Performing Arts and Music Management (Master)

The Program

The Master's program in Performing Arts and Music Management prepares students who have completed a Bachelor’s degree (either academic or performance) to work in middle and higher management positions in theaters, at festivals, with independent groups and orchestras, and in concert halls. The students complete ten program modules in four semesters, gaining the latest insights into business administration, cultural theory, law, scheduling, marketing, and production. The program is taught in a small seminar group comprising a maximum of 8 –10 students, permitting intensive interaction with professors and directors of studies.

The program takes a critical approach to the current problems of the German theater landscape. In the seminars and practical exercises, options and reform models are discussed, addressing such issues as more equity and balance between the different sectors, better opportunities for ensembles to have a greater say, flatter hierarchies, more democratic models of leadership, and gender parity. We support the demands of the ensemble network and of “Art but Fair”, which are campaigning for better working conditions for artists.

In his recent publication Theater, Crisis and Reform (Wiesbaden; Springer, 2016), the director of the Master's program discusses and analyzes the current theater system with reference to these and other issues.

Curriculum (in German)
Module overview (in German)
Seminar descriptions (in German)
General information about the program (in German)

Brief profile

• Program begins: winter semester
• Deadline for applications May 15 (postmark) for the following winter semester
• Regular duration of the program: 4 semesters
• Degree: Master of Arts (M.A.)
• Type of program: non-consecutive, accredited Master’s program
• Credit points: 120 CP
• Language of instruction: German

Admission requirements

Applicants for the Master’s in Performing Arts and Music Management should have a BA degree in an artistic or scientific subject (theater, music, cultural studies etc.) and must pass an entrance examination. Applicants are also expected to show a strong interest in a career in this field and to have gained their first experience through work placements or through their own work. They should be able to reflect on questions concerning the future of theaters and orchestras in Germany. We are also interested in the theater and orchestra systems of other countries. Applicants from abroad are therefore explicitly encouraged to apply, provided that they fulfil the conditions stipulated.