Dear friends and colleagues,
I hope you have had a wonderful and relaxing summer and are returning with renewed energy for a new academic year – one filled with exciting activities, inspiring encounters, new friendships and, of course, plenty of great music, learning and teaching.
The AEC season is already getting under way this week as we welcome many of you to the AEC Annual Meeting for International Relations Coordinators 2026 in Trento, Italy. Under the title Common Ground – Diverse Pathways, participants will explore the many different pathways currently shaping international cooperation in Higher Music Education.
I would also like to remind you that registration is open for this year’s AEC Congress and General Assembly 2026 at the University of Music and Theatre Hamburg. An exciting programme is waiting that will invite us to discuss some of the major questions facing our sector: how stronger connections between conservatoires and the music industry can contribute to artistic innovation, and how we can better prepare musicians for lifelong and sustainable careers.
For AEC, the coming year will also mean continuing our work to advocate for Higher Music Education and for the vital contribution that music and the arts make to society. We are living in times of crises. In this context, AEC has an important role in reminding decision-makers – and society at large – that music and the arts are a necessity as they enable us to feel and to imagine, to understand one another, to see the world from different perspectives and to respond creatively to the challenges around us.
I wish students, teachers, staff and colleagues everywhere an inspiring and energising start to the new academic year.
Finn Schumacker
AEC Executive Director
AEC’s new Advocacy Plan turns the organisation’s advocacy ambitions into a practical framework for coordinated action across European, national and international levels. It strengthens alliances, connects AEC with its members and partner organisations, and aims to maintain a strong, visible and influential voice for Higher Music Education in future policy and funding debates.
AEC is launching a new visual identity, built on a common visual language rooted in the musical staff. It brings our platforms, publications and events into a more coherent whole, while allowing each of them to keep its own distinct character. Find out what shaped the design and where you will see it appear.
The AEC has joined more than 70 cultural organisations, networks and institutions across Europe in signing an open letter to EU policymakers, calling for a stronger budget for the Culture strand of AgoraEU in the next long-term EU budget.
Meet the five new EPASA National Ambassadors representing Poland, Austria, Norway, Germany and Lithuania, and read about the EPASA Congress 2026, dedicated this year to student wellbeing and personal growth. Both come with an invitation: help EPASA reach students across Europe.
The digitalisation of Erasmus+ is entering an important new phase. AEC has been closely following these developments, participating both in the ESCI+ Consultation Conference in Brussels and in the 22nd Erasmus Congress and Exhibition (ERACON 2026) in Paphos, Cyprus.
AEC is mapping how member institutions prepare orchestral students for new repertoires, new performance formats, and the recognition of externally offered orchestral practice courses. The survey takes around 10 minutes and is open to Heads of Orchestral Studies until 15 September.
IMPACT, the international symposium on improvisation and creativity in and through the performing arts, returns for its fourth edition in Tallinn, 11–13 February 2027. The call for papers and performances is open until 1 November 2026.
Exciting news from the Teacher Education Academy for Music (TEAM) project! The new TEAM Learning Outcomes for Music Teacher Education in Europe have officially been published.
INSPIRE is a European-funded learning platform offering training in green, digital and entrepreneurial skills for the performing arts, with ACQUIN certification for each of its five modules. Please help us share it with your students.
The International Music Council has launched the beta version of Fair Music, a streaming platform built around transparent earnings for artists and real control for listeners, developed with AEC among its network partners. It is open now for testing, and the team is keen to hear what our community thinks.
Call for Venues 2028!
The Call for Venues for AEC Events in 2028 has been extended.
The following events are still looking for a host.
AEC Annual Congress (Congress)
450-500 delegates
Second weekend of November – 3 and a half conference days
AEC Pop and Jazz Platform (PJP)
200-250 delegates
February – 3 conference days
AEC Events
AEC International Relations Coordinators Meeting
d@rts International Conference
and Artistic Reunion
4-7 November, 2026
Hochschule für Musik und Theater Hamburg
AEC Annual Congress & General Assembly
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.
