Gwlad o (protest) gân: Why closing Cardiff University’s School of Music is cultural suicide

Dr Nathan James Dearden

My heart breaks – for the current students who are experiencing the wonders of a music degree, for future students who may never have the chance to be part of this special place and its community, and for the friends and colleagues whose lives and energies have been dedicated to Cardiff’s School of Music for decades.

My heart breaks for their families, for the local community, for Wales’ artistic community, and for the state of Welsh music education. It breaks for the music teachers across Wales and beyond, where our Capital City’s university is diminishing the importance of music education. What do we tell our students when our own musical home appears to no longer value us?

The proposed closure of Cardiff University’s School of Music – established in 1883 at the founding of Cardiff University – is not just another calamitous administrative decision in the face of financial pressures; it represents a profound failure to recognise the importance of music as a discipline, a profession, and a cornerstone of our shared cultural heritage.

Losing the sound of the city

Although possibly a best-kept secret for many people of Wales, Cardiff University’s School of Music has been a truly world-class centre for music education and research for decades.

It has nurtured generations of composers, performers, scholars, and educators who have gone on to shape the cultural landscape of Wales and the wider world.

One of Wales’ most beloved composers, Grace Williams, won the Morfydd Owen Scholarship in 1923 to study at Cardiff. One of the world’s most performed living composers, Karl Jenkins of Palladio fame, graduated in the 1960s from Cardiff. Alun Hoddinott, as Professor and Head of Music in the 1970s and 1980s, catapulted Cardiff’s music scene onto the world stage with the Cardiff Festival of Music, attracting some of the world’s leading composers to the capital.

More recently, Sarah Lianne Lewis became the first female Composer Affiliate with the BBC National Orchestra of Wales in 2020, David John Roche won a coveted prize at the world-renowned Tōru Takemitsu Composition Award in Japan, and three winners of Wales’ most prestigious prize for composers, the National Eisteddfod’s Tlws y Cyfansoddwr (Composer’s Medal), have been Cardiff graduates: Christopher Painter (2005, 2010), Gareth Olubunmi Hughes (2016), and myself, the current holder (2024).

This lineage of composers flocking to Cardiff is no surprise. Cardiff’s enviable cultural ecosystem plays a significant role in this – the festivals, the music venues, the choirs and music groups, the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, the Welsh National Opera. It is a city that sings, a city that welcomes experimentation, a city built for world-class music-making – all now at risk.

The value of music education

Music education is often dismissed as a “soft” subject, a luxury in a world increasingly dominated by STEM fields and supposed economic pragmatism. But this perspective fundamentally misunderstands the role of music in society. Music is not a frivolous pastime; it is a rigorous intellectual discipline that demands technical skill, creativity, and critical thinking.

The decisions proposed by Cardiff University’s Executive Board have already caused harm. This has been especially highlighted with the digital noise produced by the grassroots’ petition from current students and alum, the protests, the public letters, and statements of support from the likes of the Royal Musical Association, Welsh Music Guild, and a line-up of other esteemed academic institutions, to name just the tip of this mountain of support and concern.

More than 73% of students in Wales pursuing music as an academic discipline – rather than a practical or vocational subject – are enrolled at Cardiff University’s School of Music. What makes this statistic even more remarkable is that over two-thirds of these students come from widening participation backgrounds, reflecting the university’s commitment to inclusivity and social mobility.

This serves as a powerful reminder that upholding the highest academic standards and driving meaningful social change are not only compatible but deeply interconnected. Cardiff University’s School of Music stands as an example of how excellence in education and a dedication to equity can go hand in hand, challenging the misconception that these goals are at odds with one another. They changed the life of this boy from the Rhondda Valleys, so it angers me that this opportunity may not be given to others like me in the future.

However, these proposals have also prompted us to look up and recognise what we stand to lose in Wales.

This includes not only generations of composers, but your music teachers, local conductors, outreach facilitators, theatre technical specialists, your community choir accompanists, research assistants, arts consultants for regional festivals, administrators, producers, academics, music therapists, and even the band you love listening to at your local on a Friday night.

This does not even account for the trades and industries Cardiff’s alumni enter beyond the music sector, benefiting from the strength of character and expertise that a university music education gives us.

A cultural catastrophe for Wales

The closure of the School of Music would be particularly devastating for Wales, a nation with a rich musical heritage. From the male voice choirs of the Valleys to the BBC Cardiff Singer of the World, music is woven into the fabric of Welsh identity – a ‘Land of Song’ whose voice is being ripped out.

Without a dedicated academic music degree in the Capital city, Wales risks losing its position as a leader in the arts. The closure would send a message that music is expendable, that it is not worth investing in, and that the cultural life of the nation is secondary to financial considerations. This has been the rationale for many of Wales’ cultural institutions in recent years – enough is enough.

This is a dangerous precedent, not only for Wales but for the UK as a whole. If a university as prestigious as Cardiff can abandon its commitment to music, what hope is there for smaller institutions, our local music venues, your county music service, or for the next generation of composers and musicians?

The broader implications

The proposed closure is part of a wider trend of devaluing the arts in higher education. Across the UK, music departments are being downsized, merged, or shut down entirely, often under the guise of “efficiency”, “reorganisation”, or “streamlining”.

The University’s Executive Board decision is remarkably short-sighted, especially considering the creative industries represent a significant growth opportunity for Wales, as recently outlined by the Independent Society of Musicians. According to the 2023 Clwstwr Creative Industries Report, in 2022, nearly 59% of the economic activity within the creative sector was concentrated in the Cardiff Capital Region, contributing an estimated £2.5 billion to the economy.

The report also highlighted that Cardiff boasts the highest density of creative industry employment in Wales, with 2 in 11 jobs in the city tied to this vibrant sector.

Furthermore, Creative Wales’ 2022 report on the economic impact of the Welsh music industries revealed that in 2019 alone, the sector generated £131 million in Gross Value Added (GVA) and supported 3,876 jobs across the country. These figures underscore the critical role the creative industries play in Wales’ economic and cultural landscape—a role that demands nurturing, not neglect.

By closing the School of Music, Cardiff University is not only turning its back on this legacy but also jeopardising its own future. The arts are a key driver of innovation and creativity, qualities that are essential in an increasingly complex and interconnected world.

Dr Nathan James Dearden is a composer, conductor, and producer. He is the Chair of the Wales Council for the Ivor’s Academy, and Lecturer in Music Composition at Royal Holloway University of London.

 He can be contacted at @nathanjdearden on X, Bluesky and Instagram, or via his website: nathanjamesdearden.com