british music week

	Promoting British Music

From the Beatles' residency at Hamburg 's Star Club to the mania which led Robbie Williams to launch his latest album in Berlin , Germany has always had a love for British music.

Now the German capital is to salute British music and a new wave of British acts.

Starting May 19, Berlin is to throw its very first British Music Week with gigs, radio programming, magazine articles and retail promotions all designed to shine the spotlight on some of the freshest and most innovative music coming out of the UK.

The partners:

Karrera Klub – The most prolific and consistent live promoter of British Music in Berlin , Karrera Klub will celebrate its 10 th anniversary this May. With a history of booking and helping to break some of the UK's best acts in Germany (including Franz Ferdinand, Arctic Monkeys, Pulp, Blur, Oasis, Radiohead, Coldplay, Editors, Kaiser Chiefs…) it is the natural partner for British Music Week. Karrera Klub will stage a series of British gigs throughout the week, featuring the UK 's most cutting-edge new talent and will mark the beginning of the programme with the opening of its own club.

Radio Eins – The hottest radio station and staunchest supporter of British music in Berlin , award-winning Radio Eins will record and broadcast each gig during British Music Week (BMW). It will also host live interviews and panels on air with band members as well as staging competitions and giveaways. Radio Eins will ramp up the frequency of British music playlisted for that week in May.

Dussmann – One of Germany 's most outstanding music retailers, Dussmann will coordinate a point of sale promotion to push sales of the British acts performing during BMW. It will also stage in-store appearances from participating acts and promote the events taking place through flyers and stickers to be given away with all purchases at the outlet. Dussmann is renowned for its in-store concerts and readings with top stars from the world of literature, music and art. The store has two floors dedicated to music and over 80,000 albums in stock

Tip – Founded in 1972, Tip is Germany 's oldest city listings magazine and covers Berlin entire cultural spectrum, including music, film and theatre. Published every fortnight, it has a print run of 70,000 and an average readership of 200,000. Tip will be supporting all of the BMW events with editorial and listings in the lead-up to BMW Berlin. It will also offer the opportunity to produce a covermount CD featuring one track from each of the leading showcased British acts. Hagen Liebing, the Music Editor for Tip said: "For more than 30 years Tip has been enjoying and promoting British music in our city. We don't care if it's mega-selling or just for fans, as long as it is wonderful music. So bring us the next Beatles, Stones, Stone Roses, La´s, The Jesus & Mary Chain, Teenage Fanclub, Oasis, Ferdinands or Monkeys - we´re eager to tell Berlin about it!"

British Embassy – The British Embassy in Berlin will be supporting British Music Week by hosting a British music industry masterclass in conjunction with the BPI, with talks from key British music notables and industry insiders. This will be followed by a networking reception for UK / German industry and media. The British Ambassador to Germany , Sir Peter Torry, KCMG said: “ I am delighted to hear that Berlin will be the host city for the Premiere of British Music Week in May. I look forward to hearing and seeing the cream of British and German talent at the various events being planned for this week. It is particularly pleasing to see follow up to the successful Popkomm events we have held in the Embassy for the last two years.”

BPI – The British Phonographic industry is the British record industry's trade association and works to protect and promote British music in the UK and abroad. As initiator of the “British Music Week In…” concept, BPI will coordinate the participation of the various partners and work with labels, artists and media to maximise its visibility and effectiveness. Matt Glover, BPI International Manager said: “ Germany is Europe's biggest market for British music and Berlin is one of the most exciting and vibrant capitals on the continent. It is a natural choice for the first British Music Week in Europe and we are excited to have such strong and committed partners on board. This will be yet another unique initiative to raise the profile and sales of British music abroad, and another testament to the strength and creativity of the British record industry on the international stage."

The week in summary: 

• 7 nights of British bands at Berlin 's cutting edge live venues Magnet and Postbahnhof
• Radio Eins record and broadcast each main live performance. Radio Eins playlist music from showcasing British acts and feature competitions and giveaways during BMW
• In-store appearances and p.o.s promotions for participating British acts in Dussmann and other indie retailers in the city
• Flyposting and flyers throughout the city to promote BMW
• BMW covermount CD presented by Tip (circulation 80,000)
• Press conference with participation by all partners prior to BMW
• British Embassy music industry masterclass, featuring talks from key German and UK music industry luminaries
• Fringe events including a “British Music in Film” night, British djs in Berlin clubs, British label showcases and UK drinks promotions

Date: 19 - 26 May 2006

Venue: various venues