Showcasing

Some of the showcase festivals have a territorial/regional focus (e.g. Tallinn Music Week/EE, M4Music/CH), some are visited by internationals from all over the globe (e.g. Eurosonic Noorderslag, SXSW, The Great Escape). Some festivals put a focus on certain genres (e.g. Jazzahead, WOMEX). You can find descriptions of the focus of the events that we frequently work with as well as the application criteria and deadlines below.

Most of the festivals book acts only once, so it is very important to think about the right timing. Very often bands want to play too early and therefore hurt their chances for later on in their career when they would be able to make more out of such an event.

From our point of view it does not make sense to apply for a showcase festival, if you:

• did not yet perform a relevant number of live shows, some of them already outside of Austria. Please note that you’re competing with the best new acts from dozens of countries, you should be perfectly prepared.
• do not have professional partners (manager, agency, label…) that work for you at the event and in preparation for it. You will be busy checking in, making soundcheck, hopefully giving interviews, preparing for the show – you don’t have time to do business yourself. The chance of being selected will be greater if you already have an international network of professionals working for you.

• Make an effort to select the right events that fit your export strategy at the time. Get in touch with us for advice and funding opportunities. Do your research on visas or other permits needed.
• Use the database of delegates to find the key people you want to connect with and arrange meetings with them.
• Avoid mass mailings to all delegates. It is better to focus on people that fit your profile. Start working on radio or media promotion well ahead of the event.
• As a manager, agent or label: visit the event already before you go there with your own band to know the venues and specifics of the event. If you for instance go to SXSW first, you might be puzzled and overwhelmed due to the size of the event.
• As a band be aware that a showcase audience is very different to your usual audience. The professionals are here to work and watch a lot of acts every evening. They’re not patient, so don’t start with a ten minute intro, get right to the point. If they’re leaving, it does not necessarily mean they didn’t like it – they’re heading for the next shows. Even if there’s a very small crowd – give your best. The two people in the audience might become turning points in your career. Be aware that showcasing is not fun. It’s hard work, but it might pay off.

c/o pop (D)
About: Founded in 2004 as a response to the Popkomm festival’s move to Berlin, c/o pop has established itself as a staple on national and international festival circuits. c/o pop is considered a genuine festival for the up-and-coming: bands like Arcade Fire, Maximo Park, The Whitest Boy Alive and a host of others have played the festival long before their international breakthroughs.
Dates: April 24 – 28, 2024
Applications: Contact the festival at booking@c-o-pop.de. No deadline listed.

Eurosonic (NL)
About: Eurosonic Noorderslag (ESNS) is the key exchange and networking platform for European music, with a proven track record for helping new acts break into the international music scene. Selling out each year, Eurosonic Noorderslag attracts over 4000 delegates, including 400 international festivals.
Dates: Eurosonic Noorderslag (ESNS) takes place annually during the second half of January. (January 17-20, 2024)
Applications: Via the online form. Applications for 2024 are now closed.

Focus Wales
About: Focus Wales is a multi-venue international showcase festival based in Wrexham, North Wales, offering the music industry a selection of the best new acts from Wales and around the world.
Dates: May 9 – 11, 2024
How to apply: Via the online application form; applications for 2024 now closed.

Future Echoes Norrköping
About: Future Echoes is Sweden’s leading showcase festival, featuring about 100 international artists and a conference with international speakers. The festival is held at several venues in central Norrköping.
Dates: March 21 – 23, 2024
Applications: Via the application page, applications for 2024 now closed.

The Great Escape (UK)
About: The Great Escape is a festival for new music, showcasing 450 emerging artists from all over the world in 30+ walkable venues across the city. It’s the first place to discover your new favourite artist and see them in an intimate setting before they go on to headline major festival stages. TGE is also attended by the music industry who are on the hunt for the next big thing. TGE runs a convention alongside the gigs featuring insightful panels, topical debates, keynote speeches and networking opportunities in abundance.
Dates: May 15-18, 2024
Applications: Apply via the festival website; applications open until February 16, 2024

Iceland Airwaves (IS)
About: Halfway between North America and Europe, Iceland Airwaves brings together emerging Icelandic talents and the most promising acts from around the world. Every November, Reykjavik comes to life for a four-day conference and non-stop music. The deadline for international bands to apply for Iceland Airwaves is usually end of June.
Dates: November 7-9, 2024
Applications: Via the festival website. Applications are currently closed.

Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival (UK)
About: hcmf is an annual, international festival of contemporary and new music, over 10 days consisting of approximately 50 events, including concerts, music-theatre, dance, multi-media, talks and film, with a related Learning and Participation programme devised and implemented to reflect the artistic program and respond to regional need.
Dates: November 15-24, 2024
Applications: Contact Sophie Cooper at s.cooper@hud.ac.uk.

jazzahead!
About: jazzahead! is an event for the international jazz industry and a place for high-quality, contemporary jazz from Germany, Europe and overseas. The jazzahead! trade fair and the accompanying festival take place in April in Bremen (GER).
Dates: April 11 – 13, 2024
Applications: Online via the event website. Applications for 2024 are now closed.

L2MS
About: L2MS is the first European event bringing professionals from the ‘extreme music’ industry together; its first edition will be held in Lille, France in 2024, with 30 emerging international metal bands. Conferences will address contemporary issues in metal music, and a lounge area will provide a place for meeting and networking.
Dates: February 6 – 8, 2024
Applications: Via the online artist application form, applications for 2024 are now closed.

Linecheck (IT)
About: Linecheck is a music festival and meeting point for industry professionals, held in the Italian city of Milan. Forming part of the wider Milano music week, Linecheck presents an extensive programme of talks, showcases, discussions that explore Italy’s music industry and its relationship with the global scene, featuring international players and the major protagonists of Italian industry, with more than 40 guest speakers.
Dates: TBA 2024
Applications: Contact the festival.

M4Music (CH)
About: m4music connects, promotes and discovers: This is where the Swiss music scene comes together, exchanges ideas and celebrates the acts of tomorrow. The Zurich festival creates a platform for exchange, information and talent promotion.
Dates: March 23 – 24, 2024
Applications: No deadline listed; contact the festival directly at booking@m4music.ch.

MaMa (F)
About: MaMA is a music festival and convention for the international music industry based in Paris. This event offers a gateway to the French music market and offers a place to meet majors or independents, producers and promoters, venues and festivals, bookers and agents, record companies, publishers, promotion companies, media… – and obviously artists!
Dates: October 16 – 18, 2024
Applications: For information contact contact@mama-event.com.

Ment Ljubljana (SLO)
About: MENT Ljubljana is a three-day showcase festival of fresh artists from all of Europe and beyond, during which around 60 acts perform at different venues in Ljubljana. The international conference focuses on the music industry and creativity.
Dates: February 21 – 24, 2024
Applications: Via online form. Artist applications for 2024 are now closed.

MUSEXPO L.A. (USA)
About: MUSEXPO, sponsored by A&R Worldwide, brings together some of the world’s most successful and infulential music business exceutives and more in Los Angeles for a showcase festival and conference.
Dates: March 17 – 20, 2024
Applications: Via email to showcase@musexpo.net; applications for 2024 are open until January 29, 2024.
For complete information see the artist information page; contact for questions: Monte Malone – monte@anrworldwide.com.

PIN Music Conference (MZ)
About: PIN is the first and only international music conference and showcase festival in Macedonia.Our goal is to enrich the local music sector by bringing the diversity of best practices, up-to-date knowledge and people who will be part of this development in Macedonia and the Balkan region.
Dates: TBA 2024
Applications: Applications are currently closed.

Nouvelle Prague (CZ)
About: Prague Music Week is a three-day music event that serves as a platform for connecting music artists and professionals, while also offering an exciting program for music enthusiasts from around the world.
Dates: TBA 2024
Applications: Via the festival homepage. Applications are currently closed.

Primavera Pro (E)
About: Primavera Pro (the Barcelona professional showcase festival and conference that runs parallel to Primavera Sound) is a global meeting for the music industry. For 5 days, the state of the music business is debated with the best-known experts in the field, showcasing dozens of newcomer bands and giving access to all the tools necessary for the professionals from all around the world who attend the meeting. Reduced prices for Austrian delegates are usually available for Primavera Pro Basic and the Primavera Pro Premium accreditation. Please note there is a limited quantity of accreditations, and they tend to go quickly.
Dates: May 29 – June 2, 2024
Applications: Contact Austrian Music Export, no specific deadline listed.

Reeperbahn Festival (D)
About: Since its debut in 2006, the Reeperbahn Festival has grown to become one of the most important meeting places for the music industry worldwide, and, as Europe’s largest club festival, it boasts a broad spectrum of emerging and more etablished artists. In addition to some 600 concerts by international artists held in a wide variety of venues, the festival programme includes events in the fields of fine art, film, and literature. The Reeperbahn Festival conference programme is designed for professionals active in the music and creative digital industries and features sessions, showcases, networking events, or awards ceremonies. Reeperbahn Festival also runs a series of international events throughout the year. With the support of the German Foreign Office, Reeperbahn Festival International offers a group of small and medium-sized companies, as well as promising new artists, a way into established and emerging global markets.
Dates: September 16 – 21, 2024
Applications: Via the application page; no deadline currently listed.

SHIP Showcase Festival (CRO)
About: SHIP is a three-day celebration of music in Šibenik, Croatia, taking place at multiple venues against the backdrop of the Adriatic Sea. The festival is open to musicians and bands of all genres; the inaugural festival in 2023 drew a crowd of over 3,000, including more than 300 music professionals.
Dates: September 12 – 15, 2024
Applications: Via online form, open until March 11, 2024.

SPIKE – Bulgarian Music Showcase (BG)
About: SPIKE is Bulgaria’s leading showcase festival and music conference. Held yearly in historic Plovdiv, Bulgaria, SPIKE plays host to music professionals and performers from all genres from around the world.
Dates: May 23 – 25, 2024
Applications: Via online form, open until February 1, 2024

SXSW (USA)
About: South By Southwest dedicates itself to helping creative people achieve their goals. Founded in 1987 in Austin, Texas, SXSW is best known for its conference and festivals that celebrate the convergence of the interactive, film, and music industries. The event, an essential destination for global professionals, features sessions, showcases, screenings, exhibitions, and a variety of networking opportunities.
Dates: March 8 – 16, 2024
Applications: Via the application page; applications for 2024 now closed.

Tallinn Music Week (EE)
About: An international line-up of over 200 artists will unfold in Tallinn’s best concert venues. Expect a multi-genre mix of regional headliners, up-and-coming names, cutting-edge acts, and established heavyweights from avant-garde to pop, from dance to metal and to classical music.
Dates: April 4 – 6, 2024
Applications: Via the online application form; also see TWM FAQ. Applications for 2024 are now closed.

Waves Vienna Festival (AT)
About: Waves Vienna is the city’s first club and showcase festival, featuring numerous local, regional, and international alternative, electronic, rock, and club acts performing in a variety of venues. The parallel Waves Vienna Music Conference offers lectures and panels, and workshops.
Dates: September 5-7, 2024
Applications: Via the application page. Applications open until the end of May, 2024.

Westway LAB (PT)
About: Westway Lab is Portugal’s first showcase festival, featuring a PRO conference and artistic residencies yielding unique performances. The festival’s goal is to bring together acclaimed and emerging, international and national, innovative and purist artists.
Dates: April 10-13, 2024
Applications: Via the online application form; applications for 2024 are now closed.

WOMEX
About: WOMEX – the World Music Expo – is the world’s biggest music meeting and global music conference, featuring a trade fair, talks, films and a showcase festival. Since 1994 WOMEX has been traveling all across Europe. Its 2023 edition will take place in Galicia, Spain.
Dates: TBA 2024
Applications: WOMEX launches its annual call for applications via its newsletter. Proposals can be submitted here.