Harmony International Vocal Intensive 2025

Funded by Making a Difference Awards

Title: Harmony International Vocal Intensive 2025

Recipient: Sandra Oberoi

Date: 2025

The Harmony International Vocal Intensive 2025, curated and led by Sandra Oberoi, was a transformative week-long program held in May 2025 that brought together 62 vocal educators and students from across India, Sri Lanka, UK and USA for advanced training in voice pedagogy, performance, and vocal science. Rooted in a commitment to inclusive, research-informed, and accessible music education, the intensive featured over 21 sessions led by a distinguished global faculty. With the generous support of SEMPRE, 25 scholarships were awarded to participants from underserved communities, ensuring equitable access to this high-impact learning experience. The program not only addressed a critical gap in continuing professional development for Indian music educators but also fostered cross-cultural dialogue, expanded pedagogical horizons, and empowered participants with tools to deepen their teaching and artistic practice.

The Harmony International Vocal Intensive 2025 was successfully conducted over a period of seven days, drawing together 62 attendees comprising vocal educators, singing students (high school through tertiary levels), and emerging artists from across fifive cities in India, Sri Lanka, UK and USA with session leaders from India, USA, UK and New Zealand.

Now in its fourth edition, this annual week-long intensive has become a unique and vital platform, particularly in India, for accessible, high-quality, and research-informed vocal training. In line with its founding vision, the 2025 edition continued to uphold its commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusion in music education, with particular focus on pedagogical enrichment, technical development, and global exposure.

Through the generous support of the SEMPRE Grant, we were able to offer fully-funded scholarships to teachers and students from underserved communities. These bursaries ensured full access to the week-long program without fifinancial burden, directly addressing one of the key barriers to continuing professional and artistic development in the South Asian region.

Scholarship recipients represented a wide range of linguistic, regional, and socio-economic backgrounds, significantly enriching the diversity of the learning environment. Participants joined from Bangalore, New Delhi, Hyderabad, Kohima, Chennai, Lucknow, and Colombo.

The programme had a strong pedagogical and artistic impact. Teachers reported gaining new approaches to vocal technique, repertoire selection, and student engagement, while many participants described transformative experiences in areas that are often underrepresented in South Asian music training, including neurodiversity, female musical theatre training, artistic interpretation in art song, hip-hop, belting, and contemporary vocal practices.

Participant feedback highlighted the significance of the initiative:

“This intensive opened up my mind to techniques and science I never knew existed. I now feel more confident and informed as both a teacher and singer.”
— Nilima, New Delhi, India

“As someone from a small town, I’ve never had access to such global quality teaching. This week has changed my life and my teaching.”
— Yanpothung, Kohima, Nagaland, India

“This was the first time I understood how voice science connects with singing. It made everything click.”
— Ritoja, Bangalore, India

The Harmony International Vocal Intensive 2025 successfully met its core aims of democratising access to high-quality vocal education, fostering international dialogue, and equipping vocal educators and students with new tools for artistic and professional development.

SEMPRE’s support played a vital role in bridging financial and geographic divides and enabling meaningful participation from communities that may otherwise not have had access to such opportunities. The overwhelmingly positive response from participants underscores the continuing importance of sustained investment in equitable and inclusive music education initiatives across South Asia.