In January, we brought The Curating Composer: Creating Cultures of New Music research to REMIX Summit London 2025, hosted at the Royal Academy of Arts. This was part of a vital conversation on grassroots music scenes, placemaking, and the role of DIY curators in shaping culture.
The session, ‘Creating a Scene: Placemaking & DIY Curators’, was presented by our Chief Executive Dr Will Dutta, alongside Provhat Rahman (co-founder of Daytimers & Dialled In) and writer and journalist Emma Warren (author of Dance Your Way Home), and explored why grassroots scenes are the unsung powerhouse of culture across the UK.
Emma Warren at Remix Summit 2025
The Curating Composer: Understanding the Power of DIY Scenes
New music scenes often come about through the work of a handful of individuals or collectives of individuals, investing time and their own money into building likeminded communities. In an increasingly fragile ecosystem, this session explored the vital role of the DIY ecology, including the techniques and strategies deployed by these scene makers and creative entrepreneurs, often against all the odds.
The Curating Composer research, led by Dr Will Dutta and Fiona Allison (Creative Project Leader), examines how new music cultures emerge, sustain, and evolve. Through in-depth interviews, the research identifies four key themes that underpin DIY music scenes and offers recommendations for industry support. With small venues closing at an alarming rate and funding remaining fiercely competitive, the research calls for urgent action to safeguard grassroots spaces, invest in pathways for promoters, and recognise the vital contribution of DIY culture to the UK’s music ecosystem.
Remix Summit London 2025 – Photography by Sean Pollock and Munotida Chinyanga
Bringing the Research to REMIX Summit
Held at the Royal Academy of Arts and Here East, the sold-out REMIX Summit London 2025 gathered over 65 world-class speakers to explore the intersections of culture, technology, and entrepreneurship. This was the perfect setting to present the ‘Creating a Scene’ session, shedding light on the challenges and opportunities for independent curators and grassroots music communities.
With founding partners Google, Bloomberg and The Guardian, REMIX London was born in 2012 as an experiment to invite the brightest minds from across culture, technology, business, public policy and education to come and discuss the common questions facing us all. Since then, their sold-out summits are worldwide — hosted in cities including London, New York, Sydney, Dubai, Istanbul, Moscow and Perth. Over the years, they have brought together some of the biggest names in culture, tech and business – both onstage, in the audience and as partners – to share insights, swap notes and encourage new collaborations.
Provhat Rahman at Remix Summit London 2025 – Photography by Sean Pollock and Munotida Chinyanga
A Continuing Conversation
The presentation at REMIX Summit followed Sound and Music’s Championing DIY Music Scenes Over Breakfast event at Cafe OTO, where findings from The Curating Composer research were first shared with industry peers. Both events have sparked crucial discussions about the future of grassroots music in the UK, with a clear message: DIY music cultures must be recognised, supported, and championed if they are to continue thriving.
Sound and Music has made a commitment in our strategy to doing all we can to back new musical cultures and scenes, if you’d like to be part of it we’d love to hear from you.
Remix Summit London 2025 – Photography by Sean Pollock and Munotida Chinyanga
Read The Curating Composer: Creating Cultures of New Music
Championing DIY music scenes over breakfast by Finn Grant
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