delighted to welcome Anjali Perin as the co-lead producer alongside Dr Catherine Anne Davies. They have been supported by Eve Horne, Producer and Founder of PeakMusicUK.

Dr Catherine Anne Davies performs as The Anchoress, and is a criticlly accliamed multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and producer. Anjali Perin performs as Pokkisham, and is a British Sri Lankan singer, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and producer specialising in jazz, funk and soul. They are both incredibly experienced producers and lecturers in songwriting and production.

A Culture of Belonging is generously funded by Miloco Studios and Help Musicians.

Miloco Studios has one of the largest directory of quality recording studios in the world, with more than 170 on its roster worldwide. As a 360-degree company it also offers other services including; Miloco Builds which comprises studio builds, design and installs; Miloco Gear which incorporates brand new and second-hand audio gear sales, brokerage and financing; Drumdrops our drum sample library experts; and Miloco Management – home to their award-winning producers, mixers and engineers.

Help Musicians is a charity that loves music and has been supporting musicians for over 100 years. It provides financial support to help musicians create, release, learn and develop 365 days a year. The charity also provides vital health and wellbeing services, such as its 24/7 mental health support line Music Minds Matter.

Exclusive studio opportunity for The F-List musicians, in association with Help Musicians and Miloco Studios

The F-List for Music has teamed up with the charity Help Musicians and Miloco Studios to offer female and gender-expansive musicians a whole weekend of immersive studio learning for what we are calling ‘A Culture of Belonging’.

Applications are now being taken to experience the two-day course at Miloco Studios’ Battery Studio 2 in north-west London. This experience will help musicians navigate their way around a world-class professional recording studio and foster a ‘culture of belonging’ in the space. Featuring an entirely female team, this opportunity will give artists greater knowledge of a professional studio set up and confidence in articulating ideas and opinions on production to help them retain creative control over their music.

The two-day courses, running on select weekends in April in July, are led by Dr Isobel Anderson and Dr Catherine Anne Davies as the lead producers. Isobel has 20+ years making, performing and producing music as well as a PhD in Sonic Arts, while Dr Catherine Anne Davies performs as The Anchoress, as well as being an incredibly talented producer. As the training and studio team will be all female, it will be a comfortable and safe space, giving artists a sense of community.

Applications for the Miloco Studios course are being taken via Help Musicians from December 1st to Jan 7th with full details below.

Dr Isobel Anderson says…“It’s astonishing to think that in the 21st Century, schemes like A Culture of Belonging are still so vital for women in music, but without them, we won’t reach gender equality in the studio and the industry in general. It’s for this reason I’m immensely proud to be collaborating with The F List on this scheme. Women deserve to feel safe, be respected and be seen as multifaceted in music technology settings.”

Dr Catherine Anne Davies says….”I am excited to be collaborating with The F List on the Culture of Belonging Scheme as a producer who is passionate about welcoming and encouraging women and other gender minorities into the studio space.”

Lottie Field in the Bookings Team at Miloco Studios says...”Miloco are delighted to be collaborating with The F-List on the Culture of Belonging scheme. We are aware that more can be done in the recording studio sector, and are committed to helping overcome the structural barriers facing women and other gender minorities in the industry”.

Caroline Hansell, Head of Creative at Help Musicians, says “Help Musicians is delighted to support this exciting and important opportunity from The F-List For Music and Miloco Studios. As a charity here for musicians in times of crisis and opportunity, we have been supporting musicians to access learning and development opportunities for many years. Consequently, we have seen first-hand how experiences like these have real, long-term benefits. The UK Music Diversity Report 2020 showed that the gender divide is moving in the right direction and we hope this access will help to level the landscape further and keep things moving in the right direction.“

Vick Bain, Founder of The F-List for Music, says “I am delighted to have helped set up this incredible initiative. All of the research demonstrates just how few women work as producers on professional records (less than 3%, Annenberg University) but ‘technophobia’ also affects women recording their own music, so it is vitally important that women can get into studios and take control. I am very grateful for Miloco Studios for offering their incredible studio, for Help Musicians for funding the musicians and to Drs Anderson and Davies for being such incredible role-models.“

To apply you must be:

A member of The F-List for Music (join HERE for free if not)
A professional musician in an occupation creating, performing, or highly technically skilled in music
Available on Saturday 9 and Sunday 10 April or, Saturday 9 and Sunday 10 July (from 10am-6pm each day)
Aged over 18
In financial need and without significant backing
Already have an active career as a professional musician and be able to clearly demonstrate your work to date
A UK resident

To start your application visit Help Musicians website HERE

Unsure where to start, want to hear more or ask questions directly to the team?

We’ll be running a Q&A guidance session live on Zoom with a member of the Help Musicians team and Dr Isobel Anderson, on December 14th at 5pm – sign-up for free HERE and be guided through the application process.