What better place than ESNS (Eurosonic Noorderslag) could have set the scene for the official launch of a new player amongst the associations of the music sector? Conferences and showcase festivals are the vital hubs for the international music community. These types of events are the hotspots to meet, socialise and discuss with those that support careers and talents and innovate the music ecosystem.
The events’ specific character and a set of shared values has led the East European Music Conference, ESNS, Linecheck, MaMA Music & Convention, Reeperbahn Festival and Tallinn Music Week to establish the Federation of Music Conferences (FoMC) – which is now ready to grow. The first concrete actions include a mission to support the European Commission in strengthening the dialogue with the music sector.
“Our events intend to serve and connect the entire music community, the policy makers and the connected neighbouring Creative and Cultural Industries, and even far beyond that“, says Codruta Vulcu, CEO of East European Music Conference (Sibiu, Romania), one of the six founding members, which are connected by their smallest common denominator: A curated conference with networking, capacity building elements, often alongside a showcase festival programme.
FoMC is complementary with the numerous associations and networks within the complex and multilayered music landscape. The Co-Founder of Reeperbahn Festival as well as partner and Managing Director of Inferno Events (Hamburg, Germany) Detlef Schwarte comments: “With FoMC we want to strengthen the interests of small and medium-sized companies in the music ecosystem. Only at music conferences do the players meet at eye level. This is where the surprising, the collaborative and the innovative emerge, which moves the industry forward and also benefits its many smaller stakeholders.”
Dino Lupelli, Director of Linecheck (Milan, Italy) says: “FoMC originates in Europe and we believe in European core values, like diversity in all its possible meanings. Though, we’d be happy to gather interest from all over the world.”
Regarding the potential growth and the governance of FoMC, Director of MaMA (Paris, France) Fernando Ladeiro Marques adds: “Yes, we’re open. We’ve launched FoMC, but hope that many other peer-events share our vision and continue to develop the federation with us”.
Helen Sildna, director of Tallinn Music Week (Tallinn, Estonia) says: “Today we are facing extraordinary challenges of climate change, war, inflation, and the effects of the pandemic. In a crisis like this it is crucial for our cultural confidence and collaboration to grow stronger. We need to be better at making the music sector more visible and understood in our societies, including all stakeholders from music fans to local governments and international institutions. Music conferences will offer our joint network for the benefit of the whole music ecosystem. Combined, we are a strong lobby force, an asset to our societies.”
What the association can do for peer events, the music community, policy makers and beyond will be defined by the Federation’s agenda, which is also being discussed during an open round table session at ESNS. The first concrete activity is being appointed by the European Commission: to strengthen the dialogue with the music sector.
Robert Meijerink, Head of Programme at ESNS concludes: “While there are many important points on the agenda, we’re absolutely thrilled about the trust given from the European Commission and are convinced that specific projects also meet the interest of other events, inside and outside of Europe. Let’s build on a collaborative future, with other conferences and the entire music sector.”
Join the Federation tomorrow at ESNS for a round table discussion.