ECHE – Erasmus Charter for High Education

Download PDF file 2021-2027 here

Download PDF file 2014-2020 here

 

EPS – Erasmus Policy Statement

Download PDF file 2014-2020 here

 

2021-2027:

The Rossini Conservatory is one of the oldest, most prestigious conservatories in Italy. It was founded at the wish of Gioachino Rossini, as stated in his last will and testament. In his will – written on 5 July 1858, ten years before his death – Rossini stated: “…As heir to my property I name the city of Pesaro, my home, to found and donate a music school in the city…”. Thus, in 1882 the Liceo Musicale started its first music courses. Under the direction of some of the greatest composers, the school’s artistic level was immediately recognised as exceptional. An opera composer Carlo Pedrotti was its first director. He brought to Pesaro some of the most renowned teachers and commissioned the construction of a large concert hall, the Auditorium Pedrotti. The Auditorium was inaugurated in 1892 and is now an integral part of the structure. Other extraordinary directors contributed to the institute’s excellence – Pietro Mascagni, Amilcare Zanella and Riccardo Zandonai. The prestige of the Conservatory was consolidated by its legendary alumni – the soprano Renata Tebaldi, the tenor Mario Del Monaco, the composer Riz Ortolani. The institute’s historical importance and the pursuit of excellence give the Rossini Conservatory of Music a strategic role on the international scene, attracting students, musicians and researchers from all over the world.

1.Training offer

The institute employs over 150 teachers, comprises of 7 departments and offers 56 different courses. The educational proposals range from ancient to contemporary music and jazz. Additionally, the Conservatory collaborates with the Carlo Bo University of Urbino and the Rossini Foundation offering unique national Masters, such as the 1st level Master Degree in Opera and Philology. Also research plays an important role – there are currently several projects on the go:

– CRoMA, a project dedicated to early music;

– LEMS for electronic and contemporary music, established by Marcello Abbado and led by outstanding musicians coming from Darmstadt course such as Aldo Clementi;

– SPACE or “Soundscape Projection Ambisonic Control Engine.” It is a music research and production centre, based within the electronic laboratories for experimental music (LEMS). Equipped with a special area for the diffusion of sound and designed for the high-order ambisonic technique, the project deals with:

1. a) research in the fields of acoustics, sound-musical perception and acoustic ecology;
2. b) experimentation and creation of software applications in the field of new 3D sound spatial technologies;
3. c) electroacoustic composition, eco-acoustic composition and musical production for museums, performance and multicode events.

SPACE is a unique project in the spherical periphery on a national territory. It is made to collaborate on the basis of specific research projects with other structures in Italy and similar centres in Europe and North America.

– Fragments of Extinction is a project closely connected with LEMS and SPACE. It aims to record the sounds of equatorial virgin forests all over the world with innovative three-dimensional techniques (Amazon, Africa, Borneo, etc.). The project is to create an intangible ark that preserves the sounds of the natural world, and to build a transportable spherical theatre for immersive listening (the Sonosphere – international patent Eco-acoustic Theatre, under construction in Pesaro, the UNESCO City of Music). This is a real opportunity to increase public ecological awareness and hopefully to save many ecosystems.

2. Location and facilities

The seat of the Rossini Conservatory of Music is located in the Palazzo Olivieri built in 1749. Based on a project made by a local architect and painter Giannandrea Lazzarini (1710 – 1801), the building was commissioned by Annibale Olivieri. The intellectual donated it to the city of Pesaro in order to house the Library and the Museums within its walls. In the early 80s of the same century, however, the decision was made to place there the Liceo Musicale. The building was renovated and adapted to the new needs. In 1892 the additional construction was added to it – the imposing Pedrotti Concert Hall. The facade of the original building therefore had to undergo a significant expansion: the second entrance (identical to the original one designed by Lazzarini) was constructed and a balcony was added. An imposing bronze statue of Rossini made by Carlo Marochetti is located in the internal courtyard. The Gallery of the Illustrious Men and Women of Pesaro (1763) and the Sala dei Marmi (1772) adorn the palace. The Sala dei Marmi contains a cycle of frescoes depicted by Lazzarini, showing the foundation of the Pagan and Christian city of Pesaro. Another important facility within the premises is the Tempietto Rossiniano, where precious memorabilia, letters and autographs of Gioachino Rossini are kept. The ceiling of the Tempietto is decorated with typically neoclassical Pompeian motifs. Another important resource offered by the Conservatory is the Library. Founded in 1882, it preserves a significant heritage closely connected to the history of the institution. Sections, dedicated to the instrumental bibliographical research in music, critical editions, musical sources, scientific and musicological literature currently flank the collections. It is also important to mention that the headquarters of the Rossini Foundation, that is responsible for administering the legacy of Rossini, are also located inside the Conservatory. The Foundation is the most important research and production centre dedicated to the composer in the world. The Rossini Conservatory of Music is fully equipped with facilities in order to accommodate students and staff with disabilities.

3. Commitment to internationalization

Our participation in the Erasmus program dates back to 2007/2008. Today the institute has 41 active bilateral relationships with European institutes and regularly exchanges students and staff. The Rossini Conservatory is a founding member of GMEL – the association that brings together some of the most important institutions of Higher Music Education in the world. The aim of the association is to share elements and resources aimed at the development of music education globally, supporting exchanges and International cooperation activities. The network is made up of directors and rectors of over 30 music conservatories from all over the world: China, the United States, the United Kingdom, Italy, Switzerland, Finland, Australia, Holland, New Zealand, Slovenia, Thailand, South Korea. The heads of the institutes confronted each other in 2017, within the Global Leadership Network platform on higher music education, and discussed some of the specific issues: “Music schools’ contributions to human civilization”, “Music education’s globalisation development trend” and “Music Culture is the messenger of world peace”. The Rossini Conservatory also participates in the international forums promoted annually by the Russian government in the city of St. Petersburg. The forum, chaired directly by President Putin, is an international cultural event that brings together thousands of operators in the field of culture from around the world: actors and theatre directors, dancers, musicians and conductors, political authorities and members of the business world, rectors and directors of the main academic and university institutions. The Rossini Conservatory of Music is a member of the IMP study program, an international study exchange project between US universities and Italian conservatories. The program focuses on wind ensembles holds lessons jointly in Italy and the USA. The program is realized in collaboration between Carroll University, Marquette University, UWM University, Drexel University, Stanford University, and the Conservatories of Pesaro, Cesena and Salerno. It is manifested in an intense Exchange of studies and musical experiences between Italian and American students. Within the IMP project, the Rossini Conservatory hosts one of the Italian stages for the International Master for Wind Ensemble. The Rossini Conservatory of Music has actively participated in the application process of Pesaro as a city of UNESCO music, recognition obtained on October 31, 2017. The UNESCO network includes the centres that have made creativity their hallmark of economic and cultural development. Pesaro joins the other Italian centres belonging to the group of creative cities: Bologna (music), Fabriano (craftsmanship), Parma (gastronomy), Rome (cinema), Turin (design). The city boasts a rich musical tradition in continuous evolution and a serious commitment to promote music as a means of economic development, social and cultural inclusion. The Conservatory lives in this reality participating in international projects and actively collaborating with local institutions, in particular with the Municipality of Pesaro.

The network of Creative Cities, promoted by UNESCO in 2004, promotes cultural diversity and sustainable urban development, with the aim of creating a link between cities that recognize creativity as an essential element for their identity. The network offers local operators an international platform on which to convey the creative energy of their cities, allowing them to project local experiences in a global context and encourage the development of cultural exports and creative industries.

The Rossini Conservatory of Music has active agreements and international exchanges with the following non-EU countries:

-Kazakhstan, the institutes of Almaty, Astana and Pavlodar;

-Russia, St. Petersburg Conservatory with which the Petite Messe Solennelle was performed during the 150th

Rossini celebrations with students and teachers of the two conservatories;

– USA, Tucson College of fine Art, Arizona;

– Uzbekistan, State Institute of Art and Culture;

– Ukrainian, National Tchaikovsky Academy of Music.

4. New internationalization strategy and participation in the Erasmus program

The Rossini Conservatory has a historical heritage, an educational offer and excellence that are unique in the world and must be promoted more actively. The internationalization of an institution is one of the most important investments into the future. It stimulates the professional growth of students and teachers, encourages research and development, and promotes employment and innovation. Cultural diversity represents a distinctive feature of Europe and is a source of innovation and creativity, understood in its deepest meaning, as development. Indeed, education and culture increase our knowledge, understanding and appreciation of Europe’s rich cultural heritage, history, experiences, beliefs and common values. This unites people across borders, helps promote gender equality and gives us a sense of common belonging. Education, training and culture can help us to discover and actually experience what it means to be European. The Conservatory’s commitment will therefore be to consolidate and strengthen the already active collaboration with the European partners and to develop the non-European collaboration with particular attention to the non-European countries, in particular North America, Russia, China, Japan and Korea and developing countries. The criteria for selecting partners range from the sustainability of exchanges (both financial and geographic), reciprocity, diversity of curricula and integration, potential professional careers offered in the host country.

With reference to the mobility of studies, our objectives are:

– increase the number of outgoing students by 50% by 2027;

– increase the number of outgoing staff by 30%;

– implement 60% incoming staff mobility

– implement 50% incoming student mobility from EU countries and consolidate international exchanges already active through KA107.

– encourage and increase mobility for traineeship through specific agreements with companies operating in the music and art sectors;

– adopt the European Student Card and the Erasmus + Mobile App aimed at making mobility accessible to all, reviving a sense of European identity among students, simplifying administrative processes by digitizing the administrative procedures in use at universities, connecting their systems through the Erasmus Without Paper (EWP), for the exchange of electronic data relating to students and provide services such as borrowing a book from the university library, accessing the student cafeteria at discounted prices, accessing university premises, using public transport, the possibility of using the card as an electronic wallet for daily student expenses, the possibility to use the card as a key to allow the exchange of data between higher education institutions, manage all phases of mobility before, during and after;

– improve the procedure for recognizing training credits with automatic recognition of activities carried out abroad during mobility by adapting to the new dematerialisation systems;

– adoption of green practices in the implementation of Erasmus activities through better collaboration with the territory and through incentives for the use of alternative means of transport to the plane, where possible, in order to reduce CO2 emissions and / or through the organization of information meetings and / or in-depth study of environmental issues information activities on environmental policies of the institution or host city;

– improve and encourage the participation of disabled people, through awareness-raising policies and particolar incentives;

– improve the quality of mobility, through selections based on meritocratic and transparent criteria, linked to the weighted average of the students, to the curricular profile in the context of the institution’s internationalization strategy aimed at development and research and growth at an international level;

– improve and stimulate skills in line with the goal of working towards a European area;

– adapt the institute to carry out the mobility in presence and in blended mode by improving digital technology in order to develop:

1. a) skills and capabilities necessary to live an era of digital transformation
2. b) improve education through better analysis and forecasting of data to better face the challenges of a rapidly changing era and overcome the imbalances between supply and demand for skills in a rapidly changing job market, influenced by globalization and technological changes;

– ensure that the education is as inclusive as possible and with a European dimension, based on the Paris Declaration on promoting citizenship and on the common values of freedom, tolerance and non-discrimination through education adopted at the informal meeting of education ministers of 17 March 2015. As stated in Article 2 of the Treaty on European Union, education, training and culture are fundamental for transmitting and promoting common values and developing mutual understanding;

– increase awareness in students to an employment dimension. Open horizons towards more international and European format, with attention to the historical and cultural heritage of the context to which they belong, and to cultural diversity as required by the Rome Declaration of 25/03/2020;

– support the commitment towards the goal of the European Commission, aiming to create a European education area by 2025. The institute purposes to improve and encourage the language skills of its students and staff; and gradually proceed to dematerialisation and digitization of document resources, in order to help overcome the obstacles that make learning, training and work in another country more difficult; to achieve free movement of learners by improving the inclusive nature based on lifelong learning and oriented towards innovation of education and training systems;

– formally recognise the ways permitted by national legislation of teaching activities carried out abroad at the curricular level and also through economic incentives here possible;

– ensure easy access to the program also for those who have more difficulties and may find themselves in a disadvantaged situation, through specific co-financing and grants for disadvantaged students;

– create a network with the local university network and with all the institutions of the territory in order to implement resources, visibility and skills;

– expand the international relations office where the delegated Erasmus coordinator, an administrative secreta rial officer and possibly one or more students with specific skills or experience of the Erasmus program can take part.

The office will continue to work in close contact with the institute’s bodies and deal with:
– organization of international activities;

– the management of the various stages of project implementation;

– the management of incoming and outgoing mobility of students, teachers, non-teaching staff and the external staff involved;

– the protection, monitoring and recognition of studies and activities carried out abroad;

– provide information to participants in the organizational, logistical and regulatory program.

It will also be joined by the production office, which will deal with the promotion and dissemination of events and organized activities. The International Relations Office work is also intertwined with the Administrative Office of the Conservatory, which deals with the financial aspects of the various projects. The Rossini Conservatory has already published the catalogue of the educational offer in another target language (English), as well as the university’s voting system and the grades distribution tables, and is ready to undertake any updates any changes when necessary.

5. Expected results

The results expected from the internationalization of the Conservatory can be summarized in the following points:

– Increase the number of users to obtain a higher percentage of graduates, guaranteeing adequate specialization. This guarantee can also be provided thanks to an international promotion and dissemination of the projects and the principles that support them.

– Implement the quality of teaching through mutual exchange of specific knowledge and of the organization that requires advanced training teaching. In particular, it can be done through the projects carried out in collaboration with the cultural realities of the area. We expect the achievement of a fundamental objective, which is the connection with the world of artistic work.

– Stabilization of collaborations since the coordinated and continuous presence allows the facilitation of exchanges of a more facilitated mobility in content and logistics.

– The realization of a common working knowledge and training aimed at increasing employment exchanges.

– Continuous sharing in every phase of the project implementation, sharing the best practices in order to improve the excellence of the offer.

– In the context of the lifelong learning program, the Conservatory intends to invest more in qualitative aspects: periodic evaluations, further improvements of visiting students’ and teaching staff structures, increase of courses held in English, increase in the possibility of joint degree, improvement of student support, facilitation of accommodation and evaluation of trainee internships, development of degree courses with partner universities;

– Creation of an ethical code in which fundamental principles such as non-discrimination (gender, race), equal opportunities, contribution to economic and social cohesion in society, support for knowledge building activities at the highest levels, loyalty, equity and transparency are its building stones. The Code of Ethics can be consulted on the website and all University staff have been invited to sign this code. High priority is also given to the full integration of students and disabled staff. Periodic evaluations are organized to ensure the efficiency of the implementation of this service.

– The Conservatory intends to offer great visibility to the EUC and in particular to the EPS, by publishing on the website, adding prints to the welcome pack for incoming students and displaying the EPS Charter and printouts at the student desks at the Erasmus Central Office and the faculties.

 

The Rossini Conservatory intends to participate in key action 1 and key action 2.

1.Key action 1

The Rossini Conservatory aim to consolidate existing bilateral agreements and increase incoming student and teacher mobility through greater promotion of the institute’s activities and resources. We also aim to implement outgoing student mobility through greater awareness of the mobility program through specific information meetings and more present and constant information and the enhancement of language skills. The mobility of incoming staff represents a double resource. On one hand, it allows to organize masterclass which, thanks to the Community contribution, weigh very little on the institution’s budget. This savings allows the institute to use the budget in other activities and so to potentiate and enhance them. On the other hand, it allows our students to come into contact with different cultures and different teaching methods, projecting them into a more European and international dimension.

The contact with European and non-European companies operating in our field, help us better understand the problems in our sector, how these problems are tackled, how they are overcome, how the labour market moves, what the market requires to face the challenges of an ever faster and bigger world. It should also be underlined that the traditions of the various countries are very different. They have developed more skills and therefore specific excellence in different positions around the world. A connected world can help broaden local specificities in order to offer students a wider and more integrated educational offer.

2. Key action 2

The Rossini Conservatory is interested in developing Partnerships for Cooperation and exchanges of practices and Partnerships for Excellence in order to activate double degree programs and Joint Master Degrees and shared projects and productions as a leading or partner institution. Considering the history, prestige, skills, resources, research programs and activities organized by the institute, some unique in the world and of absolute prestige, it is essential for our institute to extend our field of action towards strategic partnerships for cooperation and exchange of good practices. The innovative research fields active in our institute can benefit from the creation of shared cooperation and so grow up. The historical and book heritage can be a source of study and deepening. Joint master degrees’ programs are no less important for students. If few years ago students were aiming outside of their own city or region, today they are looking toward Europe and from Europe to the world. Being a European citizen, having a recognized European qualification means being part of a bigger environment, a bigger job market. That leads to more opportunities to develop professionally. Not only. Opening up to non-EU markets also means taking your skills, your history, your culture beyond the European borders. This not only makes our institute more visible by making our skills and specificities known, but it opens up possible channels of exchange and greater opportunities for students and staff. Music work has always looked to the world. An artist takes his art beyond his borders. Gioachino Rossini founder of our institute, was born in Italy but lived then died in France and was recognized everywhere in Europe. So our job starts already from an international dimension and music is a universal language spoken in the same way by all peoples. This means that the possibilities that our students will find job, teaching or performing, outside their own country is statistically very high. For this reason, a qualification must have no boundaries, must be recognized in the country where you intend to settle for work. Likewise, language should not be a problem. If a short time ago the knowledge of English was enough to be able to move around the world, today, in such a competitive and dynamic environment, these skills need to be strengthened. It should also be underlined that joint actions not only bring benefits in terms of exchanges of ideas, culture and information. They also bring together concrete resources for the realization of events and their diffusion. In fact the resources put in place, the strengths, the heads, the ideas, the skills can drastically improve the quality and efficiency and once a shared production or a shared project is made, it can be spread through the same networks created between the countries that have contributed to its realization.

The impact expected from participation of our institute in the Erasmus program includes multiple aspects. However, it can be summarized in the concept of growth and creation of a common educational and cultural space. In particolar we think the participation in the Erasmus program will bring to:

-an improvement in the knowledge of languages. It goes without saying that in order to move around the world, follow and hold technical courses in a foreign country it must necessarily lead to a development of the knowledge of the language. Once this competence is acquired become an individual resource to be spent within one’s professional life, thus improving one’s working condition and impact indirectly also to the quality of the training offer provided by the institute.

-an improvement in the services offered and the equipment available. It goes without saying that an increasing number of students and staff on the move should lead to an improvement in the services offered, to a more efficient organization and to the renewal of technical work tools. For example, following the COVID19 emergency, it was necessary to gear up to be able to carry out remote teaching but several problems emerged. The quality of the audio transmission, the delay of the audio on the video. Many students have returned to their home countries, which has forced them to move the lessons to different times than usual due to time zones. Maintaining and developing a blended mobility means first of all, renewing and improving technology. A faster internet connection, microphones capable of withstanding the sound pressure of the instruments without distorting, a more dynamic and flexible teaching. One of the most obvious aspects that the global coronavirus crisis has highlighted, especially in the educational field, is the need to reduce bureaucracy to make practices simpler and more accessible. In fact, the emergency forced an immediate abandonment of paper documents in favour of digital ones. However, this was only the principle. To make this practice safer and more efficient, it will be necessary to improve the underlying technology and the skills of those who use it. The adoption of the student card and the implementation of permanent blended mobility will lead to further developments, technology and skills.

-a bigger awareness of the belonging culture, history and resources. In order to be attractive and competitive on the international panorama, first of all, you need to be aware of your own culture, history and resources. You can’t promote something you don’t know. This increases one’s awareness and sense of belonging. It makes you more aware of your resources, your strengths and therefore your limits. Only knowing your resources and your limits, you can make plans for development.

-a knowledge of cultures, stories, resources different from ours. Normally in the course of their working life, people, especially in the musical field, tends to develop a working practice, both didactic and performance, based on personal experiences. Over time, this dimension is considered the most correct. However, more limited are the experiences, more limited will be teaching and performing. Coming in contact with different cultures, different working methods, does not necessarily have to lead to a reversal of trend in one’s working method. It can also lead to an awareness that what is being done is correct and wrong is what others do. The aspects in our approach which are considered to be incorrect can be then underlined and improved. We might think that this can lead to a globalization of ideas, working methods, objectives to be achieved and therefore limit specificity, creativity and free initiative. The development is never static, but on the opposite, always moves from the contrast and so from ideas and situations that collide with each other’s.

-strengthen the feeling of belonging to a common educational and cultural space. Europe must necessarily strengthen the concept of State. Success or failure will depend on the ability to unite different peoples, ideas, cultures and specificities. Culture and education are common values. From these values it is necessary to start to create inclusion, solidarity and social cohesion, without which, the Union does not exist. These values cannot be traced back only to common laws, or common language. Qualifications must be recognized throughout Europe. This may seem marginal for the field of action in which the Conservatory operates, but it is not. Qualifications obtained in Europe are not totally recognized within our country and vice versa. With a degree obtained in one of the EU countries a student can access masters and doctorates at foreign universities, but in some cases cannot access the labour market. The qualification is sometimes if not often considered as a non-equivalent qualification, because issued following a different path, in terms of study plans, between state and state. It is therefore believed that the Erasmus program operating on common values can contribute to a development in this sense.

-create opportunities. To make people, educational structures and businesses in contact not only means growing from a personal point of view, but also creating opportunities for the development of the working future. In fact it will be difficult for the next generations to think about their future job within the national borders. Joining resources contributes also to the realization of projects, their promotion and their dissemination.

-civic sense and the concept of European citizen. By national and constitutional treaties dispositions, each country of the union in regulating its internal system must comply with European provisions and laws. Moving within Europe means not only being aware of the rules of the belonging country or of the destination country, but also being aware of the laws, of the fundamental values that underpin the Union. Very few students and member of the staff actually know how the Union works and which are its objectives. This leads to national sentiments, populisms and false interpretations of European politics. The Erasmus program can contribute to a greater awareness of Europe, of its laws and purposes.

As monitoring indicators relating to quantity and quality, the Conservatory analyses statistical data. The data collected include, the trend of mobility flows, the results achieved, the direct and indirect benefits deriving from theprogram. Relevant data for monitoring purposes are also the percentage of students who found work through contacts gained during the mobility period, the percentage of those who remained in the foreign country to deepen their studies and attend the PhD.

Our objectives from 2021 till 2027 are:

– increase the number of outgoing students by 50%;

– increase the number of outgoing staff by 30%;

– implements 60% incoming staff mobility

– implements 50% incoming student mobility from EU countries and consolidated international exchanges already active through KA107;

– proceed with the gradual dematerialisation of administrative practices, adapting to innovative systems such as the European student card and Erasmus + mobile app;

– enhance the institute’s technical equipment to support the blended mobility and the gradual dematerialisation of administrative practices;

– encourage and increase mobility for traineeship through specific agreements with companies operating in the music and art sectors;

– carry out appropriate monitoring to assess the quality, quality and impact deriving from foreign collaborations and, possibly, on the basis of the data collected, orient the internationalization strategy.