The International Delegation Tour (IDT) call is part of a project, funded by the European Commission, EMX. The project’s aim is to test new strategies to develop and promote the export of European Music. Hand in hand with networks representing European music professionals, artists, musicians, authors and composers, the general objective is to experiment with different approaches to reinforce the international foothold of the EU music sector and generate new knowledge to European music export through research and innovative pilot actions. Applications for the IDT can be submitted from now till August 31, 2021. Winners will be announced end of September 2021. And the tour itself should take place between January 1 to May 30, 2022. Apply now!
For this call applications are open to a consortium of music-related organisations from at least two different EU countries, which will organise a week-long event in the first half of 2022.
The IDT will consist of an incoming delegation of 20 international music industry professionals visiting at least 2 EU countries and taking part in a mix of 1-1 meetings, networking events, company visits, live music with European music professionals, as well as any other activity or event that the partners would deem fit for purpose.
Key Objectives of the IDT
Provide European music organisations with a regional framework for collaboration in the field of music export through the programming of an incoming trade mission, which will model pilot European added value collaborative projects.
Create a program of dedicated, high-value networking opportunities between EU and non-EU professionals, which matches the export interests of EU music business professionals
Help revive cross-border collaboration and create new business opportunities post Covid-19 for European music professionals.
WHO SHOULD APPLY?
First and foremost, applicants who are genuinely interested in creating, nurturing and developing new collaborations and business opportunities for European music professionals.
The call is open to applications from a consortium of professional music organisations or companies which are willing and able to organise and host the IDT. Applicants must all fit the following criteria:
- Companies/organisations must be legally registered and based in an EU country.
- Companies/organisations must have a minimum of 2 years existence since registration.
- They must have previous experience running professional events for music industry professionals (trade missions, and/or networking events, conferences, roundtables, etc.).
- Both not-for-profit organisations (for example, music export offices, cultural institutions and trade organisations) and commercial organisations (such as music conferences, music festivals, live music promoters, record labels, music publishing companies, music studios and various music agencies – booking, marketing, label services, consultancy) are invited to apply. A consortium mixing public and private organisations is possible.
WHAT IS EXPECTED OF THE SELECTED APPLICANTS?
Selected applicants are expected to conceptualise and organise a week-long (6 full days + 2 days travel) incoming delegation tour for 20 international music professionals which will go to at least two different EU countries. The Tour will include a number of physical events and activities on the ground with a delegation of European Union music professionals.
Applications must include a specific program of their choice that fits their local music export strategy. This includes the program’s content, music industry sub-sectors and music genres it covers, as well as the choice of background for the international delegates invited to take part in the Tour.
Important!
The tour should include a minimum of 12 events in total, over the 6 days of the Tour (excluding travel days): 2 X Working brainstorming group sessions, 2 X Music Tourism activities highlighting local music industry players, 2 X European music markets highlights, 2 X Live music elements, 2 X 1-1 bespoke networking sessions, 2 X Group networking sessions.
On top of the above 12 live elements to take place on-site in the various European countries visited, the applicants should include in their program proposal: 1 introductory online session.
Who will be the delegates taking part in the International Delegation Tour?
International delegates
We want the International Delegation Tour to be as useful as possible to the host countries and wider regional music industry. This is why we don’t ask applicants to select international delegates from a certain country or geographical area, or for them to be a part of a certain sector of the music industry.
Your delegation can work across any music genre(s), from classical to metal, to folk, to techno, to hip-hop and rap, to free jazz, to commercial pop music, to roots music, to soul, to anything in between.
They can also be from any subsector(s) of the music industry: live music (including bookers, promoters, festivals), music publishing (including sync), recorded music (including labels, distributors, streaming platforms), marketing and promotion (including PRs, digital marketing professionals), music tech (including AI, VR, live streams).
European Union delegates
In order to select the EU delegates that will be invited to take part in the International Delegation Tour’s program of activities, the winning applicant must launch its own open call for application. The selection criteria will depend on the program suggested by the winning applicant for the IDT, but similar to the international delegates, we ask that the participants on the EU side are:
- A diverse crowd: the EU delegation should also be gender balanced (50/50) and reflect and champion the world’s diversity.
- 18 years old minimum. There is no maximum age.
- Current active music industry professionals: working in the sector should be their main activity and source of revenue.
As our project is co-funded by the EU, all individuals and beneficiaries from the IDT program must be EU passport holders based within the EU. Companies benefiting from our project should be EU registered and based legally, but the owner’s nationality is irrelevant.
Workload and responsibilities for the winning application
While part-funding, support and guidance will be provided by the EMX team at all stages of the project, the winning applicant is expected to manage most elements of the IDT themselves, including but not limited to: Project and Event production and management, Administrative Duties, Documentation of Actions, Communication and Final Report.
WHAT DO THE SELECTED PARTNERS GET OUT OF IT?
As the host and partner for the IDT, the winning applicant will benefit from the help of the EMX team at every stage of this project, including:
Funding
EMX will provide the winning application with a budget of 35.000 € (VAT included), which should exclusively be used for the following expenses:
International travel for the invited delegates: flexible (refundable and modifiable) return flights in 2nd class, including hold luggage, travel insurance, and airport transfers, mandatory PCR tests needed for international travel.
Local travel between the two neighbouring countries: these will have to be train or bus/van hire travel in order to limit the ecological impact of the Tour.
Accomodation (single en-suite rooms in a 3 star Hotel minimum close to the town centre or venues used for the Tour, with free unlimited wifi and breakfast included)
Networking event activities: venue hire, catering.
Important!
Please note that the overall Tour budget will need to be completed by the winning applicant’s own funding (from their consortium), and this should be reflected in the provisional budget as part of the application. We understand that music organisations in different countries don’t necessarily benefit from the same funding and budget availability. Therefore we do not ask for the partner’s share in the total budget to match the budget allocated by us. Instead, we ask a minimum participation of 10.000€ (cash), which can be completed by additional in-kind budget (eg: venue hire, contributing staff). Please make sure the budget provided reflects this.
Best practice
The successful candidate will benefit from the EMX team’s extensive experience in the music export sector. From conference organisation to business trips, showcases to speed meetings, the project team has decades of combined experience in this field and will assist if and wherever the applicant expresses the need. The winning candidate will have direct access to the Task Coordinator and dedicated Task Expert throughout the process, from the application selection to post-event report delivery. Both will also be on-site during the event to supervise and ensure best practices are followed throughout the Tour.
In addition, as part of the EMX project, our team has carried out extensive research into how the crisis has impacted music export activities and what new challenges and opportunities have emerged as a result of it. The selected candidate will have access to our studies and our final report.
Finally, still within the framework of EMX, we are carrying out in parallel a new initiative, called the Innovation Lab, which will be a laboratory for developing new innovative tools and methods with the aim of facilitating professional exchanges between professionals in the sector. The candidate selected to carry out the International Delegation Tour will therefore finally benefit from the results of this unique laboratory.
Communication
The winning project will benefit from maximum exposure on EMX channels, as well as the Consortium and the Advisory Committee ones. EMX will announce the winning application and share their proposed International Delegation Tour program details on its channels. The IDT program details, news and opportunities will then be shared among its partners and members in order to reach local music professionals networks and actors through their respective social media, websites and newsletter.
Furthermore, the 25 countries represented and involved in the EMX project will share the applicant’s own open call for applications for EU participants amongst their local music sector, in their language, to reach music professionals from all EU countries. During the project development, the winning project’s communication manager will liaise with EMX’s communication coordinator to update her on the project, agreeing with her the key steps that would be interesting to share on the EMX channels.
The EMX communication coordinator will share with the selected applicant a press kit including promo materials (social cards, press release, and logo pack) for the announcement, indicating the date and the timing of the release on their channels to ensure effective and simultaneous dissemination.
On the public announcement date, the EMX communication coordinator will share the press release and the promo materials with the Consortium and the EMX Advisory Committee members which will disseminate them on their channels, as well as the EMX ones, to maximise the reach of the project awareness.
TIMELINE
Call for applications opens: Jun. 8, 2021
Call for application closes: Aug. 31, 2021
Applications reviewed by the EMX team and winning application selected by jury: Sep. 1 – 14, 2021
Winning application contacted: Sep. 16, 2021
Winning application publicly announced on all communication channels: Sep. 30, 2021
Between the 1st January and 30th May 2022: IDT takes place. The Tour should be 6 days long, not including travel days for the international delegates.
THE APPLICATION PROCESS
Please note the application needs to be made in English. For application details, go here. To apply, click here.
Austrian Music Export and mica-music austria are proud partners of the IDT initiative.
