NDIS Music Program — Adelaide
Make Music Your Way — At Your Own Pace, in a Real Studio
Ongoing 1:1 music sessions in Adelaide for NDIS participants — music production, songwriting, DJing or recording, built around the goals in their plan. No experience, no theory, no pressure to keep up with anyone.
Can You Use Your NDIS Funding Here?
Adelaide Audio Institute is not an NDIS registered provider. That means the answer depends on how the participant's plan is managed — and for most people, it's yes.
Self-managed
You manage the funding yourself and can choose any provider you like, registered or not. We invoice you directly.
Plan-managed
Your plan manager handles the paperwork while you still choose your own providers. We invoice them directly.
Agency-managed
NDIA-managed plans can only be used with NDIS registered providers, so unfortunately that isn't us. We'd rather tell you now than waste your time.
Your plan manager or NDIS contact can tell you in a minute — it's written on the plan itself. Or get in touch and we'll help you work it out, no obligation either way.
What the NDIS Music Program Actually Is
Ongoing one-to-one music lessons in our Adelaide studio, shaped around the goals written into the participant's NDIS plan. Not a course with an end date — sessions continue for as long as they are useful.
Every session works toward something the participant actually wants to make — a track, a song, a mix, a recording. The skills come from building that, not from working through a curriculum.
Built around their goals
We work closely with families, carers and support coordinators so sessions line up with the goals already written into the plan.
No theory, no prerequisites
Built for people who may struggle with prolonged task engagement, or who have no interest in theory. Nobody needs to read music or have played before.
Ongoing, not a course
Weekly or fortnightly one-to-one sessions in Adelaide, continuing at whatever pace suits. There is no fixed end date to keep up with.
What They Can Learn
Lessons are built from the four areas below, in whatever mix suits the participant. Most people start in one and drift across the others as they work out what they enjoy — there is no set order and nothing has to be finished.
Music Production
Learn how to create any style of music using only a computer. This can include making original music, covers or remixes through the exploration of sound and music theory.
Skills this builds- Computer literacy
- Creativity
- Goal setting
- Critical thinking
- Problem solving
- Above all, patience
- Song composition
- Sound selection
- Programming drums
- Harmony and chord progressions
- Audio editing and sampling
- Sound design
- Mixing and mastering
Songwriting
Lyric writing is a well-known and effective way to explore self-expression and communication, and can enhance both mental wellbeing and communication skills. Participants learn how to write, record, edit and produce their own songs.
Skills this builds- Literacy and language
- Memory
- Articulacy
- Self-esteem building
- Intonation
- Timing
- Self understanding
- Confidence
- Lyric writing
- Audio engineering
- Recording vocals
- Live music production
Launchpad Music Making
An inclusive, engaging option for participants who may struggle with prolonged task engagement, or who are not interested in theory. Sounds are loaded onto a launchpad which lights up and plays each sample when pressed — an intuitive system that full songs can be recorded and built on.
Skills this builds- Engagement
- Sound selection
- Rhythm
- Dexterity
- Communication
- Confidence
- Learning and using the launchpad
- Sound selection
- Sampling yourself and sounds around you
- Song building
DJ Skills
Participants can learn how to mix and blend songs using industry standard DJ equipment. This can involve finding music to DJ with, building a system to organise tracks, and learning how to DJ live.
Skills this builds- Timing
- Problem solving
- Multitasking
- Confidence
- Reading social cues
- Memory
- Organisation
- Beatmatching
- Playlist building
- Track organising
- Musical phrasing
How to Get Started
Five steps from first contact to first lesson. Nothing is committed until you have seen the studio and you are happy it is the right fit.
Get in touch
Tell us a little about the participant, what they are interested in, and the goals in their plan. A short message is plenty to start.
We send you the details
Including the NDIS support codes we invoice under, so you or the plan manager can check it works against the plan before anyone commits to anything.
Come and see the studio
A look around our Adelaide studio, a chance to meet us and see the space. For a lot of participants, seeing the room first makes the difference to walking in on day one.
Enrolment form and Service Agreement
The paperwork side, done once. It sets out what the lessons cover, how they are invoiced, and what happens if a session needs to be changed.
First lesson booked
One-to-one, in the studio, at a time that suits. Sessions are two hours as standard, running weekly or fortnightly for as long as they are useful. Shorter sessions are possible where two hours is too long a stretch.
Who You're Dealing With
Ben Cosford
Director, Adelaide Audio InstituteBen is AAI's Director and a mentor with 20 years of teaching experience. As a working musician, actor and creative coach he brings a rare combination of technical depth and genuine human understanding to every session.
He built AAI around the belief that the right environment changes everything — especially for creatives whose brains don't thrive in traditional learning settings. Adelaide Audio Institute has been running since 2012.
Ben has run music groups for young adults with Down syndrome and for people living with mental illness in a day centre, and has worked with autistic participants throughout his teaching career. That experience shapes how sessions run here — starting from what someone is actually interested in, moving at their pace, and treating a difficult day as a reason to adapt the session to whatever is most helpful in that moment.
Adelaide Audio Institute is committed to providing a high quality, ethical and continuously improving service. We maintain all necessary qualifications and legislative requirements:
- National Police Certificates
- Working with Children Clearance
- Child safe environments compliance
- Professional Indemnity and Public Liability Insurance
Every mentor here takes NDIS participants. We match each person to the mentor whose skills and manner suit them — not whoever happens to be free.
Chris Low
Production & DJ
Caroline Tucker
Artist Development & DJ
Tom Calvett
Production
Andrew Armitage
Production
Katie Morrison
DJ
We Ran the Recording Booth at Adelaide's Only Inclusive Music Festival
In 2026 we were Platinum Sponsors of Amplifii, held at Hart's Mill in Port Adelaide. We wrote the festival's song ourselves, then ran the recording booth on the day.
More than 40 participants came through to record vocals, rap and spoken word onto it. No auditions, no experience needed, no one turned away.
Is This Right for the Person You Support?
We would rather tell you now than three sessions in. Here is who this suits, and who it does not.
A good fit
Someone with an interest in music — any level, any genre, no experience needed — who would get more out of working one-to-one in a real studio than sitting in a group. Their plan needs to be self-managed or plan-managed.
Also a good fit
Someone who has tried other activities and lost interest quickly, or who finds traditional learning environments difficult. Sessions move at their pace, follow what they are actually into, and nothing has to be finished.
Not the right fit
Agency-managed plans, which can only be used with NDIS registered providers. And anyone who needs music therapy — we are music educators, not registered therapists, and if therapy is what the plan calls for you want a registered music therapist instead.
Not sure? Get in touch and tell us a bit about the person. If it is not a fit we will say so, and point you somewhere better if we can.
What Families and Students Say
All published on Google, in their own words.
Tom was a great mentor and amazing in knowledge, skills, advice and immediately worked out our son's level and advancing him quite quickly over the week. Ben was great in helping us work out a customised course and was very flexible. Both Ben and Tom were friendly and approachable and take their craft seriously as does our son.
Super friendly staff and instructors, great equipment, and super flexible with bookings. You always feel like you're talking to a person and not a bureaucratic school staff when you deal with them. My 15yo son got a lot out of the lesson, he says they have been super useful and he's learned a huge amount.
I've been coming here for a while now and I've learned a lot. Before I started, I couldn't fingerpick guitar chords or write songs, but now I can do both after my 2-hour lesson. The staff I talk to are super friendly, so no disagreements or mean talk.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can we use NDIS funding for music lessons here?
Yes, if the participant's plan is self-managed or plan-managed. Both of those let you choose your own providers, and we invoice you or the plan manager directly. Agency-managed plans can only be used with NDIS registered providers, so those we cannot take.
Are you a registered NDIS provider?
No. Registration is not required to work with self-managed or plan-managed participants, which is the majority of people we see. We would rather say so plainly than have you find out after the paperwork.
Is this music therapy?
No. We are music educators, not registered music therapists. Sessions build real musical skills and the confidence that comes with them, but if the plan specifically calls for music therapy you want a registered music therapist instead.
How long is a session?
Two hours as standard. Shorter sessions are possible where two hours is too long a stretch — that is a conversation we are happy to have before anything is booked.
How often do sessions run?
Weekly or fortnightly, one to one, ongoing for as long as they are useful. This is not an eight-week course with an end date to keep up with.
Does the participant need any experience or music knowledge?
None at all. No theory, no prior lessons, no ability to read music. Sessions start from what the person is actually interested in and build from there.
What can they learn?
Music production, songwriting, launchpad-based music making, and DJ skills — in whatever mix suits them. Most people start in one area and move across the others as they work out what they enjoy.
What checks and insurance do your staff have?
National Police Certificates, Working with Children Clearances, child safe environments compliance, and Professional Indemnity and Public Liability Insurance.
Does the participant need to bring anything?
No. Everything needed is already in the studio — computers, software, instruments and DJ equipment. Nobody has to own gear to start, or buy anything to continue.
Can a parent or support worker stay during the session?
Yes, whenever that is what works best for the participant. Some people settle faster with someone familiar in the room, others do better on their own once they know the place. Either is fine, and it can change over time.
Where do sessions happen?
Always in our Adelaide studio — an acoustically treated space with industry-standard production and DJ equipment. We do not run sessions in homes or out in the community. For a lot of participants, coming in for a look around before committing makes all the difference.
How do we get started?
Get in touch and tell us about the participant and their goals. We will send you the details including the NDIS support codes we invoice under, arrange a look around the studio, and only then sort the enrolment form and Service Agreement.
NDIS Music Program — Adelaide
Let's Work Out Whether It Suits Them
Tell us a little about the participant and the goals in their plan. If it is not the right fit we will say so, and point you somewhere better if we can.