Graeme Smillie

Graeme Smillie’s PhD research is a longitudinal study of Transitions 20/40, a widening access initiative at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. The project has been tracking the progress of 47 randomly selected students from SIMD 20/40 datazones who have been funded to receive pre-tertiary tuition at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland since 2013. 

Graeme is a touring and recording musician who has played for Emma Pollock, The Unwinding Hours, The Vaselines, A Mote of Dust, Arab Strap, Karine Polwart, Sons & Daughters, Idlewild, Da Fishing Hands, The Fruit Tree Foundation, and many others, incorporating many broadcast performances on BBC Radio 1, BBC Radio 2, BBC 6 Music, BBC Alba, WDR Fernsehen, Rockpalast, Baeblemusic, Pitchfork, KEXP, Spin, Sky Arts and Channel 4.

He has been part of a number theatre, film and dance projects with Sigma Films, National Theatre of Scotland, Scottish Opera, The Marc Brew Company and Random Accomplice. He is also an instrumental tutor, a co-author and tutor for the Get Started in Music programme for the Princes Trust in partnership with Beatroute Arts, and has worked with Chem 19’s YMI funded SoundLab and Demo Fund initiatives for a number of years. He also worked with live music promoter DF Concerts in a production and artist liaison capacity, which involved technical advancing and operational management at T in The Park, Connect Festival and the Edinburgh Festival.

Graeme is a graduate of the University of Strathclyde’s BA Applied Music and has an MLitt in Popular Music Studies from the University of Glasgow.