New research released by Music Australia in the report, More Than Notes on a Page: The Music Education Ecosystem in Australia, has identified music education as a major economic contributor, generating $1.79 billion in revenues and approximately $1.5b in direct GVA (Gross Value Added) – exceeding the economic contribution of live performance.

The report examined music education across formal and informal settings, including instrumental tuition, composition, conducting, recording, live production and music business training.

Photo © Evan Peck/Unsplash

Music education remains Australia’s most widely accessed art form among children, according to new sector analysis, with 47 per cent of children currently learning music in a school setting and a further 23 per cent participating through extracurricular providers. This makes music the most common out-of-school creative activity, delivered across a diverse ecosystem that includes private and non-profit providers, community conservatoria, tertiary institutions, vocational training organisations and registered training providers spanning early childhood to lifelong learning.

The sector is economically significant but highly concentrated in key jurisdictions, with 63 per cent of identified music education organisations based in Victoria or New South Wales.

Instruction and delivery forms the core of the industry, generating an...