Everything is ready for the third edition of Sicily Music Conference, from May 22nd to 25th to Palermo and Catania. As per tradition, there will be a program full of meetings, performances and debates focused on the most current issues in the sector, and as mentioned this year the conference doubles: after the two days in Palermo at the Garibaldi Theatre will move to Palace of Culture of Catania, a unique city rich in a cultural and musical tradition recognized throughout the world.
Among the topics that will be touched upon range from social responsibility to the cultural models of the Mediterranean, from artistic residencies to inclusiveness, from the new law on entertainment to musical tourism. And then the role of Mediterranean Sea and the sense of territory. Listening sessions and speed dates will also be organised: some of the labels’ A&Rs will in fact be available to Sicilian musicians to listen and share thoughts and strategies on new music and emerging artists.
We start on Tuesday 21 May at the Averna Spazio Open with a special event: COSMO in concert for one of the six stages of Heroes Festival 2024, an event produced by Music Innovation Hub alongside the Festival of Sustainable Development (ASviS) and in collaboration with UN SDG Action Campaign. Wednesday 22 May we get to the heart of things: the SMC officially opens in a new location in the center of Palermo, the Garibaldi Theater, a symbolic place of culture in Italy, inaugurated in 1861 by Giuseppe Garibaldi himself; at 10 am a specific educational on the press office thanks to Rockit support and a meeting at the E. Basile Scientific High School with the participation of Johnny Marsiglia. At 12 pm presentation to the press of In Their Name. Music and voices for mafia victimsthe great musical marathon that will take place on May 25th in the Archaeological Park of Selinunte
In the afternoon, all the main themes of the 2024 edition will be addressed. We start with social responsibility in music together with the Heroes Festival and to the first international delegates to arrive in Sicily for the conference: Sarah Williams -Palestinian Music Expo / CEO impel publishing / Earth Percent- and Stephen Budd -NH7 Weekender / Africa Express-, to follow cultural models in the Mediterranean to explore the richness and diversity of models present in the Mediterranean region. Together with Hans Jørgen Støp – Associate professor in Music Production at the Department of Music, Nord University -, Gennaro de Rosa – Musica Contro Le Mafie -, Ella Overkleeft – Rural Radicals -, Mark Dieler -Lazytime/Meraki- and Alessandro Delisi – Fondazione Falcone – we will talk about artistic residencies in the spaces confiscated from organized crime and we will close the day of talks with a panel organized by KeepOn LIVE on the accessibility and inclusiveness of the music sector.
At the end of the panels, one of the central moments strongly desired by the curators of the SMC, the meeting with a man who 10 years ago did what every human should do and which the laws prohibit, Vito Fiorino, the fisherman from Lampedusa who saved 47 migrants from the shipwreck off the island, a tragedy in which 368 people lost their lives. Together with Vito Fiorino, Chris Obehi young musician who fled the violence of Boko Haram, survived the torture of Libyan concentration camps, arrived in Europe on a dinghy. The documentary will then be screened North of Lampedusa by Alessandro Rocca, a documentary film that tells the story – beautiful, emotional, deeply human – of Vito Fiorino and the migrants he saved on that moonless night.
Thursday 23 May Palermo stops for thecommemoration of the death of magistrate Giovanni Falcone, by Francesca Morvillo and the escort and also the Sicily Music Conference will have different times. The morning will always be dedicated to educationals and at 2pm the first workshop dedicated to artistic freedom and digital well-being will be held, Fabrizio Galassi will teach musicians how to be happy even outside of streaming. Following a crucial meeting for the Conference, we will in fact have the pleasure and honor of hosting the President of Assomusica Carlo Parodi who with Federico Rasetti of KeepOn LIVE, Giampaolo Grotta (Assomusica Associate) and Marco Trulli – ARCI/BJCEM will illustrate the new proposal of the entertainment law presented in March. At 5pm Chiara Bonarrigo, Music & Talent Partnership Lead of VEVO will hold an unmissable workshop for those who want to find out more about such a precious media for promotion.
At 7pm the Conference moves to PunkFunk for the presentation of KeepOn LIVE FEST 2024 and at 9pm at Ballarak for the Music For Change showcase. For cinema lovers a special screening: FOR LUCIUS the wonderful film by Pietro Marcello produced by IBC Movie with Rai Cinema, the evening is organized in collaboration with CinemaCity and presented by Carmelo Galati.
On Thursday night the SMC team from Palermo will reach Catania, where together with the team of Pulp Entertainmentnew project partner, will open the Catania works at the Palazzo della Cultura on Friday 24 May at 12.00 with a focus on major events in Sicily together with Carmelo Costa.
At 11 am the SMC returns to school, for the first time at the Liceo Angelo Musco there will be a meeting with the Essemagazine team and with the special participation of Don Pero. In the afternoon the workshop on artistic happiness returns with the special participation of Aurora D’Amico and at 4.00 pm the first appointment with the workshop Music Export Kit8 hours of free seminar, divided into two days: a mix of lectures, case studies and practical exercises to learn in a simple way how to start working with international partners and broaden the horizon of your professional activities.
Also on the 24th the topic of artistic residencies with five Italian and international case studies, a unique opportunity to explore the mechanisms and best practices of activating artistic residencies through the analysis of five distinct case studies. Following this, speed dates on the topic will be organized so that the network can become increasingly richer.
But at SMC there is no shortage of opportunities for reflection on the recording world and we will talk about the catalog, an in-depth analysis of the evolution and challenges of the recording industry, from the rise of physical media to the new digital dynamics. The first day of talks ends with a meeting entitled Gender balance vs marketing plan, an authentic commitment to gender equality should in fact derive from intrinsic values and the desire to create inclusive and fair environments, rather than being used only for commercial purposes. As per tradition, the aperitif hour is dedicated to meetings with artists and discussions between different generations of musicians, we talk about it with Elfo, with Sugarfree and with Idda.
The last day of the conference, Saturday 25 May, opens in the morning with the workshop on communication in music and in the afternoon the second slot of the Music Export Kit workshop will be held. In the conference room at 11 am a focus onartificial intelligence and then the challenges and opportunities that southern musical artists face in pursuing their passions and careers will be explored together with operators based or relocated in southern Italy and with international delegates from Malta, Tunisia and beyond. This will be followed by a focus on music tourism and the crucial role that festivals, artistic residencies and conferences play in promoting music-related tourism.
As per SMC tradition, the last panel will be dedicated to festivals born in island contexts, through in-depth discussion and engaging performances, they offer a platform to explore the role of music in the expression of local identity, in the promotion of tourism and in ability to ‘incorporate elements of tradition and innovation. Just on Saturday afternoon, thanks to the precious support of FIMI – Italian Music Industry Federation there will be a connection from Canada with Francesco Del Maro, the coordinator of Hit Week by FIMI/ICE: the first and most important Festival in the world dedicated to the diffusion of Italian music and culture beyond national borders. Then the SMC will move to the Mono for the last showcase and musical moments and to the San Berillo space, Trame di Quartiere, where the film will be screened North of Lampedusa.
Sunday 26th is the day of the closing party and of chatter and music, at Small Urban Park of Bagheria. 12 hours of music and food to celebrate the third edition of the SMC with Bangover Crew, Giacomo Virzì b2b Nunzio Borino, Mapa b2b VLG, Microdx, Collective synthesis In collaboration with Meeraqui, GoMad Concerti and Palermo Suona. And, again, at Meraki Testa Dell’Acqua (Noto) SMC Sunday Brunch & chill with The Sweet Life Society Soundsystem Live Set, Steven Budd vinyl dj set, Paolo Mei dj set.
“In 2022 we began this ambitious path by addressing the themes of the gender gap, the new discography and post-pandemic live performances and facilitating the foundation of Sicilia Live. In 2023 we dedicated ample space to the accessibility of both on-the-ground events and new media and to the sustainability in terms of environmental and economic resources. In 2024 we are ready for a small leap and we will expand the conference to the wonderful Sicilian territory, we will be in Palermo and Catania and we will implement the involvement of trade associations and international music brands”, he explains Federica Ceppa, Co-founder & Head of Strategy SMCamong the creators of the event.
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The article Everything is ready for the Sicily Music Conference, which doubles this year by Redazione appeared on Rockit.it on 2024-05-21 09:12:00
