The aim of the IC Music project was to construct a sustainable and long-term crossborder cooperation among professional live music participants from England, Belgium and France. It specifically focused on the domain of current music.
To achieve this, the partners have based their action on achieving three specific objectives:
- Firstly, the project worked to facilitate the circulation of artists who are aiming to become professional in the 2 seas region;
- Secondly, the partners had developped a mutual comprehension of how the different organisations operate, necessary for the construction of a long-term cooperation;
- Thirdly, the project had contributed to raising cultural awareness among culturally distant groups.

The project contributed to network live music participants throughout the region is an experiment which offers dynamic potential for the entire cultural creation sector.
The project should contribute towards professionalization and employability of young artists, as well as supporting and assisting them in seeking an entourage and professional opportunities.In addition, the project should contributed to the development of the area:
- economic development: the cultural and creative sectors have strong potential linked to cultural tourism (for example trips to concerts or festivals, conferences).
- appeal of the local area thanks to the cultural offering. Due to the cooperation and the better circulation of artists, the inhabitants of the area will be able to benefit from a crossborder, varied cultural programme, making their area more attractive.
- Social inclusion and well-being of its inhabitants. By orientating an entire axis (community work) of the action for inhabitants who are distant from culture, the project will contribute to creating conditions for their full participation in society and will work towards social cohesion in the area.

Activity 1: Artists' mobility
Sub-Action1: Facilitating the circulation of artists
Selection of groups to be supported (4 per country/year), approval of the selection by all partners. The purpose was to select groups undergoing professionalization, namely those who had moved beyond the stage of amateur but were not yet professional. Implementing mini tours.
Sub-Action2: Showcases
Partners have targeted discovery music festivals where many professionals come to spot new groups to then offer to work with them. Where a group was scheduled at the showcase, partners would ensure that the group is involved in other project initiatives.
Sub-Action3: Integration of artists in the existing programme
An exchange of information between schedulers on French, Belgian and English groups (other than IC Music) which caused a stir and which deserved promotion.

Activity 2: Forming a long-term network of current music actors
Sub-Action1: Professional meetings
Partners seek spots to present the project and coordinate professionals around our work in supporting professionalization.
Sub-Action 2: Team exchanges
Exchanges between partners concerning periods of availability. Organisation and progress of project member travel to other project members.
Sub-Action3: Learning languages
Seeking service providers. Learning English, French and Dutch by 6 of the 9 partners.

Action 3: cultural actions and development of specific groups
A training programme was deliveried by PP3 for IC Music bands.
The training covered 3 areas: Dementia and Special Needs (sub action4: Health) and Justice (sub action1).
Organisation and progress of activities, with the support of IC Music groups (and others) in the health and Justice sectors, but also education (sub action 2), social (sub action 3) and Media and New Technologies (sub action 5).

Action 1: Artists' mobility
Sub-Action1: Facilitating the circulation of artists. In 3 years, 36 groups supported, 71 concerts (43 in Frce, 16 in Belgium, 12 in the UK), 12741 viewers.
Sub-Action2: Showcases. 30 groups scheduled in 12 professional festivals/meetings with 9 in the 2 Seas territory, 3952 viewers.
Sub-Action3: Integration of artists in the existing programme. 209 professional groups hosted in venues and at partner events. We estimate 31306 viewers. Action 2: Forming a long-term network of current music actors
Sub-Action1: Professional meetings
4 professional meetings lasting for 2 days, organised by partners (x3 TERMM + x1 Pop&Politics), 468 participants. 3 professional aperitif events/networking events organised. 7 project presentations within agreements, 2 round table discussions. 1950 professionals were involved in our project.
Sub-Action2: Team exchanges. 24 stays by 19 project members.
Sub-Action3: Learning languages. Partner progress in English, initiating certain partners in French and Dutch.
Action 3: cultural actions and development of specific groups
4 training sessions lasting 4 days for 13 groups, around 40 musicians.
Sub-Action1: Justice. 10 activities (training, workshops, writing workshops, concerts, professional discovery). 350 beneficiaries.
Sub-Action2: Education. 22 activities (artist/student meetings, concerts, professional discovery). 1045 beneficiaries.
Sub-Action3: Social. 13 activities (youth concerts, concerts in social venues). 1134 beneficiaries.
Sub-Action 4: Health. 9 activities (training, musical experimentation, concerts). 128 beneficiaries
Sub-Action 5: New technologies and media. 38 activities (initiation to Journalism, Media experimentation, blog project). At least 1472 beneficiaries. It is complicated to evaluate the consequences of this activity. In total, partners led 92 activities.

Beneficiaries of actions are manifold: amateurs of music and culture in the first place.
Musicians and groups are also beneficiaries (IC Music selections) as well as all french, belgian or english musicians who have played the last three years. The conferences and professional meetings in action 2 managed to reach a large scale of European, but also American, Canadian, etc. music professionals. The community work from action 3 enabled us to reach a whole new 'market' of people : schools, detainees and disabled people. In this way the project really diversified our output to several kinds of people.
Finally, through training and meetings, employees team are large beneficiaries. Beneficit for the territories are important, especially for wealth and cultural openness. Partner's teams have developped good contacts in France, England and in Belgium thanks to the project.
The networks have expanded, the know how has grown.
Partners found it extremely interesting to learn from and work with live music professionals from the other countries. the artists programmed by all partners have found the experience of performing in different countries and interacting in community settings in different countries extremely beneficial. The IC music project has helped broaden their horizons - giving them opportunities to perform abroad that would otherwise probably not been available to them plus exposure to different cultures with the result that they have learned different ways to tailor their performances and interact with audiences. These new skills should stand them in good stead going forward.

A mutual understanding and knowledge is the biggest result. The project allowed the concerts visitors to witness new European music and artists. The project allowed to further professionalize our structures and broaden our horizons and networks. The project allowed the artists to further professionalize, strenghten and develop their careers. The project allowed the venues to reach out to certain target groups and to strenghten their local/regional profile as a 'music centre' in all aspects. For our territory, we may not underestimate the inspiration we bring to other venues with our participation in this project. The IC Music venues and partners really managed to raise their profiles thanks to the project ! If that creates a common culture in the territories of each partners, the project has also allowed to partners, to make proposals (including the artistic direction) more different than what is common in music in France, Belgium or UK.
IC Music partners are now better known in the music sectory in france, england and in belgium. In the UK, France and belgium, the benefits of the IC music have been tremendous at a variety of levels :
Widened cultural expereince - often first time to hear live music, meeting and working with professional artists, meeting and working with people from different cultures and those who speak different languages. In the case of the groups with learning disabilities it is often the first time they have met a person from a different country.
Through the bandstand marathon, the UK Government department (DCLG) have acknowledged that music can play and integral part in encouraging positive social impact. This work appear in the creating conditions for a more integrated society policy paper issued February 2012 (https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/creating-the-conditions-for-a-more-integrated-society).

As the operating method of the involved organisations within the 3 countries really differed it was a huge challenge to obtain a mutual comprehension between partners. By exchanging bands, organising team exchanges and being all actively involved in the organisation of the hightlights one really learns how each culture or country handles this. We learnt to work together, we really need each other to obtain our goals. For instance, we need the UK to access The Great Escape (professionnal music festival in Brighton), etc. The cross border activity was really implemented in all actions of the project thanks to pooling connections and pooling of expertise of each other. We like to think IC Music has made the borders more easy to cross for bands involved. The community work also specified on working on a cross border manner. Bands really had to adapt to the new environments they were put into. It really challenges them to come out of their comfort zones.

IC music and Dignity in Care - both INTERREG 2 seas projects have successfully formed an Interreg 2 seas cluster called Arts Crafts, Dignity in Care (ACDC). They are working on social inclusion through the creative involvement of five care providers, arts practitioners and learning institutions from the UK, France, Belgium and Netherlands. The ACDC cluster will develop resources and methods to help practitioners in charge of the excluded populations to better understand the situation and needs of their beneficiaries. (www.creatinginclusion.eu)
The CEO of Superact was asked to chair a EU Leonardo fund cooperation project called lighthouses (https://www.facebook.com/lighthouses2013?fref=ts)
IC Music and Seamedia - both INTERREG 2 seas projects - had also some cooperations, especially on a long video (16,41 minutes) about the IC Music french band louis Aguilar & The Crocodile Tears (http://www.seame.tv/2014/04/30/louis-aguilar-the-crocodile-tears/).

Partnership and cooperation take time, but when they work, when everyone is at ease and works towards the same objectives, the results achieved match the efforts made!

Music and culture, in allowing the exchange of knowledge and expertise, are formidable levers for cooperation between stakeholders in European civil society.

The results will help as a first step to all the project partners to take stock. They will realize how much it weighed for activities, structuring, human encounters... It will be important to build on these results to continue partner's personal projects.
In addition, some institutional partners are more sensitive than others to our European projects. Events like TERMM have allowed many of them have knowledge of our projects and even be inspired. European projects emerge as new resources for political institutions.
Finally, FEDELIMA federation of music in France, wants to recover results of our project (especially the TERMM#4). These results will be used for background studies and archives for all professional members of the federation wishing to learn about the preparation of European projects.

For the vast majority of partners, IC Music was the first experience of European cooperation. The experience of several structures having already been involved in other projects was beneficial for all partners. The consequences of development of networks was very positive during the past 3 years. The various showcases and professional trips allowed all partners in the project to be identified and recognise, through the quality of musical projects presented in various showcases (Great Escape, Transmusicales de Rennes, Mama, Eurosonic...) and the quality of presentations and interventions in festival conferences. Each time it was possible, we tried to favour roll-out of our network to other countries. Finally, 2 IC Music partners continued the adventure through a 2 Seas cluster on the AC DC project (La Cave aux Poètes and Superact).

Partners from France and Belgium are building a cooperation project aimed and capitalising on the new audience development work that took place in IC music. This will be funded through a Creative Europe application.
Most partners in France and Belgium will self fund or seek funding to continue and develop their cultural action work within the community.
Superact and La Cave aux Poetes are already working together in an Interreg Cluster project - we hope this will also be successful in phase two.
Superact and La Cave aux Poetes are also in the early stages of developing Creative Europe cooperation application for a project that addresses social integration and health problems through the culture of food and music.
Superact will continue to work with the Great Escape Festival in Brighton and offer opportunities as appropriate to the partners from IC music.
De Kreun and Le Grand Mix will continue to work together on an Creative Europe cooperation.
The lead partner is keen to keep the email circulation list live.
PP2: Moreover, we are currently studying the possibility of pursuing such projects in the future.