BEYOND SIGHT

Festival

17 Jul

Written By Guest User

Beyond Sight is a professional development programme for blind and visually impaired musicians
in development by MÁr Gunnarsson, the RNCM Session Orchestra and Curated Place.

A New MUSIC DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME AND AWARD
for Blind and Visually Impaired Artists

A global community of musicians, a world class orchestra, a unique opportunity

Led blind musician Már Gunnarsson with Curated Place and the RNCM Session Orchestra Beyond Sight is a professional development programme designed to remove barriers preventing blind & visually impaired musicians from progressing into the professional music industry. Through mentoring, orchestral collaboration and industry-facing performance opportunities, it equips participants with the experience, networks and professional profile needed to build sustainable creative careers. The project culminates in a four-day residency and public showcase competition at the RNCM in Manchester in October 2027. With categories for UK based and International musicians an open call will invite blind and visually impaired musicians of any genre to submit an original composition. A panel of musicians and industry professionals will select ten artists and award three prizes of full production support to accelerated the careers of exceptionally talented musicians as they build their careers, community and opportunities.

The NEED

Blind and visually impaired musicians remain underrepresented within the professional music sector and face barriers to progression beyond training. Many experience functional isolation, exclusion from the informal networking that shapes creative careers because opportunities often depend on recognising who is in a room, approaching the right people and building relationships through visual interaction. While the UK has strong examples of specialist support, a pathway into the wider music industry remains limited. Beyond Sight seeks to address that gap by combining mentoring, collaboration with professional musicians, industry-standard documentation and career development, enabling participants to build careers aligned with their sighted peers.

The project will provide each artist with professional mentoring, an orchestral performance credit, recordings, photography and filmed documentation, together with introductions to producers and industry professionals that support future commissions, performances and funding applications. The programme also establishes a repeatable model for professional progression that can be expanded nationally and internationally. For audiences, it presents ambitious new work by blind and visually impaired musicians at full orchestral scale, broadening participation and challenging perceptions of disability within professional music.

The core artistic team is established. To deliver the project we will recruit the industry panel, launch an accessible open call, select ten artists, commission orchestral arrangements, deliver the residency and showcase, produce professional documentation for every participant, and evaluate the pilot to inform future editions.