Springtime is the main season for annual meetings of many of our partner organisations and AEC Director Finn Schumacker had a busy month attending and contributing to four events hosted by our closest partners.

EMU’s Annual Meeting & RITMIKS

The European Music School Union held its annual meeting at the end of May in the city of Vic in Catalonia. During the annual meeting, participants discussed:

  • How to support the music school students on their path to success by promoting openness, fostering collaboration, and advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion.  
  • How the EMU can assist music schools in advocating for music and art education at local, national, and European levels.  
  • How the inclusion of early childhood music education can help music and art schools become more inclusive.

The conference was festively framed by RITMIKS, a festival for young musicians with over 170 ensembles, representing more than 4,000 students from 18 European countries. The concerts took place at more than 100 different stages in around 50 cities in the region and offered a truly unique experience for the participating young musicians.

Unlocking Voices – Shaping Music Education Futures  

Under the theme Unlocking Voices – Shaping Music Education Futures  the 32nd Conference of the European Association for Music in Schools and 10th ISME European Regional Conference took place 4-7 June at the beautiful Colégio do Espírito Santo – University of Évora, Portugal.

The impressive event with more than 100 different workshops, symposiums, paper presentations and round tables touched upon topics such as Community Engagement, Curriculum and Professional Development, Inclusivity and Diversity, Emerging Technologies and Student-Centred Learning.

AEC collaborated with its SCHEME partners EAS and EMU as well as ISME on a round table session on advocacy with the title Safeguarding Music Education: Building a Stronger Future for 2025 and Beyond. Discussions circled around effective communication, how to develop strong messages and set up relevant structures and partnerships.

BEYOND 2025: Being Many

Culture Action Europe‘s flagship event taking place 4-7 June in Turin BEYOND 2025: Being Many set out, among other things, to answer the question: What does inclusive cultural leadership look like in our shared pursuit of resistance and transformation? Through a variety of sessions, participants were invited to rethink traditional notions of leadership and try to uncover alternative, empathetic and sustainable practices that thrive in uncertainty.

BEYOND 2025: Being Many introduced a new concept: un-conferencing, partly breaking away from traditional conference formats, aiming at slowing down the pace and allowing for deeper reflection and meaningful exchanges.

During the Members Forum, AEC contributed to the Culture Compass consultation of Culture Action Europe that is being developed under the themes Competitiveness, Democracy, and Security. We jointly reflected on the questions such as: What are the main challenges, how can they concretely be addressed in the Compass and what resources (e.g. knowledge, expertise, strategic positions) do we already have?

In the coming months Culture Action Europe leads a process with its members aiming at producing a Shadow Culture Compass with key priorities and recommended actions for our sector that will be sent to the European Commission to be included in the final preparation of the first formal draft of the Compass.

13th European Forum on Music – Celebrating Musical Diversity

The 13th European Forum on Music – Celebrating Musical Diversity – organised by the European Music Council, celebrated the 2005 UNESCO Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions. The 2005 Convention is viewed as a significant step toward establishing standards for cultural policy so that art and culture can flourish in their diversity. It also promotes equal and fair international exchange of art and culture and is regarded as a counterbalance to international trade agreements that favour the liberalisation of trade in all areas. A key element of the Convention is the recognition of the dual nature of cultural expressions having an intrinsic and societal value as well as an economic impact.

The Forum offered a range of relevant sessions on themes such as Musical Diversity as a Cornerstone for EU Cultural Policies, Artistic Freedom under Pressure, Just recognition and fair remuneration for musical artists, and AI and Musical Diversity. 

The various formats enabled participants to establish new connections across familiar networks and facilitated different kinds of conversational spaces. This made the European Forum for Music a rewarding experience, and we look forward to continuing the dialogues and efforts to strengthen the role of music in our society.

Within the framework of the Annual Meeting of the European Music Council its members have elected a new board on 26 June 2025, for the next 2 years.The EMC Board is now including 8 representatives of EMC members to decide on content and the strategic outline of the organisation.

© photo by @Omar Havana