Young talents in music - the commitment in the cantons is great
On November 22, the VMS Board invited representatives from all Swiss cantons to an exchange on the status of support for talented musicians at cantonal and national level. Lorenzetta Zaugg from the Federal Office of Culture and responsible for the federal program "Young Talents in Music" was available to answer questions.
"The 'Young Talents in Music' program has developed great momentum," said Eva Crastan from the VMS Board at the start of the afternoon in front of around 50 participants. VMS President Philippe Krüttli also emphasized that it was impressive to see how the work in the cantons was progressing - by the end of 2024, 16 cantonal programmes had already been accredited as part of "Young Talents in Music", and numerous others were in the consultation process. This makes it all the more important to exchange ideas in order to learn from each other and move forward together.
How did the "Young Talents in Music" funding program come about?
With the establishment of Article 67a in the Federal Constitution, the Confederation and cantons were given the task of promoting the musical education of children and young people. On the one hand, this includes broad-based promotion - which has already been given its own program with "Youth and Music" - and on the other, the promotion of talented young people. Many programs already existed at both cantonal and municipal level to support particularly talented music students, but there was a lack of national coordination. With "Young Talents in Music" and the associated framework concept, this has been available for two years, and the cantons can now have their cantonal program for the promotion of particularly talented students accredited by the federal government.
From the framework concept Young Talents Music
"As part of the 2021-2024 Cultural Dispatch, the Federal Council has promised to define principles and introduce specific measures to promote talented young people. With its "Young Talents in Music" program, the Confederation supports musically talented children and young people within the framework of cantonal and intercantonal talent promotion programs. With its program, the federal government is not creating its own talent promotion system, but is building on cantonal and intercantonal talent promotion programs. These must meet the content and structural requirements of this framework concept in order to be eligible for federal support. For the development of corresponding programs, the Confederation also supports the cantons with one-off financial assistance."
(Source: BAK, Framework concept for young talents in music Page 2)
Learning from each other
During one part of the afternoon, the participants informed themselves about the cantonal programs by means of a poster exhibition. They discussed cantonal principles, political structures and enrolment figures - the exchange was intensive and fruitful.
"There is a great deal of commitment in the cantons," said Lorenzetta Zaugg at the end of the afternoon. Philippe Krüttli also expressed his thanks and added that the milestones achieved in a relatively short space of time were something to be proud of.
Under the following Link you will find information on the funding programs in the cantons that are already accredited.
