Pilot evaluation of the Safe in Sound Program: Investigating the benefits of inclusive experimental music practice for people with mixed abilities

Lead: Dr Anthea Skinner, Senior Lecturer in Disability Creative Performance, Victorian College of the Arts, Faculty of Fine Arts and Music

People with disability remain significantly underrepresented in professional and experimental music contexts. Traditional music therapy and community music models tend to focus on therapeutic outcomes through set curricula, rather than empowering artists with disabilities as creative professionals. Safe in Sound (SIS) takes a different approach, using experimental music, collaborative improvisation, and specialist technologies to support artists with mixed abilities to participate and perform. Despite promising anecdotal evidence, there has been no systematic evaluation of its impact or effectiveness.

This pilot evaluation will assess SIS across three areas:

• the perceived value and benefits of the program for participating artists, their families and carers, and broader stakeholders
• the user experience of SIS technologies — including the Semi-Automated Robotic Percussion System (SARPS) and AirSticks
• how they support accessibility, collaboration, and communication; and opportunities to expand the program into First Nations communities, through consultation with First Nations artists with disability and community leaders to identify culturally appropriate approaches

The aim is to generate a preliminary evidence base on the effectiveness of SIS in supporting the creative and professional development of artists with mixed abilities, informing future iterations of the program, contributing to inclusive music practice more broadly, and laying the groundwork for a larger-scale study.