For the third time, the Board of Trustees for Cultural Promotion of the Canton of Solothurn, on behalf of the cantonal government, has awarded prizes in all artistic disciplines, twelve in total this year. The studio residencies in the French metropolis were awarded to the writer Isabelle Ryf (*1986) from January to June 2015 and to the musician and artist Christoph Hess (*1968) from July to December 2015.

According to the press release, "the quality of the artistic statements made, the continuity of the artist's previous work and development opportunities as well as innovation and professionalism of the work" were assessed.

Forty-five applications were received, 32 solely for a sponsorship award in one of six disciplines (visual arts and architecture, music, literature, photography and film, theater and dance as well as cultural mediation / cultural exchange). Two applications were received solely for a residency in 2015 at the artists' studio in Paris, which the Canton of Solothurn has been offering in collaboration with the Canton of Aargau since 2001. Eleven took the opportunity to apply for both a sponsorship award and a studio grant.

The aim of awarding work grants is to provide direct and personal support. The contributions (e.g. composition contribution, musicological work, musical innovations or similar) are intended to make it easier for musicians to devote themselves to their work for a certain period of time.

The application can, but does not have to be tied to a project. Above all, it needs a convincing artistic intention. Musicians of all styles who have lived in the canton of Schwyz for at least three years, have lived in the canton of Schwyz for at least 15 years or whose work has a close connection to the canton are eligible to apply.

A convincing artistic track record is required. Individuals and bands can apply. There are no contributions for initial training or projects that are realized as part of basic training. A maximum total amount of CHF 50,000 is available.

More info: www.sz.ch/kultur (Category Cultural promotion, subcategory Work contributions)
 

One in five people living in Switzerland is exposed to excessive noise during the day. The main source of noise pollution is road traffic. This year, the sponsors of the Day against Noise are therefore focusing on the nine biggest misconceptions about road noise.

The "International Noise Awareness Day" was launched in 1996 by the New York "League for the Hard of Hearing". In 2005, on the initiative of the Cercle Bruit, the Swiss Society for Acoustics, the Swiss League Against Noise and the Physicians for Environmental Protection, Switzerland actively participated in this day of action for the first time.

More info: www.laerm.ch

Born in Serbia, Terzic moved to Germany with his parents at the age of three. In 2002, he became a member of Ticino native Franco Ambrosetti's group, with whom he performed in Switzerland and Italy. In the same year, he became part of the Nils Wogram Nostalgia Trio. In 2004 he was awarded the Munich Culture Prize.

In 2008, he wrote the music for the documentary film "Tunnel's End" by director Monica Lleo, which was recorded by the Babelsberg Film Orchestra Berlin. Since 2008, he has also been a lecturer in jazz percussion at the Swiss Jazzschool of the Bern University of the Arts (HKB).

René Munz, 59, from Thurgau, was a theater maker, producer and editor for Swiss television as well as head of the cultural office of the canton of Thurgau. He completed his basic training at the former acting academy in Zurich and various internships and assistant director positions at Theater Basel, the international theater festival B80 in Basel, Theater Konstanz and independent theater groups.

Munz was the founder and director of a small theater in Thurgau and has staged several theater productions with independent groups and amateur ensembles. From 2002, he headed the newly created Cultural Office of the Canton of Thurgau and was thus responsible for the diverse area of cantonal cultural promotion, lottery fund administration and five cantonal museums. In 2013, he became deputy head of the Canton of Zurich's Department of Culture.
 

According to the call for applications, anyone wishing to apply for the Werkjahr must be at least 30 years old, have lived in the canton of Zug for three years or have lived there for ten years at an earlier stage. An outstanding artistic achievement or a convincing project is required. Previous work must have both a regional and national impact.

Applications for the music category must be submitted to the Office for Culture by May 20. The submitted documentation will be publicly exhibited in the Zug Chollerhalle from July 3 to 6. An audition will take place on July 8 at the Zug Music School. The jury's decision in September will be based on the documentation and the audition. Finally, the prizes will be awarded on October 2 in the Chollerhalle Zug.

Registration forms and conditions of participation can be found on the Internet at www.zug.ch/kultur or from the Directorate for Education and Culture, Office for Culture, Baarerstrasse 19, 6300 Zug, phone 041/728 31 46, tanja.vogel@zg.ch can be obtained.
 

In its statement, the Arts Senate justified its recommendation with Furrer's "unmistakable style, which is characterized by the human voice and the interrelationship of sound, language and visuals, based on sophisticated texts". Furrer is one of the most respected composers internationally today and his works are recognized by renowned concert institutions, festivals and opera houses.

Beat Furrer moved to Vienna in 1975, where he studied composition and conducting. In 1985 he founded Klangforum Wien, which he directed until 1992 and with which he has been associated as a conductor ever since. Furrer has been Professor of Composition at the University of Music and Performing Arts Graz since 1991.

His music theater works in particular (including The blind, Narcissus, desire or FAMA, Desert Book) have gained recognition. He is currently working on projects for the opera houses in Hamburg and Berlin.
 

In addition, the Swiss Music Guide sees itself as a showcase for various associations in Swiss musical life, which are presented in detail.

The website www.swissmusicguide.ch supplements this industry guide with additional information such as photos and videos of the artists. Entry in the Swiss Music Guide is - and remains - free of charge!

Readers of the Schweizer Musikzeitung receive the Swiss Music Guide at a special price of CHF 25 instead of CHF 35 via www.musikzeitung.ch/de/swissmusicguide
 

The Culture program is the umbrella for the cultural activities of the European Union. 38 European countries participate in the current program, making it the most important instrument for promoting culture at European level.

The program supports the cross-border mobility of creative artists and promotes the dissemination of artistic works. It has a budget of 453 million euros for the period 2014 to 2020. It has been part of the new framework program since January 2014 Creative Europewhich also includes the film promotion program Media heard. To Media the Federal Council adopted a negotiating mandate back in September 2013.

By definitively adopting the mandate, the Federal Council will enable negotiations to begin quickly in this area as soon as the culture and media dossiers are unblocked by the EU. Following the cancellation of the free movement of persons with Croatia - a consequence of the adoption of the mass immigration initiative - the EU has put cooperation with Switzerland on student exchanges and research on hold. Cultural exchanges are also suffering as a result of the change in relations between Switzerland and the EU.

The first step is a wide-ranging questionnaire to assess the current situation of Chur's cultural scene. Based on the results, various working groups will develop sector-specific concerns in a second phase.

The results of these working groups will be discussed publicly and then submitted for consultation. The plan is to submit the cultural strategy to the city council and municipal council for approval at the end of 2016.

The deadline for entries is the end of June 2014 and all interested parties can take part in the survey. The questionnaire can be here can be downloaded.

The basis for the measure is the specifications of the current tariff regulations: according to a statement from the city, these stipulate that the parental contributions should cover 15 to 20 percent of the wage costs; today it is only around 12 percent. In addition, the tariffs for non-residents are too low in comparison to the rest of the canton and intercanton, as well as in comparison to Olten's pupils.

Individual lessons for children and young people in Olten will increase in two stages from the current CHF 450 (30 minutes) and CHF 600 (40 minutes) to CHF 560 (2014/15) and CHF 675 (2015/16) for the 30-minute lesson and CHF 750 (2014/15) and CHF 900 (2015/16) for the 40-minute lesson.

The rates for partner lessons and group lessons (min. 5 participants) will also be increased accordingly. Whereas previously there was a reduction of CHF 50 in the parental contribution for children and young people from Olten for additional ensemble lessons, an administration fee of CHF 50 will now be charged for the music school's year-round ensemble courses, and CHF 100 for those from outside Olten.

Non-local students - currently around 50 in number - can attend individual lessons at the Olten Music School at twice the rate of locals, provided they are also involved in a music school ensemble. Otherwise, from the 2014/15 school year, they will pay CHF 1,900 for a 30-minute lesson (previously CHF 700) and CHF 2,500 for a 40-minute lesson (previously CHF 900) or, from the 2015/16 school year, the full cost rate of CHF 3,000 for a 30-minute lesson and CHF 4,000 for a 40-minute lesson.

Assuming the number of pupils remains constant, the two increases should result in additional revenue of around CHF 145,000 per year.

The Commission for Technology and Innovation has launched an interdisciplinary project entitled Contrabass clarinet extended approved. With Segelke+Partners GMBH as a practical partner, Bern University of the Arts and the Department of Technology at Bern University of Applied Sciences are developing a new double bass clarinet into a prototype ready for series production. The project is based on a development project financed by the Bern University of Applied Sciences Contrabass Clarinet Unlimited (2013-14).
The new contrabass clarinet is intended to overcome the instrument's lack of tonal and technical quality under a radically new premise: By replacing the traditional mechanics with sensory-dynamic keys and motorized keys, there is no longer any need to compromise on the setting of the tone holes. Sound and intonation are significantly improved and new interfaces are created for composers and performers, and even for media art. The project, initiated by Ernesto Molinari, is the responsibility of Roman Brotbeck and managed by Christoph Schnyder.

The new SNSF project explores how the "long 19th century" received Beethoven's piano works From lecture to interpretationwhich was successfully submitted by Thomas Gartmann: From both ends, two closely interlinked dissertations examine how interpretative practices changed and developed after Beethoven's death and thus to a significant extent still shape our image of Beethoven today: Leonardo Miucci takes Ignaz Moscheles' diary entries, letters and piano schools as his starting point and compares the two major Beethoven editions that he produced in the 1830s for the English market and twenty years later for the German market. Manuel Bärtsch evaluates recordings with Welte-Mignon rolls and early acoustic recordings and contextualizes them both historically and aesthetically. The focus of both studies, which were compiled as part of the Graduate School of the Arts and accompanied by Michael Lehner in terms of music theory, is on articulation, dynamics, agogics, pedalization, (implementation of) performance markings, tempo and metronome markings.

The BUA was also invited to participate in the EU project Experimentation versus Interpretation: Exploring New Paths in Music Performance in the Twenty-First Century of the European Research Council & Orpheus Institute, Ghent. SNSF professor Kai Köpp will act as a permanent expert and participate with a study of historical recordings from the Schönberg circle.

Finally, Tobias Pfleger, a research assistant at the HKB, wrote his dissertation at the Karlsruhe University of Music on the subject of Purified Romanticism? The symphonies of Robert Schumann in the interpretations of historically informed performance practice with the distinction "summa cum laude".
 

The 44-year-old Oppermann began his career in Switzerland and joined the Städtische Bühnen Osnabrück. He was subsequently engaged as a member of the theater management of the Nordharzer Städtebundtheater Halberstadt and the Landesbühne Hannover. Since 2004, he has been chief dramaturge and deputy to the artistic director Gerhard Weber at the Theater der Stadt Trier.

His adaptations of novels for the stage were successfully premiered there; he also directed the contemporary authors' festival Maximierung Mensch several times, which met with national acclaim. Under the title "Total théatre", he has collaborated with various theaters in the greater German-French-Luxembourg region, and he has continued to set the tone by establishing numerous unusual venues in the city.

Music publishers in Germany are countering the growing competition from publications on the Internet, which often show little publishing commitment, with high quality, emphasized Winfried Jacobs, Chairman of the DMV's E-Music Committee, at the award ceremony. The growing number of educational literature that includes new forms of music-making, such as beatboxing, is also particularly pleasing.

The jury, consisting of five representatives from the fields of design, musicology, sheet music trade and music journalism, had to choose from 72 submissions. All submitted works were judged according to the following criteria:

1. Graphic and editorial overall impression, whereby an editorial claim must also be fulfilled
2. Special publishing achievement or idea
3. Correctness and graphic quality of the music (engraving, typography, electronic notation, calligraphy)
4. Cover design, title page, page layout
5. Printing, paper, binding

German music retailers stock more than 300,000 editions of sheet music from publishers, with around 5,000 new releases every year.

Manfred Schmitz, Piano - The first way to play by chord symbols, Volume I
AMA Publishing House, Brühl

Instead of the initiative, the committee unanimously adopted a committee motion. This is intended to instruct the Federal Council to submit alternatives to the current levy on blank data carriers to Parliament. This is to take account of the fact that "electronic means are currently available on the market that can easily circumvent this legal obligation".

Suisseculture suspects that the initiative will soon be definitively rejected by the plenary session of the National Council at the request of the WAK. However, the discussion is not yet off the table due to the Commission's motion. However, by demanding that alternatives should not result in any restrictions on remuneration, the National Council's WAK has "clearly rejected the abolition of blank media remuneration without replacement".