Society of Music Merchants
The Society of Music Merchants (SOMM) is the largest German industrial association of manufacturers and dealers of musical instruments and music equipment. The organization currently has 53 members, who together account for around two thirds of the entire industry's turnover.
structure
SOMM was founded in February 2005 from the existing Association of Distributors and Musical Instruments in Germany (VVMD) and is a member of the German Music Council . The organization's activities are led by seven board members elected by the member companies. Daniel Sebastian Knöll is the managing director of SOMM. The first chairman is Jochen Stock, owner of Just Music (Berlin / Hamburg / Munich).
aims
SOMM is convinced of the positive properties of active music-making - whoever plays an instrument promotes creativity, teamwork, intelligence and self-confidence. The aim of the association is to establish active music-making as an integral part of everyday life in society. The requirements:
- Anchoring music education in kindergartens and schools
- Music offers across all population and age groups
- Strengthening vocational training in the industry
- Networking the industry
activities
As a promoter of active music making, SOMM is committed on its own initiative and together with the member companies. Some examples:
- The “Let's Make Music” initiative aims to inspire schoolchildren for modern instruments. For this purpose, courses for children and advanced training for teachers have been developed, including a two-year teaching package for modern music lessons (1st Class Rock). The initiative has existed since 1996 and has become an integral part of the “Didacta” trade fair.
- The annual “School Jam” competition is aimed at schoolchildren who are already active in a band: We are looking for the best school bands in the country and the prizes are performances at large open-air festivals, band tours and professional sound recordings. Since it was founded in 2002, School Jam has become one of the most important competition initiatives in Germany. The exciting finale will be celebrated as part of the Frankfurt Music Fair .
- The Freiburg Jazz and Rock School and the Mannheim Pop Academy train young musicians, both on the musician and on the business side.
- As part of the “Instrument donations for Afghanistan” project, SOMM has been collecting musical instruments since September 2008 and forwarding them to Kabul. The first music school in Kabul will be built with the donations to support the musical reconstruction of the country. The campaign is supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Goethe Institute .
As an industrial association, SOMM stands up for the interests of its members:
- SOMM represents the opinion of its members at trade fairs, in front of public decision-makers and internationally.
- Within the industry, SOMM offers its members platforms for discussions, exchanging experiences and networking - for example at trade fairs or special events and through publications.