AEC - European Association of Conservatoires

🌱 Travelling to IRC 2026 by train, bus, ferry, or another low-carbon option?

The AEC Green Travel Incentive recognises participants who choose more sustainable ways of travelling to the AEC Annual Meeting for International Relations Coordinators (IRC) 2026 in Trento, Italy.

Successful applicants will:

💚 Receive reimbursement of the event registration fee
💚 Receive a small award recognising their commitment
💚 Be acknowledged during the event and through AEC communication channels

To apply, please submit:

📄 A motivation letter (300–500 words) outlining your itinerary and travel choices
🎫 Proof of round-trip ticket purchase

📅 Deadline: 1 August 2026
📧 Apply via: [email protected]

Let's work together to make IRC 2026 a little greener, one journey at a time. 🌍

🎻 How does your institution recognise students' participation in external orchestral and chamber music projects?

The AEC launched a short survey to better understand how Higher Music Education Institutions integrate and recognise supplementary orchestral practice within their study programmes.

The survey is being conducted in collaboration with the EU-funded projects Musethica (1000+ Concerts) and Fame's Institute (EUCOPSY), which explore new opportunities for students to gain valuable artistic and professional experience.

📋 Who should respond? Heads of Orchestral Studies (or colleagues with similar responsibilities)
⏱️ Takes around 10 minutes
📅 Deadline: 15 July 2026
🏛️ One response per institution

Your input will help map current practices across the sector and support future developments in music education.

👉 Take the survey here: https://aec-music.eu/news-article/survey-on-the-eligibility-for-recognition-of-supplementary-orchestral-practice-courses/

Thank you for supporting this initiative!

📢 WE ARE Webinar – Save the Date!

Following the success of the previous sessions, the WE ARE (Webinars on Artistic Research Education) series is back!

📅 Tuesday 23 June 2026
🕒 15:00–17:00 CEST
💻 Online

Join Stefan Östersjö (Piteå School of Music, Luleå University of Technology) for a discussion on:

🎓 Online resources for Artistic Research tuition in 1st and 2nd cycle education

The webinar will explore video tutorials and other digital resources available for Artistic Research teaching and learning, how these can support knowledge transfer across institutions, and how they can contribute to student autonomy and life-long learning.

👥 Open to teachers, doctoral candidates, students, supervisors, and anyone interested in Artistic Research.

✅ Participation is free of charge.

Register here:

👉https://aec-music.eu/event/are-artistic-research-education-webinars/

🔊 Discover the latest job opportunities on the !

🔸The University of Music and Performing Arts Graz is looking for:
💼University Assistant (f/m/d) for Music Education, Deadline: 17 June 2026
💼University Assistant (f/m/d) for Machine Learning in Musical Audio, Deadline: 17 June 2026
💼University Professorship (f/m/d) for Historical Wind Instruments / Recorder, Deadline: 1 July 2026

🔸 Trinity Laban is looking for:
💼 Composition Teacher (f/m/d), Deadline: 22 June 2026

🔸 Royal Irish Academy of Music is looking for:
💼 Assistant Lecturer/Lecturer in Inclusive Education (f/m/d), Deadline: 26 June 2026

🔸 Berklee College of Music, Valencia Campus is looking for:
💼 Part-Time Acoustics Faculty (f/m/d), Deadline: 1 August 2026
💼 Part-Time Voice Faculty (f/m/d), Deadline: 1 September 2026

More vacancies here 👉

Vacancies Contract: Permanent, Part-time, Hourly-paid Teacher Salary: £45.79 - £53.50 per hour depending on experience (Including LWA) We are seeking to appoint a distinguished, committed, and versatile candidate to contribute to the teaching of the fol...

Join us for the AEC Annual Meeting for International Relations Coordinators at the Conservatorio di Musica "F.A. Bonporti" di Trento e Riva del Garda for 4 inspiring days of collaboration and exchange among International Relations Coordinators.

On the programme:
✅ Erasmus+ digitisation & the 10th anniversary of EASY
✅ Workshops on project writing (Erasmus+, KA171, KA220, Horizon)
✅ AI & automation in international offices
✅ Cross-continental partnerships & mobility
✅ Special focus on Ukraine & Balkan enlargement countries
✅ Speed dating & networking across Trento and Lake Garda 🏔️

📅 2–5 September 2025 | Trento, Italy

See you there! 🏔️

AEC Annual Meeting for International Relations Coordinators 2026 The AEC Annual Meeting for International Relations Coordinators is ...

On 21 and 22 May, the AEC was at HKU Conservatorium Utrecht 🇳🇱 for 2 days of workshops at the heart of AEC's agenda.

🎈On 21 May, the AEC DEI Panel of Experts facilitated a four-hour workshop on Diversity, Equity and , bringing staff and students together to explore questions of representation, power and belonging through a World Café methodology. Participants left with individual commitments on a shared action board - turning reflection into action, one commitment at a time.

🎈On 22 May, members of the AEC Working Group delivered a workshop on Special Educational Needs, the first of its kind, to staff and students of HKU and ArtEZ Zwolle. Drawing on the Erasmus+   project, the session explored how conservatoires can better support artists with SEN and from disadvantaged backgrounds, combining testimonial videos, role-based discussions, mindfulness and a singing workshop.

Together, around 25 participants across the two days engaged with two distinct but deeply connected agendas - continuing the AEC's sustained commitment to inclusion across all dimensions of our sector.

Read the full story 👉Link in bio.

🤖What does it look like when a robot shares the podium with a human conductor?

The Music4D project offered a glimpse last month at the University of Calabria, where an orchestra performed alongside RoBoCon: an AI-driven robotic conductor capable of tracking tempo, reading gestures, and responding to emotional cues from musicians and audience alike.

The repertoire made the experiment hard to ignore: Also sprach Zarathustra, The Terminator, WestWorld, and a tribute to Ennio Morricone — all performed live, co-conducted by a human maestro and a robot.

MUSIC4D is coordinated by the Conservatorio Alessandro Scarlatti Palermo with a consortium of higher music and arts education institutions across Sicily and Sardinia, alongside the Universities of Calabria and Palermo.

It raises questions that are very much alive in our sector: how do human musicians relate to AI in performance? What role does higher music education play in shaping that relationship? 🎶

An AI-Powered Robot Conductor for the MUSIC4D Project: Human-Robot RoBoCon The MUSIC4D project recently blurred the lines between classical music and technology during a groundbreaking workshop at the University of Calabria, featuring a live co-performance between a human orchestra and the AI-driven RoBoCon robot. Funded by NextGenerationEU, this initiative explores the

📣 AEC warmly welcomes the European Parliament's proposal for the future programme, and is proud to stand alongside 25 European music organisations in supporting this draft report, led by MEPs Emma Rafowicz and Alice Kuhnke.

The recognition of music through a dedicated strand, combined with an increased overall budget of €10.7 billion (up from the European Commission's proposed €8.6 billion) sends a strong and encouraging signal for the entire music ecosystem.

For Europe's sector, this matters deeply. The next generation of musicians, creators and educators depends on a cultural landscape where music is valued, supported and given the structural means to thrive. A stronger AgoraEU programme can help address some of the most pressing challenges facing the sector today: from discoverability and cross-border mobility to working conditions and fair remuneration.

➡️Music education is not separate from this ecosystem. It is its foundation.

We call on EU decision-makers to uphold this ambition, ensure the music strand is equipped with the funding, sector dialogue and practical tools it needs, and keep music, culture and creativity at the heart of Europe's future.

🔗 Read the full statement

AEC welcomes European Parliament’s AgoraEU draft report 26 organisations from across the European music sector welcome the draft report by MEP Rafowicz and MEP Kuhnke, and its recognition of music as a dedicated strand within AgoraEU. The proposed Culture – Music strand is a significant step forward and responds to a long-running ask from the sector fo...

🎶 The latest AEC newsletter is now out!

This edition brings together the latest news, opportunities, and initiatives from across our network: from European advocacy to AI-powered music-making and everything in between.

✨ Inside:

→ AEC Advocacy Update: AgoraEU and the Culture Compass
→ Call for contributions AEC Congress - Last Chance to apply!
→ DEI and SEN Workshops at HKU
→ AEC and EPASA - European Performing Arts Students' Association join forces to Advocate for a Stronger, More Accessible Erasmus+
→ Orchestral Practice Recognition Survey with Musethica and Fames - European Orchestral Performing Institute
→ Artistic research under the spotlight: recordings of five webinars just published!
→ Updates from the Music4D Project: Human-Robot RoBoCon

…and more from the AEC community.

🔗 Read the full newsletter: https://aec-music.eu/newsletters

📣Happy UNESCO Culture and Arts Education Week from d@rts!

dialoguingarts harnesses the power of the arts to cultivate dialogic spaces where empathy, respect, and mutual understanding build the foundation for truly inclusive societies.

https://dialoguingarts.eu/

Next week is UNESCO Culture & Arts Education Week, and d@rts is celebrating! 🎨✨

At dialoguing@rts, we foster cultural dialogue through innovative and inclusive artistic practices. We explore how culture and the arts can be powerful tools for fostering empathy, bridging cultural divides, and empowering communities.

📅 May 25–31 marks the very first edition of UNESCO Culture & Arts Education Week, themed: Culture and arts education for lasting peace.

Join us throughout the week! We will be providing a window into our project with a series of outputs, case studies, and a chance to meet the voices behind our work.

A special thanks to our incredible consortium partners making this possible:

Nord universitet (NO)
Universität zu Köln , Universität Hildesheim, Leuphana Universität Lüneburg (DE)
Centro Studi Interculturali UniVr, LeSerre (IT)
University of Jyväskylä - Jyväskylän yliopisto (FI)
Kulturanova (RS)
Makerere University (UG)
University of Auckland - Waipapa Taumata Rau (NZ),
AEC - European Association of Conservatoires (BE)

👇 What are you most excited to celebrate next week? Let us know in the comments!