The Glasshouse strengthens its Board with major appointments as it embarks on a bold new chapter
Gateshead’s The Glasshouse International Centre for Music announces the appointment of four new Trustees, bringing a wealth of experience from across the music industry, business, finance and public life.
This is the first of two announcements The Glasshouse will make about its Board as several valued Trustees reach the end of their terms.
Baroness Thangam Debbonaire is a cultural leader, CEO of UK Opera Association, former professional musician and Shadow Culture Secretary. Arit Eminue is an award-winning professional with experience of talent, skills development and leadership in the music industry including for Universal, Sony and the BBC. Philip Keller has extensive charity governance experience, is a former FTSE 100 executive and is currently studying for a PhD in Musicology. Ian Shipley is a senior international consultancy partner at Oliver Wyman specialising in data, AI and business transformation.
All new Trustees share The Glasshouse’s long-term commitment to music, learning and cultural life in the North East and beyond. They also have significant connections to the North East region.
We have enormous ambitions for The Glasshouse and for what music can achieve in the North East and beyond. We’re building on two remarkable decades of achievement but also looking ahead to a period of significant creative growth, new opportunities for young people, and the biggest investment in our iconic building since opening.
Fraser Anderson added, "I’m hugely grateful to everyone who has served on The Glasshouse Board to date - it’s an extraordinary act of service to dedicate time and commitment to the flourishing of a cultural organisation. Our four new Trustees will share their collective experience across music, business, and public life, and I’m delighted they are joining us at such a pivotal time.”
These appointments will support The Glasshouse’s next chapter realising its international creative ambitions, nurturing talent and widening opportunity in music, and driving growth and renewal within a culturally ambitious region.
A recent report by the UK’s preeminent planning and development agency Litchfields found The Glasshouse has contributed over £1b in economic and social value to the economy, welcomed over 8m visitors and provided 2.8m music lessons.
Culture helps places thrive. We know that it sparks ideas, brings people together and gives communities pride in where they live, and more confidence in the future
Andy Haldane added, "Those are foundations on which a successful economy is built. The North East has enormous creative potential, and it’s a pleasure to welcome our new trustees at a time when The Glasshouse is at the forefront of unlocking that potential: by nurturing talent, connecting people and giving the region a stage on which to show the world what it can do. As a Board, our job is to bring energetic support to that ambition and ensure more people have the chance to be part of it."
With expertise from all sectors including cultural leadership and creative skills, philanthropy, financial and commercial business development, the new Trustees will contribute to a strong and inspiring Board supporting The Glasshouse in this next chapter.
What links all trustees together is a firm belief in the power of music and culture to make positive change happen.
I’ve spent my career helping people see what they’re capable of, often before they can see it themselves. The Glasshouse does that for visitors every year, from toddlers in their first music class to artists building careers. Joining the board as it heads into its third decade is a real privilege, and I’m looking forward to asking good questions, backing the people who make this place what it is, and doing the work.
I had the great pleasure of watching The Glasshouse being built two decades ago and followed it closely ever since. I have been thrilled to see how it contributes to the musical and civic life of Gateshead and the nation. It’s an honour and a pleasure to be asked to contribute my skills as well as my love of the institution and what it’s doing.
