Dear Colleagues,
Welcome to the AEC Newsletter for October.
It has been a particularly dynamic month for our community, with inspiring activity across Europe. It is heartening to see the continued energy and collaboration among our members.
We are proud to announce the appointment of four new Working Groups for the 2025 - 2028 term. Their focus areas - Digitisation, Music, Society & Sustainability, Education and Profession, and Special Education Needs - reflect our shared commitment to shaping a more inclusive, forward-thinking future for higher music education.
As we look ahead, I warmly encourage all members to actively contribute to the development of our upcoming events, including the Pop & Jazz Platform 2026 and EPARM 2026. Your voices and your students’ participation in initiatives like the recently-announced Mentorship Programme are vital to our collective growth.
A special highlight this month was the IncluMusic Final Event, which celebrated the achievements of this inspiring project and explored practical ways to foster inclusion for students with Special Education Needs and disadvantaged backgrounds. I want to congratulate all of those involved in this marathon project.
Finally, I send my very best wishes to all attending the AEC Congress next week. May it be a time of meaningful exchange, inspiration, and renewed connection.
Best wishes,
Deborah Kelleher, AEC President
AEC participated in MONDIACULT 2025 in Barcelona: advancing culture, cooperation, and new momentum for higher music education. This global forum provided a valuable opportunity to highlight the vital role of higher music education in shaping inclusive, sustainable, and culturally rich societies.
Following the call for members launched in June, the AEC is pleased to announce the composition of its four new working groups on digitisation, society and sustainability, education and profession and special education needs.
Autumn is a season filled with project meetings and partner events, and AEC representatives had a busy October actively attending and contributing to various gatherings and events hosted by our valued members and partners.
Apply by 10 November, 2025, for the AEC–ECSA–EJN–JMI Mentorship Programme 2025–2027, an EU-funded initiative supporting young female and non-binary composers, songwriters, and musicians as they enter the professional world.
The AEC Pop and Jazz Platform Working Group (PJP WG) invites contributions for its upcoming conference which will take place at the Metropolia University of Applied Sciences in Helsinki. Apply by 7 November, 2025.
The Call for Proposals is open for the 2026 edition of the European Platform for Artistic Research in Music (EPARM) which will take place at the Norwegian Academy of Music in Oslo (Norway). Apply by 18 November, 2025.
The IncluMusic final dissemination event took place on 7 October at the Gheorghe Dima National Academy of Music in Cluj-Napoca, Romania. Around 40 participants engaged in presentations, interactive sessions, and discussions shaping the future of inclusive practices for students with Special Education Needs (SEN) and disadvantaged backgrounds in third-level music education.
How can we best support students in Artistic Research? The latest WE ARE webinar brought supervisors and teachers together to share insights, challenges, and good practices — led by Stephen Broad and enriched by lively group discussions.
Help us gain a clearer picture of how these genres of music are represented, supported, and connected across HMEIs today! Responses can be submitted until 8 December, 2025.
Complete a short survey prepared by our partner organisation MusiQuE - MusiQuE Quality Enhancement by 11 November, 2025. Your input will enable MusiQuE to offer more tailored and relevant support and provide insights for AEC’s lobbying activities in this field.
The IN.TUNE Alliance is redefining how music and arts universities collaborate across Europe. In just eighteen months, the partnership of eight institutions has delivered its first tangible outcomes — from new models for joint education and staff development to shared governance and quality frameworks.
The HarMA HUB invites new submissions to the HarMAnalysis Repository - a collection of analytical case studies designed to enrich music theory teaching across Europe. Authors are encouraged to contribute original or adapted analyses by 20 November, 2025.
AEC Events
5-8 November 2025
Mozarteum University, Salzburg
AEC Congress and General Assembly 2025
12-15 February 2026
Metropolia University of Applied Sciences, Helsinki
AEC Pop and Jazz Platform 2026
9-11 April 2026
Norwegian Academy of Music, Oslo
European Platform for Artistic Research in Music (EPARM) 2026
AEC Vacancy Platform
Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.
