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Marshall Marcus, a renowned musician and specialist in the Venezuelan El Sistema, and accomplished fundraising consultant Melanie Stoutzker have joined the board of trustees of In Harmony · Sistema England, the charitable company that supports the In Harmony projects currently funded by the Department for Education and Arts Council England.
Stoutzker and Marcus join international cellist and In Harmony founder Julian Lloyd Webber, former governmental music education adviser Richard Hallam and performing arts professional Nina Kaye in the board of the charity.
“We are confident that Melanie and Marshall will play a significant role in helping us secure the long term delivery and expansion of the In Harmony programme inspired by the values, principles and methodology of Venezuela's El Sistema,” said Lloyd Webber. “We will work with them to give every child in England the opportunity, through musical excellence, of reaching their full potential and becoming a force for positive social change within their families and communities.”
Violinist Marshall Marcus is acknowledged worldwide as an expert on Venezuela's El Sistema having been involved with the programme since the 1970s. He is director of El Sistema’s Baroque music programme in Venezuela, founder and co-ordinator of Sistema Europe, and leads Southbank Centre’s Sistema Research programme. He is also working with the British Council on the development of global youth orchestra and Sistema networks. Previously he was head of music at Southbank Centre where he oversaw one of the largest arts venue music programmes in the world, and prior to that chairman and chief executive of the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment.
Melanie Stoutzker has over eighteen years experience as a development professional in the arts, cultural and charity sectors. Clients have included the Southbank Centre, the Barbican Centre, the Science Museum, CLIC Sargent, DASH Arts and Hofesh Shechter Company. She has been a consultant since 2004 with Craven&Stoutzker and has recently established Stoutzker Fundraising Partnership. For ten years prior to consulting Melanie was Head of Charitable Giving and Deputy Head of Development at the Natural History Museum and Charitable Giving Manager at the Royal Academy of Arts.
In Harmony is a social and music education programme inspired by Venezuela's El Sistema, adapted to an English context. In Harmony uses music to bring positive change to the lives of children in disadvantaged areas of England, delivering benefits across the wider community. The programme, currently funded by the Department for Education and Arts Council England, has projects in Lambeth and Liverpool, and is launching additional projects in Leeds, Newcastle and Gateshead, Nottingham, and Telford and Stoke.
In Harmony · Sistema England is a charitable company, chaired by In Harmony founder Julian Lloyd Webber, that supports the In Harmony projects across England. It has been recognised by El Sistema founder José Antonio Abreu for its efforts in preserving the values and methodology of the Venezuelan programme, and it is part of Sistema Europe.
