Minding your health through a global pandemic

In partnership with our friends at Help Musicians, this panel will explore how COVID-19 has impacted the physical and mental health of the music community, the resources available to help us through lockdown, and how musicians might prepare themselves for post-pandemic work.

Panellists: 

Panellists Bios:

Lynne Best (née McDowell)

Lynne is a Director of The Fourth Pillar, a company dedicated to supporting creators and the creative industries. She was previously Head of Communications for the music licensing company PPL and Director at Well Red Music and Media which provided corporate communications and policy advice to a range of global media and music companies. She has also held the role of Head of PR at BPI, the UK’s representative body for record labels and music technology companies and organiser of The BRIT Awards and Mercury Prize. Prior to working in music, Lynne started her career at the European Parliament in Brussels following the completion of her degree in Strasbourg, France. She is Vice Chair of the Oh Yeah Music Centre in Belfast and a Board Member of the Arts Council of Northern Ireland. She is also on the Advisory Panel of the all-Ireland mental health initiative, Minding Creative Minds.

Liam Hennessey

Liam is the Health and Welfare Manager at Help Musicians. Liam has worked at the charity since 2017 and oversees the Health and Welfare team at the charity’s head office in London. His Health & Welfare team are a core part of the charity’s work, providing financial assistance and home visits to musicians in need all over the UK. His team also are responsible for Music Minds Matter, the around the clock listening ear service for the music community, as well as the hugely successful Musicians’ Hearing Health Scheme, which has already supported thousands of musicians with bespoke hearing protection. Prior to working for Help Musicians, Liam worked at the mental health charity Mind. Away from Help Musicians, Liam composes music for TV and short films in his spare time.

Lucy Heyman

Lucy Heyman is a vocal and performance coach, musician and lecturer. She is co-author of Sound Advice, a health-focused career guide for musicians, widely supported by the industry. Lucy’s PhD at the Royal College of Music focuses on the health and wellbeing support of popular musicians, and she has original research published on this topic. Lucy is founder of industry health and performance consultancy Elevate, and hosts the Elevate Music Podcast in partnership with Help Musicians, with guests including Imogen Heap, Dodie, Shaun Ryder, Nina Nesbitt and more.  

Claire Cordeaux

Claire Cordeaux is Chief Executive of the British Association for Performing Arts Medicine, a unique national medical charity which delivers expert health and wellbeing services in the performing arts. With over 200 clinicians in the UK, BAPAM provides health assessments to individual performers and health and wellbeing education, training and resources about best practice in performing arts medicine.  Claire has a professional  background in the UK NHS and before BAPAM, was global Director of an independent healthcare company. She is an active musician in a psychedelic celtic folk fusion band, and has supported a number of arts initiatives and festivals from youth music projects to running a boat stage to connect performers in coastal areas.

Ben Glover

Originally from Country Antrim, N.Ireland, but now residing in Nashville, Ben is a three-time nominee, two-time AMA UK Award Winner (2019 UK Album of the Year & 2016 International Song of The Year) signed to Proper Records. He has released seven solo albums and three with The Orphan Brigade and has toured extensively in Europe and the US over the last decade. Glover is also an in-demand co-writer and collaborates regularly with many esteemed artists in the Americana genre, including Mary Gauthier and Gretchen Peters.   In conjunction with his music career, he teaches mindfulness meditation. He is certified by the MMTCP/Awareness Training Institute/Greater Good Science Center at the University of California at Berkeley. He works extensively with private clients, many of whom are from a creative background, as well as meditation programs within the corporate setting.

Eric Mtungwazi

Joined Music Support as Managing Director in 2018.   Eric is an experienced senior leader with expertise in the not-for-profit.  He joined Music Support from City Year UK, an education charity where he was Programme Director.  Prior to that he worked for Back-Up Trust, a leading charity supporting children and adults affected by spinal cord injury, where he led a national peer mentoring project working with colleagues in the NHS.  He has also toured as a self-managed artist both in the UK and overseas.