Media Enterprise » music

Crunch Time

Dominika Jankowska — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 17:34:16 +0000

by Dominika Jankowska

Introduction

On 31st March The Studio in Birmingham city centre hosted an event entitled Crunch Time and was organised by Screen WM and Creative Republic. The debate undertook the topic on how the organisations within creative industries can beat the recession. Among the creative guest speakers there were such personalities, as: Suzie Norton (CEO, Screen WM), James Meadway (NESTA, co-author of “Attacking the Recession”), Helga Henry (Creative Republic), Lara Ratnaraja (Sector Development Director Creative, Cultural and Digital, Business Link), Chris Unitt (Editor, Created in Birmingham) and Ruth Ward (Managing Director, Rewired PR). Despite different backgrounds, all of the appointed entrepreneurs had something in common; fresh and innovative ideas on how to face credit crunch and not only survive within this time but also progress, as this is the key to success for each organisation.

“Attacking The Recession”
West Midlands region accounts 10% of total unemployment which is the highest in the UK. Cultural and Creative industries which are characterised by innovation, risk taking and creativity, are probably most vulnerable to economic changes. The co-author of Attacking The Recession, James Meadway recognises the importance of enhancing innovation through public funding and partnerships with businesses and enterprises, ‘The UK will need new growth sectors to make up for the dynamism that has been lost from financial services. The development of those growth sectors will require a mix of intelligent public investment, partnership with business and entrepreneurship. Decisive government leadership and public investment will be critical to innovation in many fields, from scientific research to cultural funding.’ Moreover, the biggest gains for society, he adds, will be found in those sectors that both offer the most immediate growth potential, drawing on the UK’s existing strengths, and help meet long-term challenges, such as green energy, environmental services, biotechnology, and services for ageing society. These need to form part of national economic strategy and be able to set long-term goals along with the political credibility to help deliver them. However, this approach needs to be combined with a mass of entrepreneurial activity which searches for new markets, opportunities and is characterised by innovation. James Meadway also adds that the recession will create a new platform of growth if business entrepreneurs emerge to take opportunities in new growth industries and social entrepreneurs address emerging social challenges.
Strong emphasis has been also put on networks and how people relate to each other. NESTA’s policy analyst argues that lack of these was one of the main reasons for collapsing of the global economy. Through digital networks and strengthening business-client relations creative industries can start breaking through the economic downturn. Recent statistics showed that Internet and BBC iPlayer account of 10% of the UK’s total internet usage which characterises the national market as driven by technological changes. Therefore, he finds the importance of using the technology as a main objective in companies’ strategies which help them meet their goals. Finally, cultural and creative industries will be driving the UK’s economy forward. It’s just the case of experimentation and creativity as long as these two work and bring the expected results.

Show me the money
Thomas Blount (Fund Manager, Advantage Proof of Concept Fund) supports small businesses and recognises the importance of innovation as well as intellectual property. As all of the guest speakers, he also supports social media which are necessary in formation of a long tail and organic growth of enterprises. However, he argues that the biggest block in growth is the access to finance – more specifically – to funding.
Skills development and Train to Gain
The panel strongly emphasised the development of skills and gaining new qualifications. This could be done, for instance, via Train to Gain, a joint investment – organisation and Government working together to boost business by improving the skills of the individual staff members. In the collaboration with Business Link, Train to Gain is a perfect tool for the business to use in the times of recession. It not only helps improving business performance and efficiency towards increasing profits but it also help the staff grow in motivation and confidence.
Summarising was the massive figure of 60% given by the panel which represents total percentage of graduates within creative industries who have, at least, gained BA degrees. This means that it is highly important to gain extra qualifications and training in this pretty competitive industry. Multi-talented qualified people represent another element of succeeding in the current economic climate. Ergo, skills and qualification development and apprenticeships will help reach this goal.

No Budget Marketing
The panel’s guest speakers were Chris Unitt and Ruth Ward. Both guest speakers emphasised the importance of online media, direct marketing and direct mail, and social networks, such as Twitter, as keys to maintaining business-client relations. Surprisingly, there are still many creative enterprises which don’t really employ these tools in their overall business strategy. That’s one of the reasons why they don’t succeed these days.
Another useful point was that the organisation must not follow the crowds but be more innovative through using different tools of communicating with clients. Ruth also mentioned her PR organisation and how they communicate with their clients. Be different, innovative and remarkable are key elements for the current and future growth. Ruth mentioned the main steps to success and these were as follows:
•    You are biggest asset
•    Bring back bartering
•    Become your own broadcaster
•    Get creative (!)
•    Listen to what people say
•    Don’t be afraid to ask for leads
•    Be a connector
•    Become an authority on your industry
•    Ask clients for endorsements
•    Be the best at what you do

Change or die?
Tom Lawes (Electric Cinema) and Paul Davies (Television Junction) drew my attention to a very simple and how successful tool within the organisation. Diversity. ‘If you diversify your day you diversify your skills too’. Anything you do during the day at work; meetings with your clients, conferences, training they will be a good opportunity for diversifying your skills as well. One of the biggest skills, however, is to figure out where the money is and try to get it. It can be easily done through recognition of consumer preferences and current trends in the market. Once recognised they should be implemented into action and maintained.
Another crucial point was passion. The passion to work comes from skills and creativity. If you’re a creative person you will find fulfilment in anything you do (Tom Lawes).

I hope all of the above will help understand the importance of application of various approaches during the current economic situation and I will be looking forward to hearing from you what you think about it.

P.S Sorry for expanding my word count but I realised that everything discussed during Crunch Time was equally important =P

Three speakers, three people, three approaches

raijenkins — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 06:13:47 +0000

Good grief that went quickly…….on the 24th February, a group of eager students listened attentively…Ollie Leggett founder of IE Design, Birmingham, Rachel Hargrave, Phoenix Partners Leicester and freelance producer- Alan James.

Ollie Leggett of IE Design, was totally inspiring from how he obtained his first client, to his approach in running his business. His personal values have shaped his business ethos. When Ollie started his company he created his core values which he still works by today however he did say that it’s a daily struggle to keep to them when he has to let someone go etc. His ‘Key Values’ are non negotiable and suggested that to ‘Be true to yourself and live it’

Ollie stated that he lead not managed his company and went on to say that only 3% of us are ‘Natural Leaders’ however the good news is that you can learn to be one!!!!! He referred to a book ‘Developing the Leader within You’ by John C Maxwell.

Most of what Ollie spoke about reflected current management thinking……I really think he should write it down!

Second up was Rachel Hargrave with a totally different approach to her business. Rachel, is a partner of Phoenix Partners based in Leicestershire which she set-up 7 years ago. Organic strategy comes to mind in how Rachel approaches her business, responding to clients needs with ‘Yes we can do that to’ then finding a way! Moving from live events and film and video into different areas such as PR and graphic design has been a business strategy that has benefitted the company in the downturn as the projects and budgets have been slashed in Live Events. Rachel recognised that she has to be more structured since the early days where she was very much hands on, she now finds herself managing and moving the company forward. Something she admits seems at times rather alien to her. How she wins work is being really good a what you do – helping people to communicate their story in a variety of multi platform and cross discipline work, that is memorable and full of impact.
Alan James, a freelance producer shared with us his experience of producing a unscripted improvised live band with an orchestra and live writing composers. The Band –“The Bays” based in London.
10 years ago, a group of session musicians from well know acts came together and decided not to make records but only play live totally improvised with no rehearsals and no vocals. The four piece, The Bays, are drums, bass, keyboards and ‘science department’ – effects with a special guest each night. Alan explained the difficulties in working with an improvised band with an orchestra and how it was overcome by the use of technology.
All these speakers had qualities of passion, commitment and creativity in what they produced and how they ran their business or project. I would like to thank all of them in taking the time to come and talk. Thank you for reading…

Bob Moog – the 20th century music entrepreneur

Susi O'Neill — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 19:33:10 +0000

In this post I will analyse the unique characteristics of cultural entrepreneurship in relation to the musical instrument inventor Bob Moog and the wider impact of one individual’s creative enterprise since the 1950s.What is an entrepreneur?There are many wide-ranging definitions of an entrepreneur, with connotations of city slickers focused on profit-driven financial deals, or geniuses or hapless inventors being grilled over IP registration and profit projections in the BBC series “Dragon’s Den”.The term entrepreneur was first used by French economist and journalist Jean-Baptiste Say during the French Revolution to describe one who unlocks capital tied up in land and redirects it to change the future. Say was the first economist to recognise change and uncertainty as normal and positive in business¹.The Beermat Entrepreneur’s describe entrepreneurs as confident, charismatic, have bags of energy, obsessed with work, ambitious, in a hurry, arrogant, manipulative, lack focus and are obsessed with the competition².The risk-taker, the go-getter, the manipulator, the charismatic leader, the opportunist and the serialist are all types and characteristics of the typical entrepreneur.Characteristics of cultural entrepreneurshipCultural entrepreneurs may inhibit some or all of these characteristics, however rather than unlocking land capital they work within the knowledge industries to exploit intellectual capital, using creativity to “unlock the wealth that lies within themselves”³. Cultural enterprises often revolve around individual ‘stars’ working within specialised networks⁴.Cultural entrepreneurs may have both social and cultural, in addition to economic, objectives, which may include winning peer recognition and media or celebrity acclaim. These two factors of limited tangible assets and social or cultural aims leads to radically different thinking, new business models and alternative working practices. According to the Demos paper “The Independents” (1999), cultural entrepreneurs have four new ways of working: a blurring of the demarcation line between production and consumption; a blurring between work and non-work; a combination of individualistic values with collaborative working; and being members of a wider community⁵.About Bob Moog“At the start of the 20th century, Lenin said: ‘Communism is Soviet organisation plus electricity’. At the start of the 21st, I suggest, ‘ the new economy is creativity plus electronics.’” – John Howkins, The Creative EconomyHowkins quotation not only illustrates the significance of technology in the economics of 21^st century cultural industries, but the significance of electronics which have enabled the creation of electronic music, which now pervades popular culture. Electronic music was first popularised as part of the Soviet ‘electrification’ manifesto through the politicised, international promotion of Lev Termin’s Terminvox (theremin) invention. A man inspired by Lev Termin, who was at the centrifuge of music technology in the mid 20^th century, was Bob Moog.The post-war years were ‘dreamtime for electronic music machinery”⁶ yet electronic music production was initially only accessible to academic institutes and the very wealthy. Bob Moog’s philosophy was to make electronic music performable and available to mainstream (non-academic) musicians.Unlike the typical ‘working class hero’ entrepreneur, Dr Robert Moog (1934-2005), could be described as an ‘establishment entrepreneur’⁷ who benefited from inheriting education, skills and the ‘gene’ of enterprise. Moog was the son of a middle-class engineer in New York who achieved a PhD in engineering physics and whose father taught him electrical engineering. Aged 20 he established his first business with his father in 1954 selling theremin kits, then unavailable in the market. His instruments became widely known to composers and musicians across the United States, by almost word of mouth alone.With Herb Deutsch, he produced the first modular synthesizer in 1964, designed to be portable and adaptable, reducing the room of equipment needed to produce electronic music to closer to a table. Deutsch recalls, “We were probably more interested in the potential expansion of the musical aural universe than we were of its effect upon the broader musical community.”Moog founded his own company, R.A. Moog. He was a natural entrepreneur – a good businessman and a free spirited intellectual. His theories on ‘democratisation’ through technology helped to pioneer the success of electronic music in pop and avant-garde markets. Although his initial customers were academic composers, Moog’s enterprising background gave him the ‘sensitivity to the marketplace that he might have lacked had he remained only in the service of the university based music community.”⁸Moog soon realised he needed to expand his market to extend the business and make the technology accessible. Chuck Leavell, Moog’s main salesman, undertook a radical sales tactic by touring music stores with the Moog Modular, taking it directly to musicians to listen to these new electronic sounds. This ‘word of mouth’ principle led to the East Coast Moog craze of 1967.Moog realised the importance of using good musicians and personalities to publicise his instrument, artists whose record sales would exceed any specialist ‘electronic’ publication. His posing with Keith Emerson, George Harrison and other Moog disciples established synthesis as cool, fashionable and the future sound in popular music. The company’s high points were the success of the one-million selling moog album “Switched On Bach” by Wendy Carlos (1968) and the invention of MiniMoog (1972), the first all-in-one portable synthesizer.Initially Moog received little subsidy or support, working in a disused, ramshackle gelatine factory producing handmade synthesizers. All business faces uncertainty, but music companies, essentially dealing in luxury commodities, face ‘radical uncertainty’⁹ with increasing volume of willing suppliers and unpredictable buying patterns. Moog’s market soon shifted as competition caused saturation and recession adversely affected music technology. To scale up and survive, Moog sold his controlling share to various bigger companies and investors, briefly working for the Kurzweil corporation (1984-9), before establishing a new independent business.Despite Moog’s unexpected death in 2005, Moog Music Inc continues to trade using the legacy of values and standards Moog established which “represent a genre of their own: Moog Music.” Still a small company of just 14 staff, high standards of personalised customer service prevails. Moog was known to deal personally with some technical enquiries and even pay home visits to customers. His customer-focused business model would not be scaleable to a company working with mass-produced product yet passion for the instruments and integrity are key reasons people continue to buy into the brand. The instruments are expensive and delivered to the highest quality with limited edition features and strong design aesthetics. The Etherwave Pro theremin won the 2005 Excellence in Design Award.Moog did not patent his designs, making his technology and IP replicable. He has not made excessive wealth from his businesses and his companies or divisions have never employed a significant workforce. The subsequent musicians, composers and music technologists who exploited the market for new electronic music gained more wealth from Moog’s ideas than he did directly. Yet in developing and exploiting new technology, pioneering new approaches to making and selling instruments and for being the first in the market, Moog can be seen as an early example of a new, independent cultural entrepreneur. Resonances of this altruistic style of cultural entrepreneurialism, the creation of new cultural work for society’s gain, can be observed in Anthony Wilson (Factory Records), Michael Eavis (Glastonbury Festival) and Rob Mitchell (Warp Records).Bob Moog’s cultural entrepreneurial traitsFocusing on the customer experienceDavid Parrish believes ‘successful entrepreneurs are truly customer focused’, making customers ‘active partners’ in developing the business. Moog Music Inc treat their personalised one-to-one contact with their customers as a form of user-testing which is crucial in the development process. Any musician the company interact with become an informal Consultant on new products, which the company believe have “enduring musical worth”Social recognitionSocial recognition, sharing ideas and fame within a niche community are of greater importance than wealth to Moog, who states: “Our instruments are well known because a lot of our customers are well known musicians…And we’re very happy about that, that’s our reward, to see our customers becoming successful and making great music with it.“Working in creative collaborationCharles Leadbetter promotes entrepreneurship as a collective activity. Moog worked closely with musicians, composers, academics, salesmen and customers to refine and bring new products to market. Moog is also humble about the significance of his own role, seeing himself as part of a wider legacy and community of music manufacturers who, “all of us together helped to democratise electronic instruments.” Moog acts as a conduit for bringing together two opposing forces, acting as “a link between musicians and engineers because I understand both languages.”Moog exploited fame and celebrity, with relationships with popular musicians like Keith Emerson and Stevie Wonder, who willingly performed, evangelised and sold the Moog brand on his behalf. Andrew Dubber, in his free e-book New Music Strategies, believes seeking out new opinion leaders and customisation are strategies for growing a digital music business. Moog worked extensively to influence opinion leaders outside of the immediate music manufacture industries and also to present high levels of customisation in product design and features.Creative excellence and continuous innovationMoog sought to achieve the highest technical and creative standards in his instruments, while remaining within a niche. The diversification of the Moog brand and move into budget and polyphonic instruments towards the end of Moog’s direct involvement led to failure. Since 1993, Moog Music Inc (formerly Big Briar), led by Moog, has traded on previously successful models and refined and selectively improving them through a process of continuous innovation rather than trying to move into new markets.Moog Music Inc can be seen as what Davies and Scase refer to as ‘charismatic organisations’ within the cultural industries¹⁰: a small company with less formal control and more freedom to innovate, where recognition and quality are highly-valued.The individual star as a brandUnlike other synthesizer inventors, who used names like ARP and VCS3, Moog traded on his own name, with success or failure linked to him directly. In 2003 Moog picked up his second Grammy award for technical contributions to recording. Today Moog Music Inc sells memorabilia like mugs and 50^th anniversary watches; the Moog logo is a fashionable T-shirt slogan for the ‘geek chic’ generation (no doubt vastly outstripping sales of their £2,000 synthesizers). ‘Moogfest conventions’ were held around the world by fans of both the instruments and their charismatic inventor, the subject of his own documentary feature film. Despite being a quiet man who referred to himself as an ‘electronics geek’, he was bold to present his name, integrity, passion and identity as a core selling feature of the Moog brand.Conclusion Today’s cultural entrepreneurs can learn from Moog’s approach to running a creative brand and business. Moog had a vision to popularise and democratise electronic music. He had a strategic awareness of the legacies of forerunners in his field and the extent to which he could play a part. He knew when to forgo independence to be resourced to grow, when to focus on key strengths and when to innovate and adapt. Despite many set backs and failures, Moog stayed true to his vision and achieved a substantial cultural legacy and modest financial legacy which outlives him.LinksBob Moog: Switched On Radio - an audio interview with Bob Moog featuring old and contemporary music with the moog.Moog Music Inc - the website of the company Bob Moog re-established in 2002.Moog Foundation -established in tribute to Bob Moog to foster innovation and curiosity in electronic music.Bob Moog Personal Site - personal, archive and gallery site for the late Bob Moog.Cultural entrepreneurs:The Independents: Britain’s New Cultural Entrepreneurs – free PDF download of this influential 1999 Demos report.T-Shirts and suits: a guide to the business of creativity - David Parrish’s book available as a free download.Cultural leadership - the 2006-8 UK programme to develop cultural leadership.

Howkins, J (2001) The Creative Economy, Penguin Press pg129
Southon, M and West, C (2002) The Beermat Entrepreneur, Prentice Hall pgxvi
Howkins, J (2001) The Creative Economy, Penguin Press pg129
Bilton, C (2007) Management and Creativity, Blackwell Publishing
Leadbeater, C and Oakley, K (1999) The Independents – Britain’s new cultural Entrepreneurs, Demos: 24-25
Singer, M (unk) A Huge, Ever Pulsating Brain, The Wire, Pg37
Wade, G, Smith, R and Anderson RA (2007) Becoming, Being and Belonging – Entrepreneurial Establishment: Alternative views of the social construction of entrepreneurship– Manhcester Metropolitan University Working Paper Pg6
Theberge, P (1997) Any Sound You Can Imagine, University Press of New England, Pg52
Wilson, N and Stokes, D (unk) Cultural Entrepreneurs and Creative Exchange, Pg44
Hesmondhalgh, D, The Cultural Industries, Pg154

behind the creative enterprise

Simon Harper — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 10:21:25 +0000

What makes a cultural entrepreneur? First, we should clarify the characteristics of entrepreneurship. The popular press and television programmes such as Dragon’s Den usually define it as starting new business ventures. Fillis and Rentschler portray it as “creating value…by bringing together unique combinations of public and private resources to exploit economic, social or cultural opportunities”¹ According to them, the essential capabilities of entrepreneurship are:

innovation
risk-taking
pro-activeness

Cultural entrepreneurs are people who work in the creative and cultural industries and establish an enterprise focusing on media, design, music, film, fashion or other related sectors. But what distinguishes cultural entrepreneurs from the classic entrepreneurial model?

Opportunity Knocks

Fillis and Rentschler define entrepreneurs as opportunistic and calculated risk-takers.² Paul Myers, chief executive of Wippit.com, launched a daily podcast, recruiting broadcaster Danny Baker in order to capitalise on his substantial fan-base. Its popularity led to a fee being introduced, and it was made exclusively available via Wippit. In by-passing the iTunes delivery system, Myers ensured that all subscription rates were paid to his business. Clearly, this suggests opportunism is a trait required in cultural entrepreneurs if they are to succeed financially.

Further traits of entrepreneurship include:

flexible
dynamic
creative
growth-orientated³

We can use Fillis and Rentschler’s definition above⁴ to suggest additional ideas, including:

hard-working
committed
determined
competitive
ambitious
resilient
proud
positive
confident
focused

Not all cultural entrepreneurs display all of these characteristics. Many are skilled technical practitioners who have established their own business to enjoy greater creative, personal and financial freedom. These individuals want to retain their independence, using their creative assets for commercial gain⁵. They will also be involved in the distribution process as well as production⁶. Yet cultural entrepreneurs’ foremost motivation is often to produce something of aesthetic quality.

Show Me the Money?

This desire to create cultural value rather than merely economic benefit perhaps shares some similarities with social entrepreneurs. Jason Pegler, New Statesman’s Young Social Entrepreneur of the Year in 2005, was diagnosed with bi-polar disorder at the age of 17, but is now CEO of Chipmunka Publishing, which publishes books by people with mental health disorders. Clearly, Pegler overcame his own personal obstacles and identified this business opportunity, and is facilitating cultural value as well as achieving a positive social impact.

A common viewpoint is that entrepreneurs in the creative economy are “more worried if they lose their ability to think than if their company loses money”⁷. This is true of Factory Records, established by Tony Wilson, whose main focus was aesthetics rather than economic viability. The now-demolished Hacienda nightclub is revered for its place at the forefront of British club culture despite perennially making losses, raising questions about whether financial motivations are central to the cultural entrepreneur’s mindset.

Planning Ahead

An entrepreneurial approach helps to generate possibilities and plan accordingly⁸. Some commentators argue that cultural entrepreneurs usually take a project-based outlook⁹, rather than managing a single business. An example of this could be Stef Lewandowksi, managing director of creative agency 3form and Type Records.

Working with clients such as Vivienne Westwood and the V&A museum, his management of numerous projects hints that an entrepreneurial approach is central to planning the growth of a creative business. Consequently, there emerges a need for strategic planning in order for cultural entrepreneurs such as Lewandowski to be able to manage the direction of several business projects.

Creative Solutions

Cultural entrepreneurs exhibit a flair for creative thinking which can be instrumental in solving problems. They may experience difficulties in distributing their product, so will often do this themselves. Sometimes it is necessary for cultural entrepreneurs to diversify into other aspects of their industry, in order to remove obstacles and help their business succeed.

One example concerns Factory Records founder Tony Wilson, who established the legendary Hacienda nightclub because bands such as New Order and the Happy Mondays had nowhere else to perform in Manchester. The cultural value it created arguably outweighed its lack of profitability.

Leaping Into Action

Cultural entrepreneurs are not necessarily equipped with all of the skills required to manage a business, though. Linda Bennett, founder of LK Bennett, has been pragmatic in implementing tasks. An awareness of her own strengths and weaknesses has allowed Bennett to recruit others to fulfil specialist functions, including the sale of her business.

Excelling at design, sales and marketing, Bennett surrounds herself with people to assist in completing tasks such as dealing with the company’s finances. An advantage of this is that she can concentrate on certain tasks and delegate others.

Although cultural entrepreneurs may not be as pragmatic as traditional managers, an entrepreneurial approach in running a creative business is arguably integral to their success. Indeed, this helps to achieve direction and a structured approach ensures that the business can move towards achieving the entrepreneur’s goals.

Fillis, I. and Rentschler, R. (2006) Creative Marketing. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. p10
Fillis, I. and Rentschler, R. (2006) Creative Marketing. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. p19
Stevenson, H. and Gumpert, D. (1991) ‘The Heart of Entrepreneurship’ in Sahlman, W. and Stevenson, H. (eds) (1991) The Entrepreneurial Venture. Boston: Harvard Business School Publications. p9
Fillis, I. and Rentschler, R. (2006) Creative Marketing. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan. p10
Leadbeater, C. and Oakley, K. (1999) The Independents: Britain’s New Cultural Entrepreneur, London, Demos. p11
Bilton, C. (2006) ‘Cultures of Management: Cultural Policy, Cultural Management and Creative Organisations’ in Management of Culture / Culture of Management, 28 June 2006. Coventry: Warwick Business School.
Howkins, J. (2002) The Creative Economy. London: Penguin. p155
Bessant, J. and Tidd, J. (2007) Innovation and Entrepreneurship. Chichester: John Wiley. p406
Bilton, C. (2006) ‘Cultures of Management: Cultural Policy, Cultural Management and Creative Organisations’ in Management of Culture / Culture of Management, 28 June 2006. Coventry: Warwick Business School.

young music entrepreneur of the year

Dave Harte — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 09:38:23 +0000

A huge ad on the back of the Midem pull-out in this week’s Music Week asks the question:

“Are you the UK’s young music entrepreneur 2008?”

This is a British Council/Nesta inititative and is open to 25-35 year olds with at least 3 years experience and a track record in innovation. Applicants must be “pushing the boundaries of the industry and have a vision for extending international business and cultural relations through music.”

The prize is to become one of the British Council’s network of young creative entrepreneurs and to go on a tour of India’s music industry.

Applications open on 7th March 2008 but you can register now by visiting: