HELP MUSICIANS - Key Persons
Alex joined as a trustee in 2017 after a period as an advisor on the financial side of Help Musicians.
He is a Chartered Accountant who has worked in the Entertainment and Media sectors as well as with a number of charities for many years. He is Chairman of Trustees at The Officers' Association, a military service charity looking after the welfare and transition of officers into civilian life. Alex also lectures on charity finance and governance topics.
Alex has been a pianist for over 50 years, working in Butlins, cruise ships, musicals, jazz & funk bands, and has a number of compositions to his name. Realistic about his own talents, he decided to join the family accountancy business and look after musicians far better than himself.
His clients include a very active orchestra, the Coldstream Guards Regimental Band, and musicians who work in the gig economy on that well-known hand to mouth basis.
Bob Shennan has a wealth of media leadership experience, most recently as Director of Audio within BBC Studios (the BBC's commercial arm) where he led the corporation's global and commercial growth plan and as BBC Group Managing Director on the BBC Executive, where he was responsible for all people-related functions. He has wide content experience, having led BBC Sport, BBC Music, Radio 5 Live, Radio 2, 6 Music and all BBC Network radio. He also spent time working in commercial radio and Channel 4. He is currently working as a consultant in media and music.
Bob was educated at the Royal Grammar School in Lancaster and at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, and graduated with a degree in English Literature, and started his career as a journalist in commercial radio at Hereward Radio.
A lifelong Liverpool FC fan, Bob is also vice-chairman of BBC Children in Need.
Charisse, who joined as a trustee in 2018, has over 13 years of experience in brand creation and in delivering market innovation, having worked with corporate businesses, media organisations, artists and charities. She provides first-hand extensive advisory and consulting services to artists, managers, labels and students to develop and manage their career in entertainment.
She has previous experience as Company Director of Preacher Boy Entertainment, an independent award-winning artist management and record company. In this role, she designed and provided full-service and cross-functional career and brand management for award winning and Grammy-nominated music artists across the UK and US.
Charisse has a strong knowledge of the UK's urban music scene and has worked closely with artists at the beginning of their career. Additionally, Charisse is Founder of Mahima Women, an initiative that works with two organisations in Nepal to provide finance to teach literary skills and income-generating techniques to vulnerable people.
Job Titles:
- Trustee
- Partner at Lewis Silkin LLP
Cliff is partner at Lewis Silkin LLP and founded and leads its Media & Entertainment group and its complementary service, Eleven. He advises major names in media, entertainment and technology. He has worked in the music industry for the last 25 years holding senior roles at Warner Music UK and Capital (now Global) Radio before joining Lewis Silkin in 2006 as a partner.
Cliff has significant experience in the world of charities in the creative industries with experience as company secretary to Capital Radio's Charities and formerly a Trustee for Sound & Music. He is also Chair of the Trustee Board of The Ivors Academy Trust, the charity for songwriters and creators.
Dr Melanie Grundy became a Trustee in 2018 and is based in Newcastle upon Tyne, where she qualified as a GP in 2015. She subsequently worked as a Specialty Doctor in Psychiatry of Learning Disability and trained in Gender Dysphoria. She currently works as both an NHS GP and as an Associate Specialist in Gender Dysphoria in the private sector; she has also previously worked as an assessing clinician and presenter for BAPAM. Before studying Medicine, Melanie gained a degree in Theatre Costume Design and spent several years working as a freelance designer/maker, so she understands the unpredictability of working in the creative industry. Melanie has recently been diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder and is a proud advocate of the superpower of being a neurodiverse woman.
Melanie describes herself as having been "marinated in jazz since birth" and although jazz remains her musical passion, she is interested in a range of genres, including ambient electronica, prog-metal, gentle world/folk and minimalist classical; think Elizabeth Alker's Unclassified on Radio 3.
She is involved with music promotion as a Trustee of Jazz North East, where she takes an active role in programming and audience development. She can also occasionally be caught singing and has previously taken part in the Summer Studios residency at Sage Gateshead, as the vocal half of duo Alembic, alongside pianist Paul Taylor. This unique combination of knowledge and experience from both the medical and creative spheres is invaluable in her role as a Trustee of Help Musicians.
Edward became a Trustee in 2019 and has worked in and around the music industry for over 30 years.
He studied music at university, and went on to work in the record industry with marketing and A&R roles at Virgin and Decca. He has produced and edited numerous classical recordings for Virgin, EMI and other labels.
In 2000 he switched tracks to the technology industry, running Vodafone's global music activities. Following roles focusing on mobile media and consumer behaviour with Nokia and Nielsen, he was appointed Chief Commercial Officer at 7digital, the leading B2 B digital music platform.
Edward plays in several amateur orchestras around London, buried among the ranks of string players.
Job Titles:
- Trustee, Music Minds Matter
Gareth holds over 10 years of experience in marketing across technology and music,
and is currently Global Head of B2 B Marketing at FUGA. Gareth has previously worked at TuneCore as head of UK, Australia and New Zealand.
Isabel joined Abbey Road Studios in 2014 and has been responsible for implementing the largest investment in the Studios since opening in 1931, including building three new studio spaces, creating new revenue streams by launching a new retail store, digital production services and the Abbey Road Institute, as well as launching Europe's first music technology incubator, Abbey Road Red.
As the Studios turns 90, she continues to drive investment in the future with the addition of Angel Studios to the portfolio and the acquisition of remote collaboration digital platform, Audiomovers - all with the aim of maintaining Abbey Road Studios' reputation as the world's most sought-after studio.
Jason Carter became a trustee in 2018. He has worked for over 25 years in the live music and events sector as an artist, agent, promoter, manager and commissioner of live music and events for broadcast. He produced many of the marquee large scale major events and festivals for the BBC as Event Director and created from conception some of the landmark UK events at the BBC, including Radio 1's Big Weekend, BBC 6Music Festival through to 1Xtra Live and Radio 1's Teen Awards.
In 2007 Jason launched BBC Music Introducing, supporting new and emerging musicians across the BBC; he led the platform for 10 years overseeing editorial programme teams across 38 local radio stations and the key national radio networks. He was also Festival Director for BBC Radio 1's Hackney Weekend, 2012. Jason is currently Managing Director of Get On Music Media, a live music and events consultancy based in London.
Job Titles:
- Trustee
- Head of Music and Events for the Charity Children
- Trustee, Music Minds Matter
Jim Benner is Head of Music and Events for the charity Children in Conflict - the US partner of UK charity War Child, with whom he also works in an advisory capacity.
He joined War Child UK in 2013 and helped the charity and its partners to use music-related fundraising to secure funding of over £14 million for children affected by conflict.
In the UK he played a key role in launching War Child's biggest annual fundraisers - the Winter Wassail gala fundraiser (with Carey Mulligan and Marcus Mumford) and the flagship BRITs Week series, securing it as a fixture in the UK music industry.
Jon became a Trustee in 2020 and is an accomplished technology leader, with extensive experience in IT, multichannel retail, product development and product ownership, engineering, innovation and leadership, and is one of the ‘founding fathers' of Tesco.com.
His specialties include IT transformation for the digital age, agile and continuous delivery enterprise transformation, and public cloud adoption and migration strategy at large enterprise level.
He was formerly a trustee at the premier London Arts centre, Somerset House. Jon has a lifelong passion for music and enjoys listening to an eclectic mix, with Mozart, Nick Drake, Stevie Wonder, Vulfpeck, Zero 7 and Jacob Collier at the top of his repeat list.
Job Titles:
- Trustee, Music Minds Matter
Juliette has over 23 years' experience in telecommunications. Media and not-for-profit organisations with experience in HR Strategy, Coaching and Mentoring, Training and Leadership Development, Recruitment and Retention, Performance Management, Compensation and Benefits, Wellbeing, Engagement and Inclusivity.
Kathryn became a Trustee in 2010 and serves on the charity's Finance and Audit committee. She was previously a Trustee with the Alexandra Rose Charity. She is Head of Global Emerging Markets Equities at Manulife Investment Management and has over 40 years of investment experience. Her two adult daughters are involved in the arts and she has a passionate, lifelong amateur enthusiasm for classical music and opera.
Job Titles:
- Director of Musicians' Services
Laurie leads research, innovation, service design and delivery at Help Musicians. With close to two decades experience in service design and leadership, Laurie has worked with every scale service, from leading UK wide health service transformation for NHS England, to designing bespoke digital services for smaller, high-need communities. Past employers and clients include Big Issue, National Institute of Health Research, Department of Health and other government bodies, Stonewall and other national not-for-profits. In every service, Laurie strives to create an insights-driven culture where innovation thrives and people come first. A lifelong music lover and raver, Laurie is passionately curious about the world and lives of all music makers and is determined to put their experiences at the forefront of every service at Help Musicians. Laurie always want to hear how we are doing and what else we could do, so drop her a line!
Lesley is responsible for leading the charity's finance and facilities functions, ensuring that we offer a musicians' first approach through our support services.
She enjoys all types of music; although not a musician herself, she is often seen dancing along - with anything from Abba to ZZ Top likely to see her either take to the dancefloor or find her air guitar.
Job Titles:
- Director of Communications
Liz leads in Communications and Marketing, Musicians' Engagement and our Ambassador Relations; ultimately supporting the charity's aim to reach every musician in the UK and ensuring they can access the help they need.
Liz used her journalism degree to combine her two biggest passions: music and writing. Having spent close to a decade in both consumer and trade music journalism, she chased exciting music stories from tiny festivals in remote parts of Canada to major label boardrooms. Since joining the charity in 2018, Liz has pooled her professional experience to work across PR, social media, musicians' experience, marketing campaigns and communications.
Job Titles:
- Trustee / HR Director, United Talent Agency
Job Titles:
- Trustee, Music Minds Matter
Melanie is currently Head of Investor Services at Utopia Music, having previously worked at EMI Music Publishing, Sony ATV and Facebook as Head of Music publishing Partnerships, International. Melanie is also a current board trustee for The Ivors Academy Trust.
Mrs Anne Mitchener, who became a Trustee in 2019, has a BSc in Psychology from University College London and followed this with a PhD at the Institute of Psychiatry in drug abuse. She qualified in medicine from Cambridge (Downing College and New Addenbrooke's Hospital) and completed her neurosurgical training in London, Glasgow and Edinburgh, becoming a consultant in 2001.
Between 2002 - 2006, Anne worked abroad as Consultant Neurosurgeon in Norway and then as a Consultant Neurosurgeon in the NHS in London until 2009. Her neurosurgical interest is in spine. She has been practising fully independently in London and Surrey since 2009. Recently Anne has broadened her scope of work to include Emergency medicine and trained as an executive coach.
Her broad interest in music especially includes opera and jazz.
Job Titles:
- Trustee, Music Minds Matter
Paul has over 20 years' experience in entertainment retail including time as Head of Music for Entertainment UK. He began his Amazon career in the physical music team, taking on the category leader role for physical music and DVD, before moving to digital music to oversee the launch of two Amazon Music streaming services.
Job Titles:
- Trustee, Music Minds Matter
Reni is currently Vice President, Legal and Business Affairs at Warner Music International and Co-Chair of their Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic employee resource group.
Richard became a trustee in 2018 and is the Managing Director of the Ulster Orchestra in Belfast.
He has considerable experience of providing high-level support for orchestral clients across Europe and leads Find Your Way, the Association of British Orchestras' leadership programme.
He was a member of the bassoon section at the Hallé Orchestra in Manchester and spent a decade as the General Manager of the BBC Philharmonic.
Job Titles:
- Trustee
- Executive Vice President of the Global Classics & Jazz Division of Universal Music Group
Sam Jackson is Executive Vice President of the Global Classics & Jazz division of Universal Music Group, where his role encompasses international marketing, content creation, brand expansion, digital innovation and strategic communication, working with many of the world's leading artists in their respective fields.
He is also a Trustee of the Young Classical Artists Trust, a Member of the Board and Company of Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, and a Member of the Royal Philharmonic Society Council.
He formerly ran the radio brands Classic FM, Smooth and Gold.
Sandeep Dwesar has worked in a leadership role within the cultural sector for almost 25 years and is currently Deputy Chair of Shakespeare's Globe.
After qualifying as a Chartered Accountant, Sandeep moved from professional practice into industry working for British and American multi-national companies in the UK and Europe, and following that, as a change management consultant in the public sector.
From 1999 to 2022 he has been at the Barbican Centre, with strategic oversight of the Guildhall School of Music and Drama's operations, working both as COO and CFO. During this period, he also held a variety of non-executive roles in major national institutions within the creative sector.
Today Sandeep enjoys working with individuals, charities and enterprises enabling them to achieve their goals, and in turn learning from them.
Sarah has over twenty-five years' experience within the charity sector, and as Chief Executive leads the strategic direction of both Help Musicians and Music Minds Matter.
She joined the charity in 2019, having spent many years at the Royal Albert Hall leading their marketing, communications and visitor experience areas.
Sarah studied Music at Kingston University and her passion for music lives on; although time to play the cello and piano is a little more limited today!
Job Titles:
- Chairman ( Music Minds Matter ) Trustee ( Help Musicians )
- Industry Senior Executive
Silvia Montello is a seasoned music industry senior executive with 30 years of marketing, commercial and operational experience, including end-to-end product development, multi-discipline marketing & brand campaigns, business development, supply chain and global team management.
She has worked for companies big and small, from major corporates to small independently owned, and currently works at AIM as CEO.
Passionate about dance and electronic music, she is an active member of the Association for Electronic Music, and co-founder of dance label #remarqabl with the mission to nurture new songwriter & producer talent from under-represented areas: womxn, LGBTQ and people of colour.
Stephen is an expert in delivering executive coaching, having achieved10,000 hours of experience. He had his own mental health challenge, which was the catalyst to his training for nine years as a Person-Centred Counsellor and Gestalt Psychotherapist. This gives him a unique insight into mental health and the opportunity to contribute to the charity and speak from personal experience.
Job Titles:
- Trustee
- Chairman of the Finance and Audit Committee
Stephen has been a member of Help Musicians' Finance and Audit Committee since 2018. He also sits on the Finance Committee of Britten Pears Arts.
Stephen spent four years as a Trustee for the Aldeburgh Music Endowment Fund and five years as both a Trustee of the Monteverdi Trust and a Board member of Monteverdi Choir and Orchestra Limited.
After 25 years in institutional stock broking, specialising in European equities and technology, he was a founding employee at Artorius, an independent wealth advisory business. He is a member of the Artorius investment team as well as looking after clients.
Stephen was a music scholar who played trumpet in the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain.
During his time as a trustee (1999 - 2018), among other things, Tom served on the Finance Committee. He saw the great change from a small office in Ogle Street, focussing mainly on elderly, retired musicians, to the larger and more modern organisation working in partnership with others to offer a broad spectrum of support and opportunities to empower musicians of all ages, at any stage of their career.
Tom grew up in a musical family. His mother was training to be a concert pianist in Rome in 1939, which was unfortunately disrupted by the war. He taught law at Oxford then went to the Bar, taking silk in 1994, and was made a bencher of Lincoln's Inn in 2004.
He is on the council of the London Philharmonic Orchestra and is a trustee of Awards for Young Musicians.