Oxford Contemporary Music has revealed it has appointed a sound curator to lead the organisation.
Noel Lobley, who has recently managed international arts projects, will commence the role in August. He possesses substantial experience spanning curation, research, production and creative practice.
He succeeds Jo Ross, who led the organisation for 22 years, and Emma Dunton, who held the positions of director and interim director.
Having moved to Oxford more than twenty years ago, he explained that he has long admired the organisation’s unique and intimate approach to creating and curating work.
The programming consistently draws audiences into deeper engagement with music and sound through the use of unusual venues.
After more than ten years living and working overseas in the United States and South Africa, returning to his adopted city as Director of Oxford Contemporary Music feels like a genuine dream fulfilled.
He said this presents a fantastic chance to keep building excellence in new music and sound within truly inspiring surroundings.
Before this appointment, Mr Lobley worked as sound curator at Oxford’s Pitt Rivers Museum and later as associate professor in the music department at the University of Virginia.
He wrote the award-winning book Sound Fragments: From Field Recording to African Electronic Stories.
In his role at OCM, he will work alongside associate director Jo Ross and deputy director Victoria Larkin.
Jo Ross said she was delighted that Noel would succeed Emma Dunton and herself.
Bringing Noel’s deep understanding of music’s place in society to OCM feels instinctively right for the organisation and the sector at this moment.
They have long admired and supported each other’s work, and she looks forward to working with him.
OCM strives to provide transformative musical experiences through presenting and developing new music and sound-based live performances.
The organisation aims to reach audiences from diverse backgrounds locally and nationally through inventive programming and creative partnerships.
Recent accomplishments include A Century of Sounds: Live, a collaborative project at the Pitt Rivers Museum bringing together 100 international artists to explore the museum’s sound archives, and Moth x Human, a composition highlighting the decline of British wildlife biodiversity.
Richard Tooth, chair of OCM, said they were thrilled to welcome Noel Lobley as the new Director.
Noel’s wide-ranging experience and passion for contemporary music in all its forms would prove invaluable to OCM’s future development.