In 1987, former president of Mahidol University, Prof. Dr. Nat Pamornprawat, established a project called the Music Education Development Project and appointed Dr. Sugree Charoensook to lead it. The program was initially offered at the Institute of Languages and Cultures for Rural Development as an elective course for undergraduate students. In 1989, the Institute of Languages and Cultures for Rural Development launched the first music master's degree in Thailand, titled the Master of Arts in Music and Culture, with an emphasis in Music Education.