ISME 2012 world conference: Why attend?

Reasons for attending an ISME conference

Networking

• You will meet music educators from nearly 90 countries

Energize yourself

• World renowned speakers will stretch your thinking in new directions

Professional growth

• A host of presentations are offered in various styles: roundtables, symposia, lectures, workshops, demonstrations, posters

Communication and sharing

• You will meet international colleagues who are eager to communicate and share ideas between conferences

Support

• You will meet international colleagues who are always willing to offer assistance between conferences, but there will also be those eager to connect with you and seek your assistance

Contributing

• Explore the wide variety of opportunities that ISME offers for you to be a conference presenter, performer or leader of a performing group. Mentors are available who will assist you to polish your submissions, as required

Musical experiences

• Enjoy concerts by performers from all over the world, and from the host country and region

Earn credits

• Many institutions offer recognition and academic credit for ISME conference attendance. Some institutions may provide financial assistance. ISME will always supply you with any letters/documentation to assist in this regard

Exhibition/Trade Show

• Browse through local, regional and international exhibits that are showcased for display and for sale

Travel

• ISME conferences move around the world, thus offering an opportunity to combine your music educational and personal interests

Renewal

• An ISME Conference promises to renew both your professional knowledge and expertise and your contacts with former and new colleagues from around the world

ISME 2012 world conference: Patrons, Sponsors, Promoters

Support ISME

Every two years ISME mounts a major world conference in a different location, geographically positioned and rotated so as to best reflect the society's multi-cultural membership around the globe. These prestigious conferences offer excellent opportunities for philanthropists and caring corporate donors to gain international recognition for demonstrating the value they place on support for the arts and balanced education in the one art form that can help achieve world peace and bring benefit and pleasure to all, lifelong.

The major opportunities and categories, with their associated benefits can be requested by emailing the ISME International Office.

ISME further gladly considers and welcomes other forms and levels of support not listed here (such as receptions, conference bags, keynote speakers).

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Sponsorships do not only have to be related to conference activities, but any ongoing support for music education across the globe will also be highly welcomed.

Proposals and sponsorship perks may also be individually negotiated. ISME welcomes ALL friends and supporters of music education!

Please contact Judy Thönell, the Secretary General, at the ISME International Office on isme@isme.org, to negotiate sponsorship opportunities.

Current Sponsors

We are grateful to the following sponsors for their generous support to ISME:

• National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM)
• Society for Education and Music Psychology Research (SEMPRE)

ISME 2012 world conference, Thessaloniki, Greece

2011

February, 2011

• Call for General Session presentations.
• Call for Performing Group applications.

30 August, 2011

• Last day for Performing Group applications

1 October, 2011

• Deadline of General Session applications

15 October, 2011

• Performing Groups notified of acceptance

1 November, 2011

• Deadline for applications to the ISME Commissions' Seminars
• Main conference registrations to open

2012

29 February, 2012

• General Session applicants notified of acceptance

1 March, 2012

• Last day for presenter registrations

15 March, 2012

• Last day for first early bird registration

31 March, 2012

• Full Paper authors notified about proceedings

15 May, 2012

• Last day for second early bird registration

Welcome message from the Chair of the 2012 Conference Organizing Group (COG)

Dear friends and colleagues from all over the world!

It is a great pleasure, a privilege, an honour, as well as a huge challenge for me to greet you from the position of the Chair of the next ISME World Conference!

On behalf of the Conference Organizing Group (COG) and the host organizer the Greek Society for Music Education (G.S.M.E.), I would like to extend my warmest invitation to all of you to the 30^th ISME World Conference that will take place in Thessaloniki, Greece, July 15-20, 2012. As our Chinese colleagues very well used the metaphor earlier, we will now transfer –through the paths of the silk road- the flame of the Music Education Olympics back to Greece!

Greece is an ancient civilization with thousands of years of music history. We have a long tradition of sharing and exchanging our music and culture with different nations. The city of Thessaloniki, in which the 30^th ISME World Conference will be held, is the capital city of northern Greece. Archeological findings show that people lived in the area since the beginning of the 3^rd millennium BC. So, Thessaloniki was built on the remains of an older city. It was founded in 316 BC by Kassandros, who gave to the city the name of his wife Thessaloniki, the sister of Alexander the Great and has been a crossroads of cultures and civilizations since then. The city's atmosphere is a fusion of Greek, Balkan and Southeastern European influences that co-exist harmoniously, creating a multicultural and cosmopolitan environment, where visitors from all over the world feel comfortable and welcome.

Our Conference Theme: Music Pædeia: From Ancient Greek Philosophers Toward Global Music Communities, links today with Ancient Greece and will give a great opportunity to everyone to be expressed in their own, distinctive way, by also connecting the past with the present and the future. The host and local organizer of the 2012 ISME World Conference, the Greek Society for Music Education, was founded in March 1997. It is a non-profit, scientific organization, with the main purpose of promoting music education and of developing it further as a field of scientific enquiry. G.S.M.E. collaborates with other societies that work on the same purpose in Europe and in the other continents and has been closely working with ISME from the beginnings as an ISME National Affiliated Organization since 1998. Our Society organizes workshops, seminars, lectures and conferences and publishes books, journals, and newsletters.

The Thessaloniki Concert Hall where the conference will take place, with its two buildings, is the ideal venue for an ISME Conference. It is one of the most advanced concert venues in Europe and a Convention and Congress centre, with facilities that can host large international conventions, cultural and scientific events as well as exhibitions. GSME have had a fantastic collaboration with the Thessaloniki Concert Hall while organizing there the 5^th G.S.M.E. Conference in 2007.

Most of the members of the 2012 Conference Organizing Group have participated in organizing many different G.S.M.E. events: seminars, concerts, workshops and conferences and constitute an experienced, hard-working team of organizers. I have been working with this team for years and I can promise that we will all give our best selves in organizing this huge event too!

Organizing the 30^th ISME World Conference is one more of the ways that GSME is serving the vision of supporting quality music education for all. It is an honourable and glorious mission and we wish also to give to everyone the opportunity and any possible help to explore the Greek culture and music.

Furthermore, there are two more reasons to celebrate in 2012 together with the 30^th ISME World Conference!

• 2012 is the year that the city of Thessaloniki will celebrate the 100th Anniversary from its Liberation!
• 2012 is also the year that G.S.M.E. will celebrate its 15^th Anniversary!

Once more, we are honoured to host the 30^th ISME World Conference and ready to welcome you with renowned Greek hospitality in a journey for all, and a conference to remember!

Welcome to the 2012 ISME Thessaloniki Conference
Welcome to Greece, the country that gave birth to great philosophers, to democracy and of course, to the Olympic Games!

Dr Polyvios Androutsos
Chair, ISME 2012 Conference Organizing Group

ISME 29th world conference Media Release

The 29^th ISME World Conference was held from August 1 to August 6, 2010 in Beijing. The conference was hosted by ISME, the China Conservatory of Music and Music Education Branch of Chinese Society of Education. It was strongly supported by Nanchang University, the Chinese Musicians Association, the Beijing Government, Hailun Pianos, Dr Sun Music, Eurovista Arts Management, NAMM (International Music Merchants) and the Gibson Foundation.

The largest ISME Conference ever held, it attracted international delegates from around 65 countries and together with the Chinese music educators, was attended by 4,000 delegates. There were about 900 presentations given by 773 presenters from around the world. The presentations included papers, workshops/demonstrations, class lesson demonstrations, symposia, roundtables and poster sessions. A feast for any music educator, and choices were difficult to make.

Moving and thought-provoking keynote addresses were given by Chen Yi (Distinguished Professor at the Conservatory of the University of Missouri-Kansas City, Changjiang Scholar Visiting Professor at the Beijing Central Conservatory of Music), Bruno Nettl (Professor Emeritus of Music and Anthropology, University of Illinois) and Liu Limin (Director-General of Beijing Municipal Education Commission). A special session Showcasing the ISME-Gibson Awards was presented by the ISME President, Håkan Lundström, highlighting the ISME-Gibson Community Award and the ISME-Gibson International Awards. The latter for 2010 were awarded to two Chinese projects, submitted by WU Bin and XIE Jiaxing. Further details on these awards can be found on the ISME website (www.isme.org).

A large-scale multi-media Opening Concert Colourful Silk Road was an outstanding start to the Conference week, showcasing the best music and dance cultures from around China. The 2nd Beijing Traditional Music Festival was incorporated into the ISME Conference activities and held at the China Conservatory of Music. This was sponsored by the Chinese Government and besides performances throughout the week, on Wednesday evening for "China Night" the groups were featured in Night of China – Sound and Vision from the Tang Dynasty. This was followed by the outdoor Folk Music Carnival which was held under a clear sky in balmy weather.

An amazing number of performing groups (47) representing musics of many cultures from around 20 countries performed throughout the week. Exposure to some of this music was a unique experience for most of the delegates. In all, about 2800 performers took part during the week.

The ISME 2010 Beijing Music Show was supported by local and international exhibitors and attracted great interest from delegates and visitors from the wider community. Thanks to all who worked so hard for the success of this 29th ISME World Conference, and to all those who supported this magnificent event.

Welcome to the 30th ISME World Conference in Thessaloniki, Greece from 15-20 July 2012!

August 15^th 2010

THE ISME-GIBSON INTERNATIONAL AWARDS 2010

THE ISME-GIBSON INTERNATIONAL AWARDS 2010 WERE AWARDED ON THE 29th ISME WORLD CONFERENCE IN BEIJING

Professor Jiaxing Xie received one of the Awards for the project Teaching children to sing songs of the home area which is aimed at minority children in Guangxi in the western part of China where the loss of traditional music is very serious. The aim is to restore the local musical traditions by training and promoting local folk singing of music teacher in the area so that more children will be able to learn these musical heritage.

The second Award went to Mr Bin Wu, Vice chair of the Chinese Society for Music Education, for the project Music education in Chinese schools with special focus on the Western regions, which deals with the situation of music education in the Western part of China where there are certain minority groups. The aim is to provide the music teachers and children there with information, teacher training and teaching materials. Thousands of children are estimated to benefit from this project.

ISME has its own calendar

ISME has its own calendar. Within ISME we don't count years but "biennia", that is periods of two years. Now one biennium has ended and another one has begun. I thank the out-going Immediate Past President Liane Hentschke for work for ISME over several years and I welcome and wish good luck to the new ISME President Graham Welch and the President Elect Margaret Barrett.

I have experienced an intense and greatly rewarding biennium as ISME President. ISME is a continuously growing organization – not only in numbers, but also in perspectives and in activities. So when we now move into a new biennium we do this with our most urgent aims spelled out in a strategic plan. The intention is that this will increase ISME's efficiency in leading and supporting music education worldwide.

The 29th ISME World Conference in Beijing that finished on 6th August attracted nearly seven thousand participants and contained a wide number of presentations, workshops and concerts and a large exhibition. This conference adds a new chapter in ISME's history and in the history of music education. It will have a long influence inside China as well as internationally.

With this conference the name 'Beijing' has taken on yet another meaning and so has the name 'China'. One feature of the ISME calendar is that we tend to refer to previous conferences by the hosting city's or the hosting country's name. In the future we will not call this as the 29th ISME World Conference in Beijing 2010. People will just say: "Do you remember Beijing" or "China! That was great!"

Thanks to all who made this conference a living manifestation for music education!

Håkan Lundström
Immediate Past President