OCM is delighted to announce the appointment of Noel Lobley as its new Director.
Noel will join the senior management team: Jo Ross (Associate Director) and Victoria Larkin (Deputy Director) to lead OCM into the next stage of its evolution in supporting, developing and presenting groundbreaking artists, new music and sound based work and in bringing artists and audiences together for transformative experiences. Noel will be starting in August 2026, and Emma Dunton will continue to lead the company as Interim Director during this transition.
Noel Lobley is a sound curator, researcher, artist and producer working across the fields of new music, sound art, ethnography, and arts education. He has collaborated with composers, choreographers, poets, dramaturgs, and visual artists in Europe, the US, Africa and Australia on a wide range of intermedia artmaking. Exploring concepts of immersion and healing, vibration and interspecies resonance, Noel has curated work in spaces ranging from rainforests to abandoned shopping malls, from galleries to township street ciphers. He previously worked as a sound curator at the Pitt Rivers Museum in Oxford, and then an Associate Professor in the Music Department at the University of Virginia, during which time he authored the multiple prize-winning book Sound Fragments: From Field Recording to African Electronic Stories. Most recently he has directed multiple projects linking local and international arts spaces and collectives for building long-term creative relationships for sustainable exchange.
‘We are thrilled to welcome Noel Lobley as the new Director for OCM. Noel’s breadth of experience and passion for contemporary music in all its forms will be a huge asset for OCM moving forwards. This is an exciting time and we look forward to OCM further expanding its reputation for innovative and inspiring work. We would also like to thank Emma Dunton (Interim Director) for leading the company so expertly through this transitionary period.’ Richard Tooth, Chair of OCM
‘Since the day I first moved to Oxford more than twenty years ago, I have always loved the highly original and incredibly intimate producing and curating values of OCM. The work always invites us into deeper listening experiences with music and sound by activating unexpected spaces. Now, after more than a decade living and working overseas in the US and South Africa, returning to my adopted hometown as Director of Oxford Contemporary Music fulfils a real dream. This is a simply wonderful opportunity to continue amplifying the best in new music and sound within truly inspiring environments.’ Noel Lobley
Noel succeeds Emma Dunton, Interim Director, and Jo Ross, Director of 22 years: ‘I am delighted that Noel will succeed Emma Dunton and myself. To bring Noel’s deep understanding of the role that music plays in society to OCM feels instinctively right for the organisation and the sector at this moment. We have long been fans and advocates of each other’s work and I very much look forward to working with him.’ Jo Ross, OCM Associate Director
Photo: Farrows Creative