Who We Are
MusicSA History and Corporate Structure
MusicSA has operated in South Australia for 25 years and is a Registered Company Limited. The Not-For-Profit Organisation is governed by a board of directors and led by a CEO. We have delivered more than two decades of successful outcomes, such as accredited industry training, the live music festival Umbrella Festival, talent showcases Scouted, the Adelaide 500 Bands on Track and the SA Music Awards.
Our Staff
Christine Schloithe
Chief Executive Officer
Christine is a highly accomplished multi-industry professional with extensive local, national, and international experience across the performing arts, music, festivals, major events, and cultural tourism.
She is skilled in facilitating creative outcomes, supporting artists and makers, and developing vital stakeholder and partner relationships. She has previously worked Adelaide Fringe, Adelaide Guitar Festival, Botanic Gardens, Department of Premier and Cabinet and Arts South Australia.
Christine works closely with the MusicSA Board and Staff, key stakeholders and government to raise the profile of the South Australian contemporary music industry, champion its successes and to build, activate, and strengthen the sector.
Jacqui Nikolic
Business Manager
Jacqui Nikolic is an accomplished office coordinator with over 10 years of experience in the RTO, retail and construction industry. She is highly proficient in business administration/finance and holds various qualifications in management, SFX makeup and film.
Jacqui has a keen interest in the music scene and has been involved with events across SA and Victoria. She was most recently involved with Girls Rock! Adelaide Rock Camp and a current recipient of Women In Music mentorship with Australian Independent Record Labels Association.
Contact for Systems Administration, Invoicing, Finances.
Ph 08 7320 3301
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday
Lauren Koopowitz
Marketing and Development Manager
Lauren is a seasoned marketer with a love of music, arts, digital marketing and collaborative relationship building.
As a multi-hyphenate, her experience spans marketing, sponsorship development, event management, and an array of creative content production at organisations including ibis Adelaide and her own marketing business, Quirks Creations. She loves to see community development, having sat on board multiple arts grants panels, and believes in grassroots growth.
True to MusicSA form, she performs in a local band, Diamond Skies, and has also worked as an actor for over 10 years.
Contact for marketing, advertising and sponsorship enquiries via lauren@musicsa.com.au
Gareth Lewis
Program Manager – Special Projects
Gareth is a student of festivals and venues and has worked in the events, live music and hospitality industries for over 20 years. Gareth has managed and booked clubs, graduating to owning multiple venues and through General Admission Entertainment and helping bring dozens of major touring festivals to life in Adelaide including Parklife, Soundwave and Groovin’ The Moo, whilst curating many of their own events, from HomeBrewed Festival to A Day on the Cans. Gareth is co-owner of the recently SA Music Hall of Fame-inducted UniBar ADL and co-founder, Booker and Event Director of Adelaide Beer & BBQ Festival, now the largest hybrid event of its type in Australia.
Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday
Blake Gilchrist
Industry Development Manager
Two-decade veteran of the national music industry, Blake is originally from Adelaide and worked extensively interstate before returning to SA just as the borders shut due to the pandemic. He is a respected major event producer, festival curator and advocate for the industry. Blake is currently the Festival Producer for Vintage Vibes and a Board Director for the ALMBC, and has just finished up as the Executive Music Producer for Adelaide Festival of Arts. He has worked extensively across all facets of the industry including events, festivals, touring, venues, bookings, artist management, licensing and licensees, marketing. He is passionate about sharing his knowledge and mentoring up-and-comers, supporting the local industry to grow and succeed and championing the strong talent in South Australia.
Dale Taylor
Music Business Courses – Music Business, Songwriting, Performance
Dale Taylor is a multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, producer, mix and mastering engineer from Adelaide. Dale has performed on a local, national and international level over the past 18 years. He has worked with local and international artists in many genres from Techno, Rock, Hip-hop, Electronica to World Music. Currently, Dale is the Guitarist of the Adelaide band “The Cities Alight”.
Ph 08 7320 3301
Monday, Thursday, Friday
Sebastian James
Industry Development Coordinator
Originally from regional SA, Sebastian understands how hard it can be to learn about the industry from outside of Adelaide and what regional support MusicSA can provide. He started out as a songwriter and performer and currently works as Artist Manager for 27 Music, representing artists such as Molly Rocket, The Tullamarines, Teenage Joans, and rising new talent Estee. His previous band projects include Pinkish Blu and The Mondays and has currently started a new project, Haliday. Sebastian works with booking agents, venues, events, publishers, labels and media and has strong networks nationally that will benefit local artists and businesses.
Christina Lauren
Marketing Assistant
Christina is an accomplished creative industry professional, with experience in roles across marketing, events and curation at a range of music and arts organisations (such as Carclew, Part Time Records and SALA). She has also worked in music publicity as a junior publicist with Against the Grain, as well as a visual arts correspondent for Verse Magazine. Christina’s love of music led her to manage local band Stripes during her Women In Music Mentorship program. Outside of work her personal passions also lie in arts and music, creating works as a visual artist and immersing herself in the South Australian music scene.
Our Board of Directors
John Glenn
Chair
From an initial career in music performance, John has had roles in financial, project and logistical management for a variety of government, non-profit and private entities. He was Operations Manager of Sydney Symphony, GM of Sydney’s State Theatre, and GM of the Venue Management Association (Asia and Pacific). John was Executive Producer – Venue Utilisation at Queensland Performing Arts Centre before returning to his hometown in the role of Executive Producer – Adelaide Cabaret Festival and Commercial Ventures from 2014-2017. John then returned to Queensland Performing Arts Centre in the role of Director – Programming.
Most recently John was Chief Operating Officer of GWB Entertainment and is currently a creative consultant and advisor. John serves on the Board of the Darwin Entertainment Centre.
Angus Crawford
Secretary
Angus Crawford is a qualified lawyer and muso at heart. Honing a unique combination of skills, he works for NewLaw firm Sprintlaw.
He is also a musician, playing in some of Adelaide’s most cheery, colour-clad bands. His passion for music has led to opportunities to play shows to crowds of thousands and have his music heard online by millions – all originating from humble Adelaide, South Australia. He lives and breathes the SA music scene.
Angus’ professional background and experience as a musician gives him a unique perspective on the music industry. He has seen first-hand the impact that support from non-for-profit arts organisations can have on the careers of emerging musicians.
Deb Edwards
Director
Deb Edwards has notched up a career of 37 years working in the Australian music industry including senior roles with EMI Music, Virgin Records and Sony Music. Originally based in Adelaide, Deb moved to Victoria in the mid 90’s to work as PA and Tour Coordinator for legendary concert and theatrical promoter Garry Van Egmond, and then as a publicist with one of Melbourne’s leading PR companies, Kerry O’Brien Publicity. Deb returned to Adelaide in 2001, joining the Adelaide Entertainment Centre as Corporate Hospitality Supervisor and in 2008 launched Deb Edwards Publicity managing national album release and tour projects for a long list of high-profile Australian artists. Operating as a PR specialist for the Australian country music industry, Deb spent 10 years working alongside long-time clients – Troy Cassar-Daley, Beccy Cole and Adam Harvey. The popular Adelaide 500 after-race concert series has engaged Deb as Concert
PR Manager since 2012.
A proud Yankunytjatjara woman, Deb also represents First Nations artists and organisations having worked with East Arnhem Land dance troupe Djuki Mala, Tandanya National Aboriginal Cultural Institute (Adelaide Fringe First Nations Fringe Hub 2020-2021), Reconciliation South Australia, AnglicareSA and her recent appointment to the DPC – Arts South Australia Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Arts Advisory Panel.
Craig Swann
Director
For over 25 years, Craig’s passion has been using technology to connect people and music – through innovative, intimate and interactive experiences. Currently, as Founder of Looplabs, he is focused on developing new interactive music products and experiences that break down barriers to making music – while connecting the world. Craig has received special recognition at SxSW for development of the web’s first drag’n’drop interface and has won the prestigious Webby Award. Craig believes in prototyping the future – that making is breaking – and that if it’s not fun, exciting or affecting lives it’s not worth doing.
Craig Lock
Director
Craig Lock began working in the music industry in 2010 and founded Five Four Entertainment with business partner Ross Osmon. Starting life as a weekly promoter of local bands in small venues Five Four Entertainment has since grown into into one of SA largest concert and festival promoters in South Australia. They run various large scale music festivals in SA including Spin Off Festival and St Jeromes Laneway Festival. In 2019 they also opened Lion Arts Factory a purpose built 500 capacity music venue located on North Terrace and just recently, opened the new Hindley Street Music Hall.
In 2018, Craig also founded Plus One Co, a promoter of bespoke themed club nights. The company runs 600+ events per year in venues across Australia, NZ and Japan. Craig also has extensive experience in artist management having previously managed nationally and International successful artists Tkay Maidza, City Calm Down and Japanese Wallpaper. Craig is passionate about the South Australian music industry and is a strong advocate for its economic and cultural value to the state.
Sharni Honor
Director
Sharni Honor is a wildly passionate woman of the music and arts industries in South Australia. She is the creator of award-winning travelling backyard festival series, The Porch Sessions, co-director of regional festival Porchland, and co-director of creative space and live music venue Summertown Studio. This is in addition to the recent creation of record store and label, Porch Records which is thriving beneath the roof of Summertown Studio. Her own back catalogue of industry work extends across WOMADelaide and Adelaide Festival and a plethora of national festivals, including Panama Festival in Tasmania.
In 2019, Sharni was named one of the InDaily 40 under 40 people in business and entrepreneurship and at just 29 years of age, she has now worked in music for over a decade. Sharni lives and breathes music and strives to create space for the incredible people that make it and is thrilled to be a Director of the MusicSA Board.
Rebecca Pearce
Director
Rebecca Pearce is an arts manager, creative producer, and arts programmer with over 20 years’ experience working in festivals and events, and live performing arts. Rebecca has developed and managed a variety of international projects and cultural programs encompassing music, dance, theatre, and visual arts. Most recently she has worked in the role of CEO for Adelaide UNESCO City of Music, and Associate Director with Adelaide Festival Centre.
Over the course of her career Rebecca has helped to support creative risk-taking and to actualise bold ideas and artistic visions. She was a recipient of Asialink residency with Singapore Festival, and also a Women In Music mentorship with Australian Independent Record Labels Association.
We are non-profit
The South Australian Contemporary Music Company Limited T/AS Music SA is listed on the Register of Cultural organisations with Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR) Status and as such can accept tax deductible donations. Please contact Christine Schloithe, Chief Executive Officer on (08) 8104 1101 for details.