Chris Dalladay, now retired, has been the lead tutor for the secondary music initial teacher training programmes at the University of East London along with the Assessment Only Route to gaining Qualified Teacher Status from 2005 to 2021. This followed 27 years as a classroom music teacher across both primary and secondary sectors, most latterly as Head of Performing Arts at a Buckinghamshire secondary school. His PhD (2014) concerns music teacher biography and its impact on classroom music teaching and learning. Later research is building on this through a continued exploration of music teacher identity, the subject knowledge of music teachers, and composing in education. He is a pianist and singer, currently singing with both Aylesbury Choral Society and Opus 48 in Oxford.