A/Pr Melissa Forbes

A/Pr Melissa Forbes
NameA/Pr Melissa Forbes
Email Addressmelissa.forbes@unisq.edu.au
Job TitleAssociate Professor (Contemporary Singing-Music)
QualificationsBA Qld, BMusic Griffith, BA(Hons) Qld, LLB(Hons) Qld, PhD QldConservatorium
DepartmentSchool of Creative Arts
AffiliationsCentre for Heritage and Culture
ORCIDhttps://orcid.org/0000-0003-2528-9763
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Biography

Melissa is a music practitioner-researcher with a practice background in jazz performance, singing voice pedagogy, and community music. Her research explores the lived experience of music-making and singing across a broad range of contexts. Adopting lenses from disciplines such as positive psychology, embodied cognition, and positive leadership, Melissa uses qualitative research methods to position music and singing as positive health and wellbeing practices from which all can benefit. She is a Churchill Fellow and a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (UK).

Fields of Research

  • 360301. Music cognition
  • 360302. Music composition and improvisation
  • 360303. Music education
  • 360304. Music performance
  • 360399. Music not elsewhere classified
  • 529999. Other psychology not elsewhere classified

Professional Membership

Professional MembershipYear
Australian Music and Psychology Society
Australian National Association of Teachers of Singing
Somatic Voicework (TM) The LoVetri Method Teachers Association
Society for Education and Music Psychology Research (SEMPRE)
European Society for the Cognitive Sciences of Music (ESCOM)
Churchill Fellows Association of Queensland Inc
BA
Qld
1993
BMusic
Griffith
2004
BA(Hons)
Qld
1995
LLB(Hons)
Qld
1997
PhD
QldConservatorium
2016

Current Supervisions

Research TitleSupervisor TypeLevel of StudyCommenced
The role of community singing group leaders in fostering social identification and mental health and wellbeing outcomes among group participantsAssociate SupervisorDoctoral2025
Singing Teachers' Voice Self-Care PracticesPrincipal SupervisorMasters2025
A qualitative study of shame and perfectionism in pre- and post- operative injured professional singersPrincipal SupervisorDoctoral2023
The experience of mixed voice singing by females in contemporary musical theatre on BroadwayPrincipal SupervisorDoctoral2022
Oceanic Jazz: Creative potentials for fusions of jazz with traditional and regional music of OceaniaPrincipal SupervisorDoctoral2020

Completed Supervisions

Research TitleSupervisor TypeLevel of StudyCompleted
EXPLORING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PRIVATE PIANO TEACHERS CREATIVE IDENTITIES AS MUSICIANS AND THEIR TEACHING PRACTICESPrincipal SupervisorDoctoral2021
'Deed I do: Narrating expert vocal jazz improvisers' experiences of the pianoPrincipal SupervisorDoctoral2021
The emergence of Australian solo euphonium repertoireAssociate SupervisorDoctoral2020
In the room where it happens: Teaching musical theatre and Contemporary and Commercial Music (CCM) singingAssociate SupervisorDoctoral2020
Project titleDetailsYear
Churchill Trust Impact FundingTo produce the podcast ‘Leading Notes’ on singing leadership for social connection 2024
Sing to flourish: Singing solo to thrive in difficult times and beyond UniSQ Capacity Building Grant - $11,828.21 Professor Celmara Pocock (UniSQ) Dr Amanda Krause (James Cook University) Dr Dave Camlin (Royal College of Music, London) 2022
Churchill FellowshipThe Dr Dorothea Sandars and Irene Lee Churchill Fellowship to attend the Vocal Pedagogy Institute at Shenandoah Conservatory and intern with Robert Edwin and Jeanette Lovetri2010
Arts QueenslandTo record debut album "No More Mondays"2005
DateNameAwarding organisationUnderpinning research
2025Dudley Knight Award for Outstanding Vocal ScholarshipVASTA (USA)
2025Invited panelistInternational Positive Psychology Association
Item reviewedYear
Psychology of Music
International Journal of Music Education
Wellcome Open Research
Australian Journal of Music Therapy
BMJ Open
Evaluation Journal of Australasia
Frontiers in Psychology
International Journal of Community Music
Music Education Research
Musicæ Scientiæ
AI & SOCIETY
BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies
Frontiers in Health Services
Frontiers in Medicine
Imagination, Cognition and Personality
Music & Science
Musicology Australia
Public Health
Voice and Speech Review

From music performance to prescription: A guide for musicians and health professionals

Forbes, Melissa, Dingle, Genevieve A., Aitcheson, Nick and Powell, Christa. 2025. "From music performance to prescription: A guide for musicians and health professionals." Music and Science. https://doi.org/10.1177/20592043251338013

Addressing the global crisis of social connection: Singers as positively energizing leaders who create belonging in our communities

Forbes, Melissa. 2025. "Addressing the global crisis of social connection: Singers as positively energizing leaders who create belonging in our communities." Voice and speech review. 19 (1), pp. 44-60. https://doi.org/10.1080/23268263.2024.2368961

Does Reality Television-Style Singing Influence Singing Self-Concept?

Krause, Amanda E., Forbes, Melissa and Lowe-Brown, Xanthe. 2025. "Does Reality Television-Style Singing Influence Singing Self-Concept?" Journal of Voice. 39 (1), pp. 280.e15-280.e24. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvoice.2022.06.024

Becoming singular: Musical identity construction and maintenance through the lens of identity process theory

Forbes, MelissaMelissa, Goopy, Jason and Krause, Amanda E. 2024. "Becoming singular: Musical identity construction and maintenance through the lens of identity process theory." Psychology of Music. https://doi.org/10.1177/03057356241267863

“The Full Monty”: Taking a Fully Qualitative Approach to Research By Singers, With Singers, For Singers

Forbes, Melissa. 2024. "“The Full Monty”: Taking a Fully Qualitative Approach to Research By Singers, With Singers, For Singers." Voice and speech review. 18 (2), pp. 166-180. https://doi.org/10.1080/23268263.2024.2329421

The experiential salience of music in identity for singing teachers

Forbes, Melissa, Goopy, Jason and Krause, Amanda E. 2024. "The experiential salience of music in identity for singing teachers." Musicae Scientiae: the journal of the European Society for the Cognitive Sciences of Music. 28 (2), pp. 237-253. https://doi.org/10.1177/10298649231198002

From music performance to music on prescription

Dingle, Genevieve, Forbes, Melissa, Powell, C. and Aitcheson, N.. 2024. "From music performance to music on prescription." EACH24 - ASPIRE's International Social Prescribing Conference. Sydney, Australia 25 - 27 Jun 2024

Musical identity construction and maintenance through the lens of Identity Process Theory

Krause, Amanda E, Forbes, Melissa and Goopy, Jason. 2024. "Musical identity construction and maintenance through the lens of Identity Process Theory." 12th Triennial Conference of the European Society for the Cognitive Sciences of Music (ESCOM12). Melbourne, Australia 03 - 06 Jul 2024 Australia.

Choose Your Own Adventure: Vocal Jazz Improvisation, Conceptual Metaphor, and Cognitive Embodiment

Forbes, Melissa and Cantrell, Kate. 2023. "Choose Your Own Adventure: Vocal Jazz Improvisation, Conceptual Metaphor, and Cognitive Embodiment." Musicae Scientiae: the journal of the European Society for the Cognitive Sciences of Music. 27 (2), pp. 332-347. https://doi.org/10.1177/10298649211062730

Can E-Flat be sexist?: Canonical keys as marginalizing practice in jazz

Hargreaves, Wendy and Forbes, Melissa. 2023. "Can E-Flat be sexist?: Canonical keys as marginalizing practice in jazz." Reddan, James, Herzig, Monika and Kahr, Michael (ed.) The Routledge Companion to Jazz and Gender. United States. Routledge. pp. 303-321

Interpersonal neurobiology as a lens to understand the experience of group singing for health and wellbeing

Forbes, Melissa. 2023. "Interpersonal neurobiology as a lens to understand the experience of group singing for health and wellbeing." 8th Research Symposium on Social Impact of Making Music. Brisbane, Australia 20 - 22 Nov 2023 Australia.

MusicMaking and Civic Imaginationby David A. Camlin

Forbes, Melissa. 2023. "MusicMaking and Civic Imaginationby David A. Camlin." Australian Voice. pp. 77-78. https://doi.org/10.56307/RZFP3910

Examining 'good singing' in the age of The Voice

Krause, Amanda E. and Forbes, Melissa. 2022. "Examining 'good singing' in the age of The Voice." Spheres of Singing 2022. Glasgow, Scotland 04 - 05 Nov 2022 Glasgow, Scotland.

Introducing multi-sited focused ethnography for researching one-to-one (singing voice) pedagogy in higher education

Cox, Dale and Forbes, Melissa. 2022. "Introducing multi-sited focused ethnography for researching one-to-one (singing voice) pedagogy in higher education." Music Education Research. 24 (5), pp. 625-637. https://doi.org/10.1080/14613808.2022.2138842

Examining 'good singing' in the age of The Voice: Implications for voice pedagogy and practice

Forbes, Melissa. 2022. "Examining 'good singing' in the age of The Voice: Implications for voice pedagogy and practice." Australian National Association of Teachers of Singing National Conference (2022): Encompassing the vocal spectrum. Adelaide, Australia 29 Sep - 02 Oct 2022 Adelaide, Australia.

'Swinging through the trees': Vocal jazz improvisation, metaphor and embodied cognition

Forbes, Melissa. 2022. "'Swinging through the trees': Vocal jazz improvisation, metaphor and embodied cognition." Australian National Association of Teachers of Singing National Conference (2022): Encompassing the vocal spectrum. Adelaide, Australia 29 Sep - 02 Oct 2022 Adelaide, Australia.

Mobilising Metaphor: Self-Making, Storytelling, and Consciousness Raising in the Creative Arts

Cantrell, Kate, Batorowicz, Beata and Forbes, Melissa. 2022. "Mobilising Metaphor: Self-Making, Storytelling, and Consciousness Raising in the Creative Arts ." NiTRO: Creative Matters. 41, pp. 1-3.

We studied the 'bibles' of jazz standards - and found sexism lurking in the strangest place

Hargreaves, Wendy and Forbes, Melissa. 2022. "We studied the 'bibles' of jazz standards - and found sexism lurking in the strangest place." The Conversation. 20 Oct 2022, pp. 1-4.

Course enhancement conversations: A holistic and collaborative evaluation approach to quality improvement in higher education

Forbes, Melissa, Alderman, Lyn and Murphy, Angela. 2022. "Course enhancement conversations: A holistic and collaborative evaluation approach to quality improvement in higher education." Evaluation Journal of Australasia. 22 (4), pp. 221-236. https://doi.org/10.1177/1035719X221120295

Improvisation on the Move: Metaphors, Wanderings, and Musical Mobilities

Forbes, Melissa and Cantrell, Kate. 2022. "Improvisation on the Move: Metaphors, Wanderings, and Musical Mobilities." 5th Australasian Jazz and Improvisation Research Network 2022 Conference: Space is the Place (AJIRN5). Brisbane, Australia 06 - 08 May 2022 Brisbane, Australia.

Flow state, exercise and healthy ageing: 5 unexpected benefits of singing

Forbes, Melissa. 2022. "Flow state, exercise and healthy ageing: 5 unexpected benefits of singing." The Conversation.

Beyond the Resonance Metaphor: Re-Sounding Images, Experiences, and Poetic Reverberations

Forbes, Melissa and Cantrell, Kate. 2022. "Beyond the Resonance Metaphor: Re-Sounding Images, Experiences, and Poetic Reverberations." NiTRO: Creative Matters. 41, pp. 1-4.

Thematic analysis: a practical guide by B Virginia & C Victoria

Forbes, Melissa. 2022. "Thematic analysis: a practical guide by B Virginia & C Victoria." Evaluation Journal of Australasia. 22 (2), pp. 132-135. https://doi.org/10.1177/1035719X211058251

Editorial

Forbes, Melissa. 2022. "Editorial." Evaluation Journal of Australasia. 22 (4), pp. 203-205. https://doi.org/10.1177/1035719X221121399

Giving voice to jazz singers’ experiences of flow in improvisation

Forbes, Melissa. 2021. "Giving voice to jazz singers’ experiences of flow in improvisation." Psychology of Music. 49 (4), pp. 789-803. https://doi.org/10.1177/0305735619899137

'We’re pushing back': group singing, social identity and caring for a spouse with Parkinson’s

Forbes, Melissa. 2021. "'We’re pushing back': group singing, social identity and caring for a spouse with Parkinson’s." Psychology of Music. 49 (5), pp. 1199-1214. https://doi.org/10.1177/0305735620944230

The influence of vocal performance on singing self-concept

Forbes, Melissa, Krause, Amanda and Lowe-Brown, Xanthe. 2021. "The influence of vocal performance on singing self-concept." International Symposium on Performance Science 2021. Montreal, Canada 27 - 30 Oct 2021

'It's much harder than I thought': facilitating a singing group for people with Parkinson's disease

Forbes, Melissa and Bartlett, Irene. 2020. "'It's much harder than I thought': facilitating a singing group for people with Parkinson's disease." International Journal of Community Music. 13 (1), pp. 29-47. https://doi.org/10.1386/ijcm_00009_1

The value of collaborative learning for music practice in higher education

Forbes, Melissa. 2020. "The value of collaborative learning for music practice in higher education." British Journal of Music Education. 37 (3), pp. 207-220. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0265051720000200

The vocal jazz improvisation act: a phenomenology

Forbes, Melissa. 2019. "The vocal jazz improvisation act: a phenomenology." 3rd Australasian Jazz and Improvisation Research Network 2019 Conference: Body and Soul (AJIRN3). Melbourne, Australia 01 - 02 Jun 2019 Melbourne, Australia.

‘Tis the season to be jolly: singing Christmas carols together isn’t just a tradition, it’s also good for you

Hargreaves, Wendy and Forbes, Melissa. 2022. "‘Tis the season to be jolly: singing Christmas carols together isn’t just a tradition, it’s also good for you." The Conversation.

Higher degree research supervision beyond expertise: a Rancierean and Freirean perspective on HDR supervision

Hickey, Andrew and Forbes, Melissa. 2022. "Higher degree research supervision beyond expertise: a Rancierean and Freirean perspective on HDR supervision." Studies in Higher Education. 47 (8), pp. 1712-1723. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2021.1957812

Learning to make a difference: value creation in social learning spaces by Etienne Wenger-Trayner and Beverly Wenger-Trayner

Forbes, Melissa. 2022. "Learning to make a difference: value creation in social learning spaces by Etienne Wenger-Trayner and Beverly Wenger-Trayner." Evaluation Journal of Australasia. 22 (1), pp. 55-57. https://doi.org/10.1177/1035719X211038767

Descriptions and evaluations of 'good singing' in the age of The Voice

Forbes, Melissa, Krause, Amanda E. and Lowe-Brown, Xanthe. 2021. "Descriptions and evaluations of 'good singing' in the age of The Voice." Australian Voice. 22, pp. 17-28.

Socio-cultural influences on Australian adults’ musical identities

Krause, Amanda E. and Forbes, Melissa. 2021. "Socio-cultural influences on Australian adults’ musical identities." 16th International Conference on Music Perception and Cognition jointly organised with the 11th Triennial Conference of ESCOM (ESCOM-ICMPC 2021). Australia 28 - 31 Jul 2021 https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199679485.001.0001

An Artist-Level Jazz Singer's Metaphors of Cognitive Embodiment

Forbes, Melissa and Cantrell, Kate. 2021. "An Artist-Level Jazz Singer's Metaphors of Cognitive Embodiment." SEMPRE 2021 Conference: Engaging and Interacting with Education, Music, and Psychology Research. Keele, United Kingdom 22 Oct 2021 United Kingdom.

The jazz singer's mind shows us how to improvise through life itself

Forbes, Melissa. 2020. "The jazz singer's mind shows us how to improvise through life itself." Psyche. 31 August 2020.

'This circle of joy': meaningful musicians’ work and the benefits of facilitating singing groups

Forbes, Melissa and Bartlett, Irene. 2020. "'This circle of joy': meaningful musicians’ work and the benefits of facilitating singing groups." Music Education Research. 22 (5), pp. 555-568. https://doi.org/10.1080/14613808.2020.1841131

The soul of the voice: an interview with Trineice Robinson-Martin

Forbes, Melissa. 2020. "The soul of the voice: an interview with Trineice Robinson-Martin." Journal of Singing. 77 (2), pp. 273-279.

Integrating connectedness learning into institutional program review processes in an Australian regional university

Hammer, Sara, Ayriss, Peter, Basson, Marita, Batorowicz, Beata, Devine, Jo, Forbes, Melissa, Kist, Alexander, McCredie, Tessa, McCubbin, Amanda and Wade, Bill. 2019. "Integrating connectedness learning into institutional program review processes in an Australian regional university." Bridgstock, Ruth and Tippett, Neil (ed.) Higher education and the future of graduate employability: a connectedness learning approach. Cheltenham, UK. Edward Elgar Publishing. pp. 209-229

Facilitating singing groups for people with Parkinson's disease

Forbes, Melissa and Bartlett, Irene. 2019. "Facilitating singing groups for people with Parkinson's disease." 2019 Pan European Voice Conference (PEVOC 13). Copenhagen, Denmark 27 - 30 Aug 2019 Germany.

International perspectives on contemporary commercial music voice pedagogy

Forbes, Melissa, Bartlett, Irene and LoVetri, Jeannette. 2019. "International perspectives on contemporary commercial music voice pedagogy." 2019 Pan European Voice Conference (PEVOC 13). Copenhagen, Denmark 27 - 30 Aug 2019 Germany.

A tale of two pedagogues: a cross-continental conversation on CCM

Forbes, Melissa. 2018. "A tale of two pedagogues: a cross-continental conversation on CCM." Journal of Singing. 74 (5), pp. 579-584.

If the shoe doesn't fit: a case and a place for collaborative learning for music practice in higher education

Forbes, Melissa. 2016. "If the shoe doesn't fit: a case and a place for collaborative learning for music practice in higher education." Australian Journal of Music Education. 50 (1), pp. 53-62.

Playing the changes: an expanded view of higher music education through the use of collaborative learning and teaching

Forbes, Melissa. 2016. Playing the changes: an expanded view of higher music education through the use of collaborative learning and teaching. PhD Thesis Doctor of Philosophy. Griffith University.

Pedagogy, place and performance: the role of touring performing arts in regional Queensland - a review of Opera Queensland’s project Rossini

Hickey, Andrew, Johnson, Laurie, Scollen, Rebecca and Forbes, Melissa. 2016. Pedagogy, place and performance: the role of touring performing arts in regional Queensland - a review of Opera Queensland’s project Rossini. Toowoomba, Australia. University of Southern Queensland.

The intimacy of distance

Forbes, Melissa and Obino, Bianca. 2014. The intimacy of distance. Toowoomba, Australia.

Three perspectives on a collaborative, whole-of-program process of curriculum change

Hammer, Sara, McDonald, Janet and Forbes, Melissa. 2014. "Three perspectives on a collaborative, whole-of-program process of curriculum change." Journal of Teaching and Learning for Graduate Employability. 5 (1), pp. 47-62.

Music in higher education: an emergent social learning environment in a regional university

Forbes, Melissa. 2013. "Music in higher education: an emergent social learning environment in a regional university." 11th Australasian Piano Pedagogy Conference (APPC 2013): Opening Doors: The Complete Musician in a Digital Age. Toowoomba, Australia 02 - 06 Jul 2013 Melbourne, Australia.

Creating a functional musician: a performance workshop model

Gearing, Phillip John and Forbes, Melissa. 2013. "Creating a functional musician: a performance workshop model." International Journal of Arts Education. 7 (3), pp. 39-46.

Exploring female broadway performers' experiences of singing in mix

Forbes, Melissa, McAllen, Regina and Hughes, Diane. 2025. "Exploring female broadway performers' experiences of singing in mix." Voice and speech review. https://doi.org/10.1080/23268263.2025.2488102