From Adliswil to Zumikon - Music schools in Zurich
In Zurich, the most populous canton in Switzerland, around 2,500 teachers work at 36 music schools. The number of subjects taught is also impressively high: over 70,000 lessons are taught every year.
The canton of Zurich is clearly urban in character - the city of Zurich and its agglomeration have the highest population density in Switzerland. Nevertheless, there are also rural areas such as the Zürcher Weinland or parts of the Zürcher Oberland. This is reflected in the very different sizes of the music schools. The Musikschule Konservatorium Zürich, for example, is the largest music school in Switzerland with around 25,000 students, making it one of the largest in Europe, while other music schools only teach a few hundred students.
Music School Act since 2023
January 1, 2023 was an important milestone for music education in the canton of Zurich. On this date, the Music School Act, which the Association of Zurich Music Schools had been campaigning for for several years, came into force. "The law improves equal opportunities for children and young people," says Thomas Ineichen, President of the Association of Zurich Music Schools (VZM) and delegate for the VMS. Since its introduction, the canton has covered around ten percent of the costs of music education (previously three percent). After deducting municipal contributions, parents still bear around a third of the costs for their children's music lessons. The music schools are currently being accredited by the Department of Education in a process that will continue until 2027. After the first year of the Music School Act, Ineichen draws a positive balance and describes it as a great relief in political terms. The quality of the music school offer can now be maintained or even improved - benefiting everyone involved.
Talent development
The cantonal support program "Young Talents in Music" also recently came into force with the support of the federal government, which consolidates the existing talent promotion at many schools on a cantonal level. Around one percent of pupils benefit from the program for the most talented - a figure that, according to Ineichen, could still be increased.
Music as a life's work
Thomas Ineichen is involved in music education at all levels. Since 1997 he has been the director of the Zurich Oberland Music School. He has been a board member since 2002 and took over the presidency of the VZM in 2018, helping to shape the musical landscape at cantonal level and, as a delegate for the VMS, at national level too. "It is my life's work to champion music as a cultural asset," he says. "As music teachers and school leaders, we should make it clear how important music is to us and that society cannot be without it."
