University of Music FRANZ LISZT Weimar - Application process

M.A. course in Arts Management

Master’s degrees are consecutive or postgraduate courses, i.e. they follow on from a completed degree. The Master’s degree in Arts Management, offered at the Department of Musicology Weimar-Jena, generally follows a Bachelor of Arts degree. In terms of content, it is based on the B.A. course in Intercultural Music and Events Management, offered by the Department of Musicology, and culminates in a ‘Master of Arts’ degree (M.A.). The standard duration is four semesters.

Half of the M.A. in Arts Management serves to deepen selected politico-cultural (concepts of the culture state and culture economy), economic (including cultural monitoring and cultural branding) and academic (developments of modern and post-modern) content, methods and theories, on the basis of the fundamental skills gained during the B.A. studies. During the other half, students specialise by selecting a study profile in a particular sub-area within the subject of Arts Management or Musicology. The following profiles are offered within the M.A. in Arts Management:

Eine Hälfte des M.A. Kulturmanagement dient der Vertiefung ausgewählter kulturpolitischer (Kulturstaats- und Kulturwirtschaftskonzepte), -ökonomischer (u. a. Kulturcontrolling, Kulturbranding) und -wissenschaftlicher (Entwicklungen von Moderne und Postmoderne) Inhalte, Methoden und Theorien auf der Basis der im B.A. erworbenen Grundkenntnisse. Während der jeweils anderen Hälfte spezialisieren sich die Studierenden durch die Wahl eines Studienprofils auf einem bestimmten Teilgebiet innerhalb des Studienfaches Kulturmanagement bzw. Musikwissenschaft. Folgende Profile werden im M.A. Kulturmanagement angeboten:

International Arts Management profile

In collaboration with the subject of Intercultural Business Communication, at the University of Jena, skills from the fields of the cultural economy and cultural studies are gained with regard to multicultural diversity and intercultural interaction. Alongside a certain focus on understanding specific corporate cultures, particular attention is paid to methods of intercultural interaction, research and cultural-comparative psychology.

History of Jazz and Popular Music profile

The master’s profile focuses on exploring various genres and styles of popular music and jazz, both in the past and the present. In this regard, their sounds and the social, ethnic, economic and media-related contexts, relating to their production, dissemination and reception, are researched. To this end, the master’s profile provides historical and theoretical knowledge, as well as methods of analysing music recordings and performance, studying sources and carrying out empirical research.

Media Management profile

This subject profile is located at the interface of economics, social studies and media studies. The objective is to gain a better understanding of the deep-rooted change experienced by media products, media sectors and economic framework conditions. The objects of research, such as media, media companies, media markets and media consumers, are not considered in isolation: instead, they are viewed in the context of cultural, social and political contexts.

East-Central Europe profile

The M.A. profile in East-Central Europe (ECE) communicates meaningful knowledge and skills, with the objective of learning how to understand specific East-Central European cultures, or experiencing how understanding foreign cultures is achieved in general. The ECE profile looks at historico-cultural and politico-cultural developments, theories and discourses in ECE countries, particularly the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Ukraine and Poland/the Baltics. Furthermore, analyses of determining factors (with regard to cultural systems and institutions) from selected cultural regions are carried out, as are analyses of intercultural and transcultural relationships. There is the option of taking parts of the module at one of the partner universities in Prague, Olomouc, Tallinn or Chernivtsi.

Transcultural Music Studies profile

Music is primarily investigated as performance and in its specific social and cultural context. The focus is on musical performance, i.e. live performance in an overarching sense, with field research representing the privileged form of data collection (recordings, films, interviews, participatory observation etc.).

As far as musical analysis goes, this means that the sources underpinning this type of analysis are diverse (records, alternative notations, reports, iconography, photos, films, the internet etc.) Tried-and-trusted methods from neighbouring disciplines in the social sciences are taken into account, with Transcultural Music Studies also looking at critical disciplines, including those that are gender-related, or World Music/Global Music Studies.

Folk Studies and Cultural History profile

The profile has a strong focus on empirical cultural studies, with an emphasis on people's different ways of life, especially in the field of their own (regional, German-speaking) culture. Ethnological approaches are primarily qualitative (‘soft methods’), and ethnological ways of working are hermeneutic and interpretative. Popular and everyday culture (history, gender, society, symbols and signs) are at the heart of this profile.

The detailed regulations, module catalogues, sample timetables and lecture lists can be found under the corresponding links. If you have any questions, please contact the student counselling service, the student representatives or the Arts Management Instagram channel.

Admission requirements

For all profiles:

Degree with professional qualification of relevance to the subject (Master’s Degree, Diploma, Bachelor’s Degree, or similar) with an overall mark of at least 2.5 (topics of relevance to the subject include, in particular, courses with subjects in cultural studies, musicology and business studies, or other courses, with at least 30 credits, in the field of Arts Management)
Knowledge of two modern foreign languages (five years of lessons without an A-levels examination, three years of lessons with an A-level or B1 level certificate, in line with the Common European Framework of Reference)
For overseas applicants: proof of German proficiency at language level C1 through, for example, the ‘Deutsche Sprachprüfung für den Hochschulzugang’ (DSH), the ‘Test Deutsch als Fremdsprache’ (TestDaF), ‘The European Language Certificates’ (telc) or comparable language examinations, e.g. Goethe certificates. We recommend using a certified language school
Relevant professional experience, generally gained through an internship lasting at least six weeks
Participation in an application interview

For the International Arts Management profile, knowledge of the field of intercultural communication is important.

Application process

In the case of the M.A. course in Arts Management, the application is made via the UoM’s online portal. After the documents have been received, the director of the Arts Management course reviews whether the requirements for the degree have been met. This process includes an interview, for which the applicant will receive a separate invitation. If the conditions are met, the applicants receive a decision of acceptance, paired with a request to enrol at the UoM. Enrolment is done in writing, using the appropriate form, and payment of the current semester fee is a prerequisite thereof.

Please note: your application is only valid once you have successfully completed your application online and sent all your application documents by post. Additional information regarding application deadlines and documents can be found under ‘Application’.

Bitte beachten Sie: Ihre Bewerbung ist nur dann gültig, wenn Sie nach erfolgter Anmeldung im Online-Portal Ihre vollständigen Bewerbungsunterlagen auf dem Postweg eingeschickt haben. Weitere Informationen bezüglich Bewerbungsfristen und -unterlagen finden Sie unter Bewerbung.