Core team
Thursa Sanderson
Chief Executive
Thursa has led the organisation since 2002, previously having been involved as fundraising consultant. She has wide experience in the arts as a musician, visual arts practitioner and consultant. Starting her career in the community of Wester Hailes, she then became the first Co-ordinator of Artlink Edinburgh and the Lothians, inspiring her lifelong commitment to the arts and disability field. She believes in the transformational power of music, active participation in creative activity and access to the highest quality cultural learning experiences for all.
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Pete Sparkes
Artistic Director
Pete was appointed as Artistic Director in December 2009. He joined the team at Drake Music Scotland as a freelance associate musician in 2005, leading projects in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Stirling. In 2007 he was appointed as Education & Training Officer and spent a busy few years training teachers and musicians to use music technology in a variety of different settings. He is completely convinced that making music is fun, good for us in many ways, and we should be doing more of it – all of us! He was Education Officer of the Scottish Chamber Orchestra from 2002-2005. As a freelance project leader he has led creative projects with many different participant groups for various organisations including: Drake Music Scotland, Scottish Book Trust, Scottish Chamber Orchestra, BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Artlink Central, and Jessie’s Fund.
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Rick Bamford
Music Technology Officer
Rick started being pro-active in music making for people with disabilities in 1990 and pioneered many creative UK projects while developing solutions for individual musicians. He is also a professional drummer and percussion player, with many years of performance and music education experience. Rick also has a wide range of studio based knowledge, from the scanning of eye movement to trigger MIDI messages to digital recording, mixing and production, and has designed Drake Music Scotland’s new recording studio to be launched in spring 2010.
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Susan McNaught
Fundraising Manager
Susan began working with Drake Music Scotland as Fundraising Manager in 2007 bringing with her over ten years experience of raising funds for organisations across Scotland including Scottish Opera, Queen Margaret University and Glasgow School of Art.
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Cath Sewell
Education & Training Manager
Cath joined Drake Music Scotland as Education and Training Manager in April 2010. Her previous experience has been as a music project manager, educator and musician. Cath started her career as a freelance instrumental teacher and jazz specialist working in schools and music centres, and then went on to be appointed Music Development Officer at the Brewery Arts Centre, Kendal. Through this role she founded and developed a diverse participatory music programme with a focus on inclusivity, reaching those who may otherwise not have the opportunity to take part, values she has further pursued through her work with Drake Music Scotland.
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