Dr George Waddell

Dr George Waddell is Performance Research and Innovation Fellow at the Royal College of Music. He is also Area Leader in Performance Science for the BMus programme and an honorary Research Associate in the Faculty of Medicine at Imperial College London. His research focusses on understanding and optimising how performers learn, prepare, perform, and are evaluated, including the role of technology in enhancing these processes. 

George works with experts across fields to examine parallels in performance practice and to develop and deliver bespoke performance training to students and professionals, including stage presentation skills, managing performance anxiety, creative leadership, and thriving under pressure. He led software development on the RCM’s pioneering Performance Laboratory and oversees its use in research and teaching settings. As Area Leader in Performance Science he oversees a range of modules ensuring that students benefit from the latest research and scientific knowledge in their training. He designs and leads courses on scientific research methods, the psychology of performance, enterprise and innovation, professional skills, musicians’ health and wellbeing, and the science and practice of performance evaluation. He is a coauthor of the research methods textbook Performing Music Research (Oxford University Press) and serves as a consultant on external research projects. 

George holds a PhD in Performance Science from the RCM. He completed his BMus and MMus in piano performance at Brandon University (Canada) while studying psychology, where he was awarded the Gold Medal for the Master of Music Degree. He holds an ARCT Diploma from the Royal Conservatory of Music in Toronto. He is an Associate Editor for Frontiers in Performance Science and is on the editorial board for the Journal of Piano Research. 

Waddell G, Hockings D, & Williamon A (2025), The healthy musician, in C Lawson, D Salazar, and R Perkins (eds.), Inside the Contemporary Conservatoire: Critical Perspectives from the Royal College of Music, London (pp. 156-166), Routledge [DOI]. 

Waddell G & Williamon A (2024), Enhanced performance training, in C Johnson and A King (eds.), Music, Technology, Innovation: Industry and Educational Perspectives (pp. 59-74), Routledge [DOI].