Music for All is very pleased to announce the appointment of new Trustee Ishani O’Connor.

With a substantial career in the arts and media including working with the Chineke! Foundation and Dulwich Symphony Orchestra, Ishani will bring an understanding of the music education sector, creative learning, outreach programmes and arts administration to the Board. She is currently the Learning and Participation Manager for Chineke! Foundation, working with Europe’s first majority Black and ethnically diverse professional and youth orchestras. She manages the Chineke! Junior Orchestra, nurturing diverse young talent and showcasing them on the world’s greatest stages and takes Chineke! professional musicians into schools, leading workshops in creative composition and performance through participatory concerts across the UK.

Ishani helped to establish a new charity, Draper Together CIO for the residents of the Draper estate in Elephant & Castle, aiming to bring a diverse community together through arts-based events. In 2016, she achieved an M.A.(Distinction) in Arts Administration and Cultural Policy from Goldsmiths, University of London and worked as a Development Placement with the London International Festival of Theatre (LIFT).

Ishani said – “I look forward to bringing my experiences with the Chineka! Junior Orchestra, musical outreach programmes and arts administration to the Board of Music for All.  Particularly as the charity looks to the future and to reach out to a wider more diverse communities and grant recipients.”

Tony Followell, Chair of Trustees commented – “Having someone with Ishani’s knowledge of outreach programmes and education will be invaluable to Music for All.  Her involvement with such a vibrant orchestra that is actively championing change is also inspiring and very motivating for the charity as we continue to work on providing equal access to music making for all.”

Ishani will join the Board of Trustees from March 2022 working with the existing Board on the continuing expansion and development of the charity.