Learning from collaboration in classical music innovation

In the social sciences, humanities and higher music education, collaboration across disciplines and institutes increasingly features as an extension of the repertoire of conventional didactic models and research methods. In my presentation, I will focus on collaborative teaching and research carried out by the Maastricht Centre for the Innovation of Classical Music (MCICM). This inter- and transdisciplinary collaboration between an orchestra, a higher music education institute, and a university situated in the South of the Netherlands started from sharing a problem: how can classical music organistions shape new futures through innovating their practices? Each of the partners has a stake of its own in addressing this problem. Whereas the orchestra hopes to attract new audiences and strengthen its public presence, the conservatory aims to update its curricula and the academic researchers are interested in orchestral music as a major practice of cultural transmission. Reflecting on our work in the MCICM in recent years, I will reflect on how this collaboration played out in practice. What was successful and why? And, perhaps more importantly, what proved to be less effective?