Background research project
As an ongoing learning process, the Conservatory of Amsterdam wants to expand its knowledge with  knowledge and skills regarding composing for inclusive ensembles, which often includes the process of co-creating with ensemble members. Therefore, it has invited Drake Music Scotland (DSM),a leading arts organization that provides music-making opportunities for people with disabilities and additional support needs for a one-week residency in November 2023.

Approach of the project Inclusive composing  
The one-week project Inclusive composing is being developed for students of the bachelor’s in music education and the bachelor’s in composition. As mentioned earlier, DMS will be invited to work with these students. Furthermore, Disabled musicians of the foundation My Breath My Music and of the inclusive ensemble of the Amsterdam Music School (Noord) will join the project. During the project, students will learn to co-create music with the members of the newly formed inclusive music ensemble, to integrate new music technology into compositions, and to perform as a member of an inclusive ensemble. 

Research
The research project will take a closer look at the questions 'What attitude, knowledge and skills do composers need to co-create music with and for an inclusive ensembles', 'How can the professional identity of ‘inclusive composers’ be described?', and 'How should students be educated/trained to become an ‘inclusive composer’'? Through interviews with all the different participants we hope to get some answers to our questions. The research project will form the basis for a new elective on inclusive composing.

The Amsterdam Museum is being renovated. An important part of the renewed Amsterdam Museum is a museum for and by children. But what exactly will the programming and museum spaces look like? What do children need to make these spaces their own and really use them as a place for artistic reflections on the city and their place in it? To answer these questions, during the period 2023-2025, the Amsterdam Museum will work together with Amsterdam children aged 9 to 12 to design the new Amsterdam Museum for and by children through the ELJA Children's Museum Lab. Besides attending lab sessions in the various districts of Amsterdam, working together on artworks and curating exhibitions, the children involved will be given a voice through a children's sounding board group and children's director. In this way, they help open the eyes of the public and staff and make the museum the place for children. But above all, making and looking at art provides opportunities for the children to reflect on themselves, their environment and the world. The Amsterdam Museum and ELJA Foundation are asking the Arts Education lectorate of the Amsterdam School of the Arts to guide the three-year trajectory towards a children's museum with training and research. The trainings for artists and museum educators, prior to the lab sessions, are based on the principles of 'wicked arts assignments' (Heijnen & Bremmer, 2020). The research was designed in phases with exploratory ('nurturing') research in the first year and impact research in the second and third years. To carry out the research, the professorship commissioned Urban Paradoxes (Sandra Trienekens).

View the full overview of publications and presentations of Melissa Bremmer.