Polifonia’s mission is…
…to promote innovation in European higher music education (HME) and to assist institutions to enhance the quality and relevance of HME through cooperation at the European level.
The ERASMUS Network for Music ‘Polifonia’ is the largest project on higher music education to date. Supported by the ERASMUS Networks programme of the European Union, ‘Polifonia’ first started in 2004 and, since then, has studied a range of subjects related to professional music training at the European level. In the scope of its first and second cycles (2004-2007 and 2007-2010) the project realised over 60 working group meetings in various European destinations, bringing together experts from more than 25 different countries. With outputs such as counselling and site visits, seminars and conferences as well as the production of 16 publications on various issues in the HME sector, Polifonia has continuously contributed to the enhancement of the quality of higher music education.
Building on a strong network of experts developed throughout the years and the work realised during the two preceding cycles, a third cycle of the ‘Polifonia’ project was approved by the European Commission for the period 2011-2014. ‘Polifonia’ III is jointly co-ordinated by the Koninklijk Conservatorium Den Haag and the European Association of Conservatoires (AEC) and involves 55 institutions in the field of music training and the music profession located in 26 European countries and in 4 countries outside Europe.
5 working groups (WGs) are now studying issues related to Assessment & Standards, Artistic Research in Music, Quality Enhancement and Accreditation, Education for Entrepreneurship, and Recognition, Mobility and Joint Programmes.
