International Music Conference provides opportunities for local musicians
This coming October will see the fourth installment of the annual Waves Music Conference. With a total of 811 delegates, last year’s conference saw a 54% increase in attendance compared to 2012, and the 2014 conference is expected to grow even further. The symposium, which accompanies the annual Waves Vienna Festival, will take place from October 2nd to October 3rd 2014. The conference provides members of the international music business – opinion leaders, festival and concert organisers, labels and publishers, managers and media representatives – ample opportunity to interact, and to discuss music-related issues in a series of keynotes, panels, and workshops.
Conference in Vienna and Bratislava, Slovakia
Each year, one of the focal points of the conference lies on promoting exchange between Eastern and Western Europe. This year, that focus will be manifest in the choice of location: For the first time ever, the Waves Music Conference will also take place in neighboring Bratislava. The opening will take place in Vienna on the evening of Wednesday, October 1st, followed by the first day of the conference, on October 2nd. The second and final day of the conference, Friday, October 3rd, will take place in Bratislava.
New partners and a new location
The Viennese part of the conference will also be taking place in a new location: The University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna (Anton-von-Webern-Platz 1, 1030 Vienna, Austria), will be hosting the event, which is being mounted in collaboration with and alongside the 5th . The two conferences will take place concurrently, and will be open to delegates of both events, providing opportunities for networking meetings and mutually inspiring exchanges between the music industry and academia.
The Waves Vienna Conference is organized by Austrian Music Export.
Focus on “The Future of Music“
Once again, this year’s Waves Music Conference will provide a forum to discuss societal and economic ideas for the future: “sustainable festivals, music production, grants and sponsoring” are among the subjects Franz Hergovich, the director of international projects at mica – music austria, will be dicussing with industry experts and delegates. Incidentally, mica – music austria is celebrating its 20th anniversary in 2014, with a strong year-long focus on “The Future of Music.”
Focus Countries Croatia and the Netherlands
A further focal point of this year’s symposium will be the two guest countries Croatia and the Netherlands. The conference will host panels and sessions on these music markets and their specificities, and will feature speakers and delegates from the two countries.
Feedback Sessions: New Formats
The popular Feedback Sessions will be continued at this year’s Waves Music Conference, and expanded to include new formats. A selected group of artists performing at the Waves Festival will be chosen by a jury to receive individual and constructive feedback from industry experts. For the first time, international journalists will also be presenting their favorite performers in a panel at the 2014 conference. Furthermore, separate sessions will be held for electronic and pop/rock bands from the two guest countries and Austria, which in turn provides performers an additional opportunity to reach industry participants and expand the audience for their showcases at the festival.
Details of the Waves Vienna Conference programme will be announced Mid-September.
Links
Waves Vienna & Bratislava website | www.wavesfestival.eu
Ticket sales | www.ticketgarden.com/tickets/waves-vienna-2014
University of Music and Performing Arts Vienna | www.mdw.ac.at
Vienna Music Business Research Days | musicbusinessresearch.wordpress.com
Conference contact: Franz Hergovich, hergovich@musicaustria.at
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