Phoene Cave (BMus Hons, PGDip MT, MA) is an HCPC registered music therapist, creative project manager, singer, trainer and reflective practice supervisor in the creative health field. Phoene has spent two decades working with a range of diverse communities in nurseries, schools, further and higher education, concert halls, social housing, care homes, hospitals, a detention centre and a prison.
Phoene originally worked in the record and television industries at A&M Records and Hat-Trick Productions and had a successful parallel career as a professional jazz and pop singer, touring and doing session work.
In 2000 Phoene moved into education and private vocal coaching, becoming head of the vocal team at Richmond Music Trust, managing a team of peripatetic singing teachers delivering singing lessons and training to teachers across primary and secondary schools.
She started singing for breathing, a project for people with chronic lung conditions at the Royal Brompton Hospital in London in 2008 which led to her becoming a world specialist in Singing for Lung Health. She also set up groups at the Whittington and Charing Cross hospitals in London.
Moving to a role as Head of Music Services in 2010 for Nordoff Robbins, Phoene managed a large team of music therapists, creating strategic development, increasing partnerships and income and setting up a large inclusive community choir and running many other other NHS workplace and community choirs across London for the next decade. She continued to deliver creative workshops to students and staff across Universities, Schools, Care homes and Hospices.
In 2014, she spent two years delivering music therapy with the most challenged and challenging female offenders at HMP & YOI Bronzefield, (including in the mother and baby unit), with children and young people at Eggtooth and Culture Shift and for young asylum seekers at the Enthum Foundation. In 2017 she was a project manager in the learning and participation team for the Wigmore Hall’s Music for Life project. The role included delivering reflective practice for musicians and care home staff working in music with residents with complex dementias.
Phoene is the Director of The Musical Breath which provides high quality training and workshops in Singing For Lung Health for singing teachers, community choir leaders and allied health professionals.
“Phoene Cave is an excellent trainer and singing leader. Her knowledge of the whole body, its relationship to the breath, and balance of energy is profound”
Gillyanne Kayes. Author, researcher and vocal consultant
In March 2020 when Covid hit, she moved all her face-to-face Singing for Lung Health training online. She has trained 350+ facilitators worldwide and been involved and published both RCTs, NIHR funded feasibility studies and a book chapter for a Routledge publication Studies in Singing:Wellbeing.
In 2021 she moved to another award winning strategic role funded by NHS England as arts therapies placements development lead at East London NHS Foundation Trust increasing the reach and breadth of arts therapies students resulting in 12 new placements beyond adult secondary care.
Phoene has been commissioned as a practitioner, trainer, or consultant by multiple high level arts and educational organisations including:
Surrey Arts, Imperial college London, Southbank Centre, Hayward Gallery, Live Music Now, British Lung Foundation, rb&h Arts, Breathe AHR, Institute of Contemporary Music Performance, Sing up!, Trinity Guildhall, Royal Festival Hall, Roehampton University, Wandsworth Council Arts service, Richmond Upon Thames Childrens’ service, British Association of Music therapy, Anvil Basingstoke, Sound Connections, Soundcastle, Wishing Well, Rockschool
Since 2022 Phoene has been delivering regular week long hybrid training providing creative health toolkits to nursing students at Roehampton University as the Director of www.creativehealthtraining.com. She works with a wonderful team across Drama, Dance and Art as well as Music.
In February 2024 Phoene was Creative Producer and Lead Artist on an Arts Council funded project, developing a new cross arts creative collective. www.transitcollective.org. This was part of the Eastbourne Alive celebration of the town hosting the Turner prize. This gave Phoene a taste for performance again after many years of giving others a voice. She is currently developing her work in this area whilst still supervising reflective practice for artists and musicians working in challenging situations, educating and informing medical and nursing students and allied health professionals, care home and hospice staff of the power of creative toolkits to support health and wellbeing and continuing to deliver her groundbreaking Musical Breath training on Body, Breath and Voice.
From 2025 Phoene has been working as a specialist learning mentor with students at Brighton University with challenges around mental health and/or neurodiversity.
She sits on the board of Culture East Sussex representing freelance creatives, alongside representatives from local cultural organisations, East Sussex County Council, Eastbourne Lewes, Hastings, Rother and Wealden District and Borough Councils, Team East Sussex