How international are Germany’s Musikhochschulen? How many performances are staged by opera houses and what is performed? Where is there a high density of orchestras and how are they funded? Which museums focus on composers or musical instruments? When did schools and concert halls start to introduce music outreach?
With its rich cultural heritage and vibrant performance scene, Germany is a land of music. Millions of people sing in choirs or play an instrument; hundreds of theatres, orchestras, ensembles and bands ensure an offering of immense density. The new 620-page publication by the German Music Information Centre includes background details and data about music culture in Germany. “Musical Life in Germany” includes 22 articles by well-known authors from the spheres of academia, cultural policy and musical practice. Subjects range from music education and training to amateur and professional music-making and the music economy.
Interested readers learn about the conditions in which concert halls, theatres and museums work, the role played by music in broadcasting, how requirements in vocational training for music professions have changed, the financial constraints to which independent ensembles are subject and how individual sectors of the music economy are developing. More than 50 sets of statistics and maps, not to mention many QR codes with links to further sources, provide an in-depth insight into the individual subjects. The articles are amply illustrated and thus also convey a visual impression of the diversity of the musico-cultural infrastructure in Germany.
With its publication “Musical Life in Germany” the German Music Information Centre, an institution of the German Music Council, presents a comprehensive English-language medium that provides an overview of data and facts about musical life in Germany for international readers.
The book can be ordered online via www.miz.org. It costs €10 for postage and service fees (within Germany), €14.50 (within the EU) and €20 (outside the EU).
“Musical Life in Germany” is funded by the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media (BKM). The translation was made possible by the music publisher Hal Leonard Europe GmbH.
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