Information about the professional Berlin music scene
Information about the professional music scene in Berlin– personal advice and support for transnational musicians
Aim of the project
The aim of the project „ Information about the professional music scene in Berlin – Personal Advice and Support“ is to make the network of the State Music Council available to musicians who were forced to leave their home countries for political reasons.
For newly-arriving musicians, it is difficult to get an overview of the Berlin professional music scene. Often, they lack information on minimum requirements in terms of formal degrees and artistic qualifications, entry opportunities in the field of music, education structures, applying for funding, the social security system for artists or information on starting up a business. In most cases, experiences they made in their home countries cannot be applied.
Typical challenges
- Where do I find a job as a musician?
- How can I start working as a freelance musician?
- Are my degrees and my artistic qualifications recognized in Germany?
- Educational structures in Germany
- How can I apply for funding?
- Contacts and networking
What we offer
In our weekly consultation hours we offer personal advice and support for transnational musicians. The advisory service is provided in German, English and Russian. We can also accompany musicians personally to counseling centers, authorities and other appointments, thus helping them to overcome administrative and language barriers. In addition, the FAQ section and the multilingual interactive map provides musicians with extensive information about the Berlin professional music scene and Berlin’s musical life.
Podcast on what we offer
Programme information and Network
The project is supported with funding from the Senate Department for Culture and Europe’s programme Weltoffenes Berlin (Cosmopolitan Berlin).
Cooperation Partners:
Berlin Music Commission
ver.di Berlin-Brandenburg
Berlin Mondiale
Kreativ Kultur Berlin
Upcoming events
The Landesmusikrat Berlin e.V. (Berlin State Music Council) is hosting a one-day workshop in collaboration with MUSICPOOL BERLIN and touring artists as part of its “Musikarbeitsmarkt Transantional” (Transitional Music Job Market) advisory service. We cordially invite you to attend this diverse workshop event at the House of Music. The workshop is aimed particularly at refugees, migrants, and people from non-EU countries, but is open to anyone interested in advancing their own projects in the music industry or gaining new perspectives.
Planned workshop content:
Workshop 1: Overview of the current music market: trends, structures, and collecting societies
Workshop 2: Self-employment & taxes: navigating everyday bureaucracy, tips for getting started and dealing with the tax office.
Workshop 3: Booking: from the first inquiry to a successful gig – how do I plan my tour?
Workshop 4: Networking in Berlin: exchange, new contacts, tips for the local scene.
The program offers a mix of input, exchange, and practical elements. The workshops are led by experienced experts from the Berlin music scene and are aimed at a wide range of experience levels. Whether you are just starting out or already active, here you will find important information, new inspiration, and a network of like-minded people.
+++ Each participant can only register for one workshop in the morning and one workshop in the afternoon. +++
Afterwards, we invite you to a joint networking event with live music at 6:00 p.m. First come, first served.
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The Music Job Market in Berlin - Useful Adresses for Transnational Musicians
This multilingual interactive map presents an overview of the musical landscape in Berlin. Here, you can discover music venues, music schools and counseling centers.
This map is a work in progress; it is continuously growing and will be supplemented with more content.
Choose a category and a district to display the desired information on the map.
