The Cordialis Foundation emerges from over 30 years of practice and research, largely undertaken at the (then) Canberra School of Music, subsequently the ANU School of Music. Its unique approach to music and other arts was initiated by Dr Susan West, based on the work of Dr John Diamond. Across its history, many individuals, especially teachers and students, have contributed to its development; in particular Cordialis joint founder, Dr Georgia Pike, and long-term collaborator and Cordialis Board member, Nicole Mengel.

 

Susan, a trained musician and music educator, helped found the Music Education Program, as an exclusive training program for young children. Through this work, she began to notice the ways in which traditional types of music education can stifle or limit the engagement it is designed to develop. Through her volunteer work with Dr Diamond, she gradually pivoted the Music Education Program to the Music Engagement Program, with a broader, social-altruistic philosophy.

 

Her research on this approach showed that wider engagement in shared musical experiences can have positive effects on all those engaged, while continuing to develop creative skills to match individual needs and aspirations. The central planks of this social philosophy involve sharing, for example, singing between groups such as children and senior citizens, and championing the individual musical and social choices of all those engaged.

 

After some 30 years at the ANU, the Music Engagement Program was defunded by its partner, the ACT Government, in 2018, just prior to the Covid 19 pandemic. The MEP, as a private entity, offered free support to its many school collaborators from 2020, using online and distanced resources. The MEP strengthened its connections with like-minded partners such as ACT Children Players, offering a wider range of arts engagement.

 

As of late 2025, the MEP has become part of the larger charitable foundation, Cordialis. It will continue to expand and develop its unique approach to shared, social, altruistic artistic engagement in Canberra and more broadly as it moves forward.