Feedback Loops - Bristol Nights, Music Fund Workshop

Bristol is building something designed to last - where the people who create the vibe have a real say in the future.

In "A Ticket to the Future", Bristol Nights set out an ambition to create a community-owned, self-sustaining model for long-term investment in Bristol's music culture. To do this, we aim to establish a Community Benefit Society (CBS), owned by the music community itself.

We are now moving from listening into building, and we want the region's research communities to help strengthen the understanding, impact, and accountability of the Fund.

Feedback Loops is a facilitated working session bringing together researchers across the region: who is part of the ecosystem, how it connects, where alignment or pressure sits, and who is missing from the picture.

The session builds shared understanding across academic and private research spaces and creates starting points for future collaboration.

This is not a conference. It is a hands-on, creative working session that is collaborative, energising, and grounded in the expertise in the room.

What this session is

This is a co-design working session focused on understanding the research ecosystem connected to the Bristol Music Fund.

Together, we will build a shared picture of the regional research ecosystem by exploring:

• An overview of the Bristol Music Fund Road Map and what challenges lie ahead
• Who is part of the ecosystem, including which institutions, subject areas, practices, and networks are present
• Who is missing or underrepresented, and why
• What themes of research and practice could strengthen the Fund's mission, vision, and long-term goals
• Where opportunities exist to develop these ideas into action and impact

The session is designed as a practical, visual working space that is collaborative, honest, and grounded in lived experience. You will be invited to contribute your perspective, listen to others, and help shape research pathways that can influence the Fund's next phases and the wider music ecosystem.

The session will be guided by Studio Susegad, who bring deep experience holding creative, high-trust spaces across culture and community.

This session is held by Bristol Nights (Bristol City Council) and UWE Bristol (Audio and Music Technologies). It is funded by the Higher Education Innovation Fund (HEIF) via UWE Bristol.

By the end, we will have a shared researcher ecosystem map and an insight set that helps shape how complementary research activity develops.

Venue: St George's Bristol, Apollo Room, Great George St, Bristol, BS1 5RR
Date: 23rd March 2026
Arrival:from 2:15pm for a 2:30pm start
Finish: 5:30pm
Refreshments: Provided

You do not need to prepare anything. Just be ready to share your research, teaching, or practice background, your connection to Bristol's music ecosystem (personal or professional), and to participate fully.

We highly recommend reading about the journey so far: www.bristolnights.co.uk/a-ticket-to-the-future

If you have access needs, please let us know when you book and we will do our best to support.

Who it is for

This session is for researchers in academia and the private sector. Those people whose specialisms connect to and critically examine the wider social, cultural, and economic contexts surrounding music. This includes artists, journalists, creative technologists, data scientists, financial technologists, sustainable business experts, economists, IP and legal specialists, action researchers, community researchers, health and wellbeing specialists, and others examining and working across the ecosystems that shape music.

We believe trust, shared language, and collective responsibility do not happen in one-off meetings. They are built over time. This meeting is an open invitation into the Bristol Music Fund's co-design process and an opportunity to initiate long-term research partnerships.

If you are freelance or unsalaried and cost is a barrier, a small number of attendance stipends are available by prior arrangement.

Why this moment matters

Bristol is developing a long‑term, community‑owned approach to investing in music. Research partners play a crucial role in ensuring this model is credible, equitable, and informed by evidence that reflects lived reality.

Tickets are free, but please book so we can plan the space and materials.