Researching and documenting musical traditions is an essential part of the work of the International program. In all the countries we currently co-operate with in Africa there are many musical cultures which have not been properly documented by musicians for musicians. The core idea behind the research and documentation program is to work with our partners to develop a systematic documentation methodology which will allow them to capture these traditions accurately on film.

While it is important to understand the history of the music in question and interview the guardians of culture the documentation also focusses intensively on the musical structures and techniques and seeks to capture individual instrumental and vocal parts and how they fit into the overall musical form. The research and documentation provides the source material for development of new curricula.

Since 2009 the Global Music Academy has developed a unique teacher training, curriculum development and documentation program called the Global Music Campus. The Global Music Campus gathers musicians from different countries together to develop new curriculum and professional music programs. Currently there are three Campuses running annually in South East Africa, East Africa and North Africa involving Mozambique, Malawi, Zimbabwe, Tanzania, Uganda, Ethiopia, South Sudan, Sierra Leone and Sudan. In each of these countries there is a partner institution which benefits from the program through teacher training, curriculum development and organizational development.

To date the program has completed the development of an innovative 2 year professional training program based on the European Credit Transfer System (ECTS) incorporating credit points, modules, module descriptions and learning outcomes. The partner institutions are also being assisted to gain formal accreditation in their countries. While the program makes use of the ECTS as an international norm the contents of the program are based entirely on musical practice of the region. The third and fourth years of the curriculum are currently under development.

With each partner, first stage of the process involves training a group of music teachers to teach the core curriculum imparting core musical skills using modern teaching tools designed specifically for the context of the region in close co-operation with the partner institutions. Once the skills development, inclusing the ability to transcribe music, has been completed, the second stage can begin. Here the institutions are empowered to document and develop new curricula based on their own musical traditions. To this end a specific documentation program is being developed. In 2017/18 the Global Music Campus idea expanded into South Asia with partner institutions in Sri Lanka and Pakistan. The pilot phase took place in Sri Lanka in August 2017/28. Here the focus was on South Asian music traditions.

The international network is made up of a number of different partner organizations with a diverse range of approaches to arts and music education in particular but also culture and development. Having collaborated closely since 2009 they have jointly developed a common methodology.

Concept Based Teaching

The curriculum developed for the Campus program is concept orientated, we show the trainees a concept and how to use it to teach themselves and then teach others. This is a learner centered approach which seeks to empower the learners to make choices and enjoy the process of learning rather than memorizing cognitive content for examinations. It encourages them to interpret the syllabus to achieve the prescribed learning outcomes using a variety of methods and resources. In so doing they are stimulated to analyze conceptually and challenged to find new ways to understand and explain a concept.

Practical Hands On Training

All the modules use practical training techniques to transmit these concepts meaningfully even if they involve abstract ideas.

Peer Teaching and Ongoing Training

Part of the Campus methodology is to get participants to work with each other: those who understand a concept quicker end up sharing their experience and co-teaching the others in an open learning environment during the Campus. Early on in the process the partners developed a monitored ongoing peer teacher training program which runs between the Campuses.

Interactive and Flexible Learning Environment

Creating an open learning environment is an important part of the process. Participants are encouraged to interact with the learning materials and make suggestions for improving them.

Structured Training with Regular Assignments

During the Campus the participants are given a strict daily timetable and are required to hand in assignments on a daily basis to monitor their progress.

Assessment

The participants are given a personal assessment at the end of the training.

Intercultural Skills

Because of the wide variety of backgrounds of the participants, attention is given to mutual understanding and respect for each other, participants learn to perform music from the other participating countries as part of this process.