BOOM – Oxford Contemporary Music

BOOM is OCM’s annual professional development scheme for music / sound artists / musicians and producers who are interested in creating and presenting inspiring contemporary music or sound based work outside of the concert hall and gallery (i.e. in unconventional spaces, outdoors, and in the digital realm). The scheme supports the development of artists (at any stage of their career) who are passionate about engaging with large and diverse audiences with contemporary performance, digital practice and installation work.

You can see examples of previous OCM projects here: ocmevents.org/projects and watch videos of some of our work here: www.youtube.com/@ProducedByOCM

If you are intrested in learning about BOOM and other opportunities both from OCM and partner and peers organisations that we share on their behalf, then please sign up to OCM’s Opportunities Mailing List.

We are delighted to announce the selected BOOM artists for 2025-6:

Tej Adeleye

Tej Adeleye is a writer, audio producer and cultural programmer. She is a producer for BBC Radio 3’s Freeness, and has produced a range of cultural and current affairs programmes and features for platforms including BBC Radio 1xtra, Radio 3, Radio 4 and BBC Worldservice. She has written for publications including Clash, The Wire, We Jazz Magazine and The Quietus. She has curated live music nights across London including Chila Nathi and Accidental Powercut. Her interests include climate health, disability justice, archives and improvised music.

Linktree Instagram

Corner of the Garden

Portrait image of Sam Dickison and Rachael Dadd

Corner of the Garden is a new music project by electronic artist Sam Dickison (Kulture) and singer songwriter Rachael Dadd. Together they create music that is an ode to nature, especially to the green spaces within their home city of Bristol. Using nature as a palette they begin each piece with field recordings – ambience and atmosphere and the sounds of them playing in the woods, whooping and creating percussion from sticks and logs. Sam then transforms these into sketches of beats and synth chords made from the elements. Rachael then sculpts them further with vocals, piano and clarinet and embellishes them with narrative and meaning. The results are something immediately catchy and dancey, whilst simultaneously being healing and therapy-like. Corner of the Garden released their first single Convalesce on 15th August 2025, which will be followed up by the release of their debut 4 song EP later in the year.

Rachael Dadd’s socials:

Website | YouTube | Instagram | Facebook | X

TOBITHEFREAK

TOBITHEFREAK is a South London-born Nigerian artist, producer, DJ and multi-instrumentalist, carving out a unique sonic space with his self-coined genre, “moody blue” (alt-electronic R&B). Unbound by traditional classifications, he blends elements of electronic soundscapes, soulful R&B, and alternative experimentation whilst adding a bounce intrinsically synonymous with black music. TOBITHEFREAK writes, produces, mixes, and masters his music independently, often incorporating live instrumentation into his tracks. Influenced by the likes of Steve Lacy, Sampha, Frank Ocean, and Blood Orange, TOBITHEFREAK’s music exudes a raw, emotive depth while pushing the boundaries of contemporary sound.

The artist is working towards releasing a full-length project this autumn in which will formally introduce himself and his sound to the world. The project called “Just because I write about you, doesn’t mean I care” in which he tackles themes of indifference, loneliness and their intersection

After spending the last 4 years honing his craft on the production and recording side of things the artist is now beginning a pivot toward primarily being a performance artist centring the compositions around live performances instead of the other way around.

Website

Aris Daryono

I am an Indonesian composer, traditional gamelan musician, and educator based in London.

My music is deeply inspired by my gamelan heritage and my expertise in gamelan, which I transform into compositions for a wide range of ensembles—from solo and duet to quartet and full orchestra. I explore diverse musical mediums, incorporating Western ensembles, traditional gamelan instruments, hybrid setups blending gamelan with other instruments, and electronic elements.

Collaboration is a key aspect of my work. I have partnered with puppeteers, jazz musicians, folk ensembles, choreographers, dramatists, visual artists, programmers, and DJs. My work has been featured on the Indonesian Gamelan Composers album by Yatra Production (Italy), in residencies at Snape Maltings, and in publications by the American Gamelan Institute.

I studied music in Indonesia before earning a Master’s in Composition from the Guildhall School of Music & Drama and a PhD from the University of York. My research and compositions focus on the intersections of gamelan and contemporary music.

Recent highlights include performances at the Colourscape Music Festival in London, a collaboration with artist Arahmaiani for her Tate Modern exhibition, and a partnership with Sriwhana Spong for the Busan Biennale. This year, I presented my string quartet Cekaking Carita at the Asian Composers’ League festival in Japan and performed my composition for gamelan and electronic at Classical:NEXT 2025 event in Berlin, Germany.

Website | YouTube | SoundCloud

Verity Standen

Verity Standen is a composer, director, performer and choir leader. She gathers people together to sing and explores different ways that people can experience vocal music. Her projects take a range of forms – concerts, theatre pieces, films, installations, community events – but they always start with the voice.

Verity’s performance work has toured across the UK and internationally, from village halls in the Outer Hebrides to the National Theatre, Prague to Shanghai. She has been commissioned by organisations including MAYK, Bristol Old Vic, Situations and English Heritage.

She has woven singers amongst audience members, had whole audiences blindfolded and hugged by singers, created concerts for one person at a time, filled castles, cafes and hospital wards with song.

Verity is based in Frome, Somerset, where she runs an open-to-all choir.

Website | Instagram