APPLICATION FORM: Sound Without Sight – Industry Engagement Internship
What is ‘Sound Without Sight’?
Recently launched, Sound Without Sight is an online platform and community knowledge hub to support, promote, and connect blind and partially sighted musicians, sound engineers, and anyone with an interest in creating music. Despite improvements to other areas of inclusion across the industry, there is a clear need to support emerging blind and partially sighted musicians and to create pathways that allow their talent to shine through.
The platform will: showcase blind and partially sighted talent, highlight how accessibility barriers can be overcome, combine collective knowledge, and challenge stereotypes. The project will support the blind and partially sighted musician community to access: music creation and production, notation, performance, and the industry. You can read more about the project’s background and aims at our website.
The opportunity
We will be offering two exciting internships, which will help to drive the Sound Without Sight initiative across the music industry. You will work remotely with our Project Manager, interacting with the industry across many touch-points, and also supporting blind and partially sighted musicians directly to create, perform, and release their music, and develop as artists.
The internships are offered on a freelance basis for a duration of 8 months, with the programme offering a monthly stipend of £624 to cover 13 hours work on the project per week (£11.09 hourly rate). Your working pattern can be flexible to allow you to explore other work, study, or commitments. This is a remote working opportunity, and a laptop can be supplied if required. Travel expenses are available for events. Though not essential, we believe that this opportunity would be particularly exciting to candidates who have lived experience of blindness or partial sight, or a connection to the community of blind and partially sighted musicians.
The programme will also support you with £500 and a network of contacts to develop a personal project related to your work at Sound Without Sight. For example, this could be to support a blind or partially sighted artist’s first release, or development of your own musical project.
Job duties
There will be some degree of flexibility in the roles, allowing duties to be tailored based on your individual experience and desired career path. Duties could include (but are not limited to):
- Creating and managing content for the Sound Without Sight platform.
- Interviewing musicians, attending and reviewing their concerts, visiting inclusive studios and venues.
- Developing a supportive community of blind and partially sighted musicians.
- Attending industry events and building relationships to raise the profile of blind and partially sighted music-makers.
- Monitoring community posts and comments, to influence content commissioned by the project.
- Social media marketing, with a view to helping develop inclusive self-marketing practices for musicians.
- Working with talent streams such as BBC Introducing and Bristol Beacon’s development programmes, to ensure that their services are accessible to blind and partially sighted musicians.
Partner organisations
The project has been supported by TAVIP, the Technology Association of Visually Impaired People, and has received initial development funding from RNIB’s Elizabeth Eagle Bott Memorial Fund. These internships are supported by Youth Music’s Incubator Fund.
Among others, interns will work with:
- Sound Without Sight’s steering group members.
- RNIB’s Music Team and, by proxy, partners they are working with to improve access across the music industry. Our Project Manager works in the specialist role of Music Support Officer at RNIB. He is tasked with raising the profile of blind and partially sighted musicians in the music industry.
- Members of the Inclusive Music Consortium (Creative United, Youth Music, Music for Youth, Open Up Music, OHMI Trust, Technology in Music Education UK), which our work forms part of.
- Bristol Beacon, who are working with Sound Without Sight and RNIB to develop their venue, programmes, and music services to be more inclusive.
Person Specification
As per the requirements of the Youth Music grant that funds these opportunities, applicants must be aged 18 to 25 and live in England, Scotland or Wales.
Essential criteria
- Demonstrable interest in the areas of work of the project.
- Demonstrable interest in music.
- Interest in creating content, such as articles, podcasts and/or videos.
- Ability to manage time and priorities independently and efficiently.
- Ability to communicate confidently by email and in virtual meetings.
Desirable criteria
- Interest in attending and speaking at conferences and other events, as an advocate for accessible music.
- Interest in accessible music technology.
- Awareness of accessible formats and assistive technology.
- Lived experience of blindness or partial sight, or of working with a blind or partially sighted person.
How to apply
Applications should be submitted via the online application form, by 11.59pm on Thursday 14 September 2023. You should demonstrate how you meet the criteria in the person specification above. Responses can alternatively take the form of an audio or video presentation hosted on a private link. Please include a link in the application form.
Successful applicants will be invited to a short and informal remote interview with staff from Sound Without Sight and Creative Opps to be scheduled for 27 September 2023, with a view to the internships beginning in October, though there is some flexibility in the start date to allow time for Access to Work arrangements to be put in place if required.
We can’t wait to hear from you!
