National Keynote Address - Beyond a broken c(h)ord: Marking anniversaries, finding harmony: Stories of resilience and reinvention
Tracks
Stream One
Stream Two
Stream Three
| Friday, October 17, 2025 |
| 9:00 AM - 10:00 AM |
| Centre Stage |
Overview
Caleb Rixon | Sponsored by Genyus Network
Speaker
Caleb Rixon
Genyus Network
National Keynote Address - Beyond a broken c(h)ord: Marking anniversaries, finding harmony: Stories of resilience and reinvention
Abstract
This year marks the seventeenth anniversary of a pivotal moment that transformed Caleb Rixon’s world of music, performance, and identity. As the Australian Music Therapy Association celebrates its fiftieth anniversary, Caleb’s journey resonates with anyone who has faced profound change and invites reflection on life’s milestones, both personal and collective.
In this keynote, Caleb shares his own story of loss and transformation: from the stage lights of music theatre to the challenges of rebuilding a sense of voice, purpose, and belonging. Through this deeply personal lens, he explores what it means to practise resilience when life’s script has changed, and how embracing reinvention can lead to unexpected harmony.
Caleb invites music therapists, clinicians, and creatives to consider:
- How anniversaries and turning points can become catalysts for growth, hope, and connection
- The importance of creating safe spaces for clients, and how genuine partnership can empower others on their own journeys
- Practical ways to move beyond ‘treating symptoms’ by amplifying stories and fostering true belonging
This session is part memoir, part call to action. Caleb’s keynote encourages audiences to mark and celebrate shared milestones, reimagine what it means to have a voice, and take up the work of building community and harmony... together.
In this keynote, Caleb shares his own story of loss and transformation: from the stage lights of music theatre to the challenges of rebuilding a sense of voice, purpose, and belonging. Through this deeply personal lens, he explores what it means to practise resilience when life’s script has changed, and how embracing reinvention can lead to unexpected harmony.
Caleb invites music therapists, clinicians, and creatives to consider:
- How anniversaries and turning points can become catalysts for growth, hope, and connection
- The importance of creating safe spaces for clients, and how genuine partnership can empower others on their own journeys
- Practical ways to move beyond ‘treating symptoms’ by amplifying stories and fostering true belonging
This session is part memoir, part call to action. Caleb’s keynote encourages audiences to mark and celebrate shared milestones, reimagine what it means to have a voice, and take up the work of building community and harmony... together.
Biography
Caleb Rixon is a visionary social change leader, stroke survivor and advocate who has turned his personal journey into a catalyst for healthcare innovation and disability awareness. He founded global platforms that empower stroke and brain injury survivors through storytelling and peer support.
After losing his singing voice, Caleb transformed silence into storytelling and isolation into connection.
As founder and Chief Vision Officer of Genyus Network and Chair of Genyus Foundation, he mobilises people affected by stroke, brain injury, and disability to find their voices and reclaim their narratives, channelling creativity into advocacy.
Passionate about embedding lived experience insight into health, research, and education, Caleb collaborates with universities and organisations to co-design curriculum and amplify these voices.
His governance experience includes serving on La Trobe University’s Occupational Therapy Course Advisory Committee and as a Board Director for Occupational Therapy Australia.
Caleb’s unique storytelling has reached broad audiences via ABC, SBS, and Network 7’s House of Wellness. His peer-reviewed publication in Brain Impairment continues to shape the field.
Internationally, Caleb is growing his impact: he opened Johnson & Johnson’s HealtheVoices 10th anniversary event in the US and is set to present at the UK Stroke Forum. He is a 2025 Westpac Social Change Fellow and a sought-after MC and speaker.
