Rate My Professor Jonathan Vaughan

Professor Jonathan Vaughan is Professor of Music and Principal at Guildhall School of Music & Drama, positions he has held since 2021 and 2022 respectively. He joined the Guildhall School in 2007 as its Director of Music, advancing through roles including Vice-Principal and Interim Principal. Prior to Guildhall, Vaughan was a member of the London Symphony Orchestra for ten years, where he was elected Chairman in 1999, and served as Director of the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain for five years. His academic background includes studies in double bass and piano at the Royal College of Music, following attendance at a comprehensive school in a heavily industrial part of the Midlands, where he attributes his career beginnings to free music lessons provided by Leicestershire’s outstanding music service.

Vaughan is currently pursuing a PhD on the subject of ‘Artistic Citizenship and Performance Excellence in Music Conservatoires’. His research focuses on artistic citizenship and its role in conservatoire training, investigating socially engaged practices across 24 institutions worldwide, from Japan to the United States, Finland to Austria. Key inquiries include how conservatoires train artists to engage with ethics, social justice, and well-being; the skills and learning provided for social dialogue; student preparedness for socially diverse settings; and principles for robust, scalable curricula involving students at all levels in socially engaged projects. He is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and of Guildhall School. In 2024, he was awarded the Freedom of the City of London by the Lord Mayor. Vaughan has served as a Governor and Trustee for many arts organisations and currently sits on the boards of the Young Classical Artists Trust, National Youth Jazz Collective, and Mendelssohn Boise Scholarship Foundation.