Full Name
Claire Mera-Nelson
Job Title
Director, Music
Company
Arts Council England
Speaker Bio
Dr Claire Mera-Nelson is Arts Council England’s Director of Music, leading, developing and delivering national strategy and policy for the public funding of music in England.
Initially a violinist and improviser working in some of the UK’s leading period instrument ensembles, electro-acoustic music and film, prior to joining the Arts Council in 2018 Claire was Director of Music at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance. A specialist in developing groundbreaking, future-focused learning opportunities for musicians of all genres, as an educator she was known internationally as a pioneer in educational innovation.
At the Arts Council Claire oversees a portfolio of project and regular investment in music totalling almost £100 million. Her work has included commissioning major research studies into fairness and inclusion in classical music and an analysis of opera and music theatre in England, as well as – in response to the Covid-19 pandemic – overseeing the Emergency Grassroots Music Venue Fund and other elements of the UK Government’s Culture Recovery Funds.
Having first established the Supporting Grassroots Music programme in 2019, she is now leading Arts Council delivery of the UK Government’s new £30 million Music Growth package to help strengthen the grassroots music infrastructure across England and enable more UK emerging artists to break through on the domestic and international stage.
Known internationally as a passionate advocate for innovation and inclusion in music, Claire’s lifelong focus is enabling people from all backgrounds to access and thrive in the music and wider arts industries and building a secure and ambitious future for music and musicians everywhere.
Initially a violinist and improviser working in some of the UK’s leading period instrument ensembles, electro-acoustic music and film, prior to joining the Arts Council in 2018 Claire was Director of Music at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance. A specialist in developing groundbreaking, future-focused learning opportunities for musicians of all genres, as an educator she was known internationally as a pioneer in educational innovation.
At the Arts Council Claire oversees a portfolio of project and regular investment in music totalling almost £100 million. Her work has included commissioning major research studies into fairness and inclusion in classical music and an analysis of opera and music theatre in England, as well as – in response to the Covid-19 pandemic – overseeing the Emergency Grassroots Music Venue Fund and other elements of the UK Government’s Culture Recovery Funds.
Having first established the Supporting Grassroots Music programme in 2019, she is now leading Arts Council delivery of the UK Government’s new £30 million Music Growth package to help strengthen the grassroots music infrastructure across England and enable more UK emerging artists to break through on the domestic and international stage.
Known internationally as a passionate advocate for innovation and inclusion in music, Claire’s lifelong focus is enabling people from all backgrounds to access and thrive in the music and wider arts industries and building a secure and ambitious future for music and musicians everywhere.
