Musical life at the heart of society

Visit Netzwerk Junge Ohren (NJO)based in Berlin, has been the forum for music mediation experts and practitioners in German-speaking countries since 2007. Under its aegis, professional protagonists from the fields of music, education, political culture and the creative arts industry from Germany, Switzerland, Austria and Luxembourg come together. The NJO advises people, projects and institutions in the field of music education and communication. The aim is to open up access to music for as many people as possible through modern music practice formats. As a discussion forum, the NJO creates communication structures between institutions and players in the music world. The team, made up of cultural managers and musical mediators, develops its own projects, such as Junge Ohren Preis, KLANGRADAR and The Power of the Artsand is a cooperation partner in a wide variety of productions. Visit Netzwerk Junge Ohren is financed by project work, membership and participant fees, as well as private and public third-party funding. The network is run by a six-strong interdisciplinary team, with Katharina von Radowitz and Alexander von Nell as directors. The committee is supported by a board of competent experts, including such luminaries as Andrea Tober, former head of the Berlin Philharmonic's education program and vice-rector of the Hanns Eisler University of Music in Berlin, Anke Fischer, head of the education department at the Hamburg Elbe Philharmonic, and cellist Oliver Wenhold, vice-chairman of the board of unisono, the German Union of Music and Orchestras. Switzerland is represented by Johanna Ludwig, director of the Lucerne Symphony Orchestra's music outreach program. More than 250 organizations and individuals from eight impact regions have already joined the NJO. Some of the most important music associations in the German-speaking world, representing both employers and employees, are the network's promoters: Federal Association of the Music Industry, National Federation of Theatres and Orchestras, Jeunesses Musicales d'Allemagne, orchester.ch - Swiss Association of Professional Orchestras, Swiss Union of Musicians, Zuhören Foundation, unisono - German Union of Music and Orchestras, Association of German Music Schools and Younion - die Daseinsgewerkschaft. Cooperation partners also include the recently founded Swiss Music Mediation Working Group, successor to the association of the same name, which dissolved in 2022.

Searching for sound traces

 KLANGRADAR has been aimed at students in classes 5 to 10 since 2019. In weekly workshops or theme weeks, students search for sound traces in the company of external experts, open their ears to the unknown and unsuspected, and together develop their own sound and musical pieces. This gives new impetus to school life and teaching practice. On June 14, 2023, almost 300 students, teachers, participants and interested outsiders attended the Hör.Fest! in Berlin, where the sound results were presented.

15th Young Ears Award

 As a result of the pandemic, many digital formats for music mediation have been developed. That's why, for the 15th Young Ears Award 2021, we were looking for innovative projects in which digital technologies were an integral part, in order to experience music and/or concerts in a new way. Over 80 concepts were submitted - tremendous interest! The Zafraan Ensemble from Berlin and LOUDsoft won first prize for their interactive performance "SCHRUMPF/Like Tears in Rain". Second prize was shared by the Festspielhaus Baden-Baden for its virtual musical theater project "Things Fall Apart - Diggin' Opera II", and the Ensemble Quillo (Uckermark) for its digital "Quillo workshop". The winning concepts demonstrate just how diverse musical mediation is today.

A change of mentality is needed

 The field of musical mediation is vast, demanding and constantly changing. In the annual magazine Best ofthe NJO puts the spotlight on what is now occupying the minds of those involved, with a view to a sustainable future for musical life. The contributions reflect the challenges and themes of current artistic, mediation and strategic practice. In the new issue Best of #10The magazine takes a particularly interesting look at the various dimensions of the notion of excellence in musical life (the magazine can be downloaded from the NJO). In each issue of Das Orchesterprojects NJO are presented on a separate page. Today, music outreach is no longer just for children and young people: offers are designed to be inclusive and diversity-oriented, and to appeal in a variety of ways to people of all generations. Katharina von Radowitz, director of the NJOrightly writes that "when it comes to making a lasting mark on the musical present and future of a town or region, it's a matter of setting out on the move, prospecting, getting to know those you haven't yet met, seeking dialogue with those you haven't yet spoken to, being open to new themes, living environments, places and feelings" and wonders "how long the public will be prepared to endure the consequences of the lack of courage leading to music remaining in its comfort zone, endlessly reproducing the same things on beaten tracks and thus reaching ever fewer people? "

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