According to a report by "France Musique", state subsidies for conservatoires were already reduced by 25 percent in 2013. In 2014, they are to be cut by a further 31 percent, meaning that the subsidies will be reduced by around half within two years. Spedic is demanding that the contributions remain at least at the same level as before.

The reductions in contributions to the conservatoires are in line with the general reductions in the state culture budgets in France. These will be cut by around 2% in 2014. The state spends around 2.7 billion euros annually on the cultural sector and 4.56 billion euros on the creative industries (including the media).

The petition on the web:
https://secure.avaaz.org/fr/petition/Conservatoires_en_danger/?stFdveb

Benoit, a 41-year-old from Bern, has worked in the department since 2007 and as a research assistant since 2013. In addition to processing applications, he is currently in charge of the office of the French-speaking cultural commissions.

Benoit studied German, English and geography at the University of Neuchâtel. "Thanks to his practical experience and as co-deputy head of department, as well as his excellent knowledge of the cultural scene in the French-speaking part of the canton of Bern and the bilingual district of Biel/Bienne", he is ideally suited to the role, writes the canton.

An interim solution until the end of 2014 is appropriate, the canton added, because the competencies and responsibilities in cultural promotion in the French-speaking part of the canton of Bern will be discussed next year as part of a project called "Statu Quo+".
 

In the first jury round of the young ears award In 2013, eleven music projects for children and young people were nominated from 103 applications. Among them in the category LabEar the project "Free improvised music for children" by Gauze construction from Lucerne and in the category Best Practice, Concert the co-production "The Golden Heart" by the Philharmonie Luxembourgthe Lucerne Festival and the Cologne Philharmonic Hall. The competition, which is being held for the eighth time in 2013 under the motto "Excellent for young ears", honors outstanding educational projects. The final will take place on November 21 at the Gewandhaus in Leipzig.

According to the organization, "the young ears prize is awarded in four categories. Best Practice searches in the categories Concert and Participatory project for exemplary concert formats for young audiences and process-oriented educational programs for children and young people. In the category Music & Media Music projects are in demand that use auditory, visual or digital media to extend the spectrum of musical activities for children and young people beyond the experience of music. Concertbeyond that. LabEar is aimed at projects on the fringes of music with a focus on listening itself."
 

Aldo Caviezel is forty-three years old, married, a father and lives in Unterägeri. After training at the St. Michael Teachers' Seminary in Zug, Aldo Caviezel soon became involved in culture at all levels, writes the Canton of Zug.

From 2003 to 2005, Caviezel completed a Master's degree in Cultural Management at the University of Basel, where his thesis dealt with the question of the optimal organizational structure for cultural institutions.

Aldo Caviezel will work for the Canton of Zug from November 1, 2013 until January 31, 2014 in a 20 percent position and from February 1, 2014 in an 80 percent position.

As announced by Konzert Theater Bern, the four partners are issuing a "Call for Projects" to young up-and-coming artists from the fields of theater, directing, music, composition and related areas. The aim of this call is to promote contemporary projects that go beyond the usual repertoire. This goal is to be achieved in a three-stage competition.

According to the information on the Website of Musik Theater Bern In June 2014, an international group of experts (Ludger Engels, Mathias Rebstock, Xavier Dayer, Xavier Zuber, Peter Kraut, Pierre Sublet, Françoise Rivalland, Malte Ubenauf, Daniel Ott) will discuss positions, aesthetics and strategies, and the individual projects will be further developed individually.

The second block in September 2014 offers the opportunity to work specifically on a theatrical design. The most interesting projects will be presented at the Bern Biennale in September 2014. A jury with the artistic directors of the Munich Biennale 2016 (Manos Tsangaris, Daniel Ott) will use this opportunity to decide which projects could be developed into full productions in Munich.

Individuals or teams of up to three people with a clear connection to Switzerland are admitted, whereby none of the people should be older than 38 years at the time of registration. A maximum of 15 people will be accepted. The electronic application dossier must be submitted by February 7, 2014. Further conditions of participation can be found at Concert Theater Bern. 
 

Neumann will not take part in the coalition negotiations to form a new German government. The retirement of the universally respected minister marks the end of an era in cultural policy in Germany. It remains to be seen who will succeed him in office.

CDU politician Neumann has been Minister of State to the Federal Chancellor and Commissioner for Culture and the Media since November 2005. Between 1989 and 1995 he was chairman and from 1995 to 2005 deputy chairman of the CDU's Federal Committee on Media Policy.

From 1991 to 1998, he served as Parliamentary State Secretary to the Federal Minister of Education, Research and Technology and subsequently until 2005 as Chairman of the CDU/CSU parliamentary group on the Bundestag Committee on Culture and the Media. 
 

The kammerorchesterbasel is to receive annual funding of CHF 505,000 for 2014/15. This corresponds to an increase of CHF 150,000 per year. According to the canton, this increase will help ensure that the ensemble can pay its musicians in line with the Swiss Music Association's rates over the next ten years.

For the same period, the basel sinfonietta is to receive annual support contributions of CHF 334,000, CHF 100,000 more per year than before. In order to achieve planning security, the basel sinfonietta is dependent on a solid increase in basic funding from state contributions. The orchestra has earned an excellent reputation for its quality and its specific program, explains the government council. 
 

According to German press reports, the oratorio, which lasts around 40 minutes, will primarily be based on texts from the Old Testament. The German press agency quotes Schnyder as saying that it is "a kind of nudge prayer".

The Frauenkirche in Dresden was almost completely destroyed during the Second World War. It was reconstructed between 1994 and 2005. Today, it once again serves as one of the city's centers of sacred musical life.

According to his own characterization, Schnyder's music is situated in the areas of new music, classical music (chamber music and symphonic concert music), early music, ethnic music, crossover, jazz, big band, opera, oratorio, ballet and Latin music. In addition to his compositional activities, Schnyder regularly performs as a soloist, chamber musician and jazz improviser.

Singing makes you strong! That's why it should be supported everywhere: in the family, kindergarten, youth group or school. In 2009, Carus-Verlag launched the song project together with SWR2. It began with lullabies (see review SMZ 4/2010). Five major songbooks and 12 CDs have been published to date, and over 100 singers, choirs, vocal ensembles and instrumentalists have recorded songs for the project, as have over 300 children. More than 350,000 euros have been used to support singing projects with children.

The new episode, Lullabies from all over the worldThe book features a variety of traditional lullabies from different countries, illustrated with photos from all over the world. The songs take the listener on a musical journey around the world, including to New Zealand, India, South Africa, Lebanon, Turkey and Switzerland. Interested listeners can also follow the sounding itinerary on the radio (see below).

The project was developed in collaboration with the European Choral Association - Europa Cantat (ECA-EC) and its international network. The books, CDs, music volumes and text booklets are available in stores. The contents are also available free of charge on songproject.org.

Broadcast dates:
hr2-kultur: from October 26, 2013 to April 12, 2014, Saturdays between 1:05 and 2:00 p.m.

SR2 in Voyages - Music of the WorldsOctober 27, 2013 to April 13, 2014, approx. 6:00 p.m./6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

MDR: weekly from October 28 on MDR Figarino web radio and at the start and on the Sundays in November (November 3, 10, 17 and 24, 2013) at 8:20 a.m. on MDR Figaro in the Family breakfast.

Applicants can present their own project at one of the festival locations, for example with a video, an installation or a concert. A maximum of CHF 30,000 is available per project.

The Fete de la Musique de Genève, a kind of open showcase of music, follows a concept that originated in France. The event, which is now celebrated in around a hundred countries, attracts around a quarter of a million visitors to the Calvin city every year.

More info: www.ville-ge.ch/culture/fm/

Curriculum 21 is a thick tome, and the Music curriculum comprises 29 pages. It sets out minimum requirements that all pupils should achieve. In accordance with the objectives of the curriculum, musical competence is built up over six areas of competence: singing and speaking, listening and orienting oneself, moving and dancing, making music, creative processes and the practice of musical knowledge (Music curriculum, meaning and objectives, S. 1).

Didactic instructions are followed by detailed tables that break down the development of skills into individual steps. The teacher is expected to act "as a role model for a musically interested person, as a musical communication partner and as a facilitator of musical processes" (p. 3).

As the Swiss-German Conference of Cantonal Ministers of Education (D-EDK) writes in a press release dated June 28, the parties concerned have until the end of the year to submit their comments. The revised curriculum is to be submitted to the Swiss-German Directors of Education for approval in fall 2014. It will then be up to the individual cantons to implement it.

www.lehrplan.ch
 

On February 19, 2013, Johannes Maria Schatz founded the Facebook group "The saddest & most outrageous artist fees & audition experiences". Within a very short space of time, this group was well received online. And in March, after the Austrian mezzo-soprano Elisabeth Kulman and other prominent artists pledged their support for the movement, many other media outlets reported on the so-called "artists' revolution". On 1 May, the logo of the "art but fair" seal of approval was published, with which event organizers can commit themselves to fair treatment of artists.

In the meantime, the movement has developed under the name "art but fair" into an association that has been active in Germany and Switzerland since 7 September and in Austria since 11 October. According to the association's website, the Swiss branch is chaired by Julia Zhivova, with Daniel Ris and Johannes Maria Schatz as deputy board members. The core of the association's work is the formulation of "Golden rules of artistic creation"which, together with the seal of approval, are intended to "ensure fair and respectful treatment within the cultural sector." These are to be published in a final version on May 1, 2014.
 

As a long-time dramaturge at major theaters and "an important supporter of numerous contemporary playwrights", the 48-year-old Beck thinks in a "refreshing way in interdisciplinary and forward-looking structures, without lacking respect for the individual disciplines", writes Theater Basel in an official statement.

In addition to his knowledge of drama, Beck is also an expert on the opera landscape and contemporary dance. Beck, who has a degree in theater studies, convinced the selection committee "with his fascinating yet realistic model ideas for Theater Basel as the most important three-genre theater in Europe".

Ana Tajouiti Stahel has been committed to the development of dance in Winterthur for many years, the city writes in a press release, both as an organizer at the Theater am Gleis and "tanzinwinterthur" (president 2006-2011) and at a political level.

After training as a dancer, Ana Tajouiti Stahel danced with the "Zürich Tanz Theater" and the "Movers", among others, before founding her own company in 1989 - the "Rakassa Tanztheater" (from 2000 "aha! tanzt"). Since her training, Ana Tajouiti Stahel has worked as a teacher of contemporary dance, modern dance, dance improvisation, children's dance and jazz dance.

With his election, "the Zug Sinfonietta hopes to maintain its strong roots in the region and, thanks to its long-standing relationships with business, politics and society, an improved starting position for the financial security and possible activities of the orchestra", according to the official announcement of the election.

The new appointment to the Executive Committee goes hand in hand with the change of Managing Director that took place a year ago. The position is now held by Simon Müller. For the Zug Sinfonietta, the change in leadership marks a new chapter in its 15-year history.