Personal statement

Rachel Beale is a PhD researcher and a music teacher based in Cornwall, with a deep interest in the way music is made in the local community. She started teaching Music and Maths in 1979 and since 1999 has dedicated her career to providing music education, particularly instrumental teaching, in Newquay and Truro. As an orchestral player, she has worked with local musicians who are taking up orchestral instruments again in adult life to rediscover ensemble music-making. Her previous research has explored the blurred boundaries between professional and amateur music-making in this region.
 
She introduced whole-class violin lessons in schools in 1999, predating the government's Wider Opportunities Programme by eight years. She has written and conducted compositions for recorder ensembles in the UK, Europe and South Africa. She has led and performed with community orchestras in Cornwall. She also gives violin performances locally and further afield. 
 
Currently she teaches violin, recorder, piano and theory of music in Newquay, Cornwall.

Academic qualifications

  • MA in Music, The Open University (2012)
  • Postgraduate Diploma in Music, The Open University (2011)
  • Postgraduate Certificate in Music, The Open University (2010)
  • BA (Hons) First-Class, The Open University (1998)
  • Diploma in Music, The Open University (1995)
  • Certificate in Education, University of Exeter (1979)
  • Diploma of Music in Education, Dartington College of Arts (1978).

 Current memberships

  • Royal Musical Association
  • British Forum of Ethnomusicology
  • Incorporated Society of Musicians (Fellow)
  • National Education Union
  • Cornwall Music Education Hub (Registered Provider)
  • Paul Harris Simultaneous Learning Teachers.

Thesis title

Amateur, Professional and In between: Exploring relationships between education, music identity, and Community Music-Making Ensembles in Truro, Cornwall.

Director of studies

Research supervisors

  • Dr Emma Asprey, Bath Spa University

Research interests

  • Community music-making
  • Professional and amateur identities in music
  • Music in formal education
  • Education beyond formal institutions
  • Lifelong learning
  • Music in serious leisure activities.

Research and academic outputs

Go to ResearchSPAce