Ursula Crickmay

Ursula Crickmay studied music at the University of York, where she also completed an MA in Community Music.  Her first study was recorder, and she also played piano and Javanese gamelan. 

After graduating, she worked for a variety of music organisations in both administrative and practical capacities, including project management, instrumental teaching and workshop leading.  At York Early Music Festival and York Millennium Mystery Plays, where she worked for two years, she got involved in the education programme, developing and leading a community oral history project 'Shadows in Time' working with local residents to create a shadow puppet show to celebrate the opening of the new National Centre for Early Music in the midst of their community. For Hoxton Hall in London she managed REAP – Raising Educational Achievement through Arts Projects – working with primary schools local to the Hall.  She worked for Blackheath Conservatoire, contributing to the teacher training programme at Greenwich University with sessions on music. She also worked as a recorder teacher for Hackney Music Service and individual schools in London. 

She spent 9 years working for Wigmore Hall, developing and managing an extensive community and education programme, becoming Director of Learning in 2008.  With over 400 events per year, the programme gave a broad range of people access to Wigmore Hall through workshops, projects, training and resources. Projects included study events and masterclasses at Wigmore Hall, work in schools, nurseries and community groups, and an extensive and highly regarded programme working with older people living with dementia and their carers. A broad range of project partners included several of the music colleges, as well as local authorities, music services and other arts organisations.  Ursula particularly enjoyed working with artists and commissioning new music for family and schools concerts, and initiating and getting involved with research projects which helped to develop good workshop practice and explore new ways of working.  Ursula also worked for the Royal Academy of Music contributing to third and fourth year courses on Community Music, and was an external assessor for fourth year exams. She was a trustee for local arts charity, Westminster Arts.

She recently moved back to Totnes, where she grew up, and currently works for Dartington International Summer School as Deputy Producer. She has two young children, Isla and Eve.