The goal of the European Jazz School is to bring together talented young musicians from European partner regions and from Hesse through workshops, to rehearse together as an ensemble, and subsequently to present their collaboration musically at the end of a workshop. Participants learn to communicate with the ensemble and to succeed on international stages. In addition, they get to know our partner regions, thus obtaining a better understanding of the organization and structure of musical education in other countries.

During workshops, it is important that all bands are internationally diverse, thus presenting a joint European product on stage - consisting of the diverse influences that come together in each band through the individual musicians themselves. Public funds used to train the young talented musicians will be returned to the public by way of the concerts. Of course, each musician takes away an infinite amount of learning experience with regard to the development of skills in his or her particular instrument as well as in terms of ensemble practice, precisely because so many talented young musicians come together.

Interaction during the workshops is always at eye level, whether linguistically, musically or pedagogically. For our focus is on the joint development of musical products, which then have to pass the test on stage three days later. This method, where togetherness does not require hierarchical structures while everyone treats everyone else respectfully, automatically generates energy and fun, a core element that everyone needs.

Thus, in the context of these workshops, we temporarily break up fixed structural assignments - which are a common routine at educational institutions. This creates a very strong sense of community among all participants. And has contributed to the great success of the project for over ten years now and constitutes the core, secret curriculum, and mission of the project all at the same time. The equitable collaboration within the framework of this European music project brings together the following regions:

• Nouvelle Aquitaine in France, with the Conservatory Jaques Thibaud, Bordeaux

• Bursa in Turkey, with Uludag University

• Emilia Romagna in Italy, with various conservatories

• Hesse, with the Dr. Hoch's Conservatory - Musikakademie Frankfurt

• Wielkopolska in Poland, with the Ignacy Jan Paderewski Music Academy Poznan.

The practice of equitable structures between nations, lecturers and students, and the resulting attitude to life, which usually makes everyone happy, may by itself be visionary enough and certainly often absent from everyday life. This is exactly where the project of the European Jazz School is still capable of further expansion. Today the school has had more than a decade of gifted young musical talents as participants, and a follow-up vision might be for them to meet each year in a different partner region to cultivate musical exchange with other jazz musicians as part of a festival. In this way, the music scene in our partner regions would come together more strongly, and there would be a recurring exchange, which would also offer a larger audience the opportunity to participate in the concerts and sessions in the respective performing city.

The idea for the project was developed as part of a concept for interregional collaboration within the framework of Hessentag, Hesse's largest state festival. The joint appearance of jazz musicians from our partner regions was only one idea of many, but it has now developed for over a decade and is also coordinated internationally from the Hessian side. This includes the annual planning, organization and realization of the European Jazz School in Hesse, with a final concert at the Hessentag. In addition, however, the international coordination of the workshops, which subsequently take place mostly in other partner regions in the course of the year, is also coordinated from Hesse and organized for the international sector. It is important for this coordination and organization that the European Jazz School receives the necessary support from the Hessian state government for its the various projects.