5 August 2026
Teachings of Richard Gill AO live on through the 2026 Music in Me Summit
“Every child deserves access to quality music education” – Richard Gill AO
Recently, 2026 Media and Communication Fellow, Sarah Huang contributed to the success of the 2026 Music in Me Summit. In this article, Sarah reflects on how the experience had a lasting impression on the importance of such events in bringing teachers together to remind them of the community across Australia dedicated to quality music education.
Even after a decade, Richard Gill’s belief that every child deserves access to quality music education continues to shape the Music in Me program.
About the Music in Me program
Formally known as the National Music Teacher Mentoring Program, Music in Me was developed to strengthen the quality of music education by hosting mentorships among teachers. At one of its key initiatives, Australia’s top music educators are invited to speak on teaching strategies that engage the modern curriculum.
The Music in Me program was formed due to the realisation that the quality and quantity of music training for teachers was irregular. Only a small number of teachers had specialised training in music education, and even so, the amount of time spent on music training paled in comparison to the preparation that teachers would receive in core subject areas such as Math and English.
The impact of music education in a child’s life is uniquely powerful. Music’s ability to stimulate creativity, develop focus and sharpen analytical skills may be transferred to other learning areas beyond the classroom, from which children are able to benefit from increased self-esteem, expanded social skills and overall positive wellbeing.
Richard Gill was aware of this and advocated that the only way children can leverage the benefits of music is to ensure that public classrooms have well trained music teachers.
Deep inspiration at the 2026 Music in Me Summit
The 2026 Music in Me summit indeed operated on this philosophy with over 200 passionate teachers across the nation attending the event. Going back to school, no doubt inspired and got teachers to use the new strategies. It was especially interesting to see the diversity in seminars. Teachings involved the musical traditions of Indonesian, African and First Nations cultures – reflecting students from a range of backgrounds.
Participants were also frequently invited to sing. Gill believed that singing was the key to teaching. By naturally committing songs to memory, young children can learn music without having to read notation, and by the time they are interested in instrumental lessons, learning notation makes more sense (Gill, 2014).
The voice is an instrument that most children already possess, and the Summit is a chance to not only prove Gill’s statement but is also an invitation to all children to participate in music.
Richard Gill’s vision that all children deserve quality music education continues to shape the Music in Me Program even almost a decade after this passing. The 2026 Summit providing a contemporary perspective to his ethos and teaching philosophies to the new generation of Australian children, which will no doubt continue to influence the Music in Me program for years to come.
Written by 2026 MAC Fellow Sarah Huang