Live DMA is a European network of live music venues, clubs and festivals. Members of Live DMA share common aims and values supporting and promoting live music.
Live DMA represents more than 3000 European venues, clubs and festivals through live music associations.
02/06/2025
📢 We're hiring a new Communication Officer!
Don't miss your chance: apply before June 10, 2025
Are you passionate about live music, culture, and European cooperation?
We’re looking for a creative and strategic Communication Officer to lead our communication efforts across Europe.
🔎 Who are we?
Live DMA connects 20 members across 16 countries, representing over 3,200 live music scenes. Join us and help amplify the voice of independent music venues across Europe!!
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17/02/2025
🎙PODCAST: SOUNDS OF... EKKO, MUSIC VENUE IN UTRECHT
For 40 years, EKKO has been more than just a spot on the map; it’s a cozy, intimate space housed in a historic Dutch building along the picturesque canals. Here, music isn’t just heard—it’s experienced. To guide us through all this, we sat down with Dirk Baart, EKKO’s concert programmer. He’s the person behind the scenes, shaping the sounds and experiences that make the venue what it is today.
Live music venues in Europe are struggling with higher costs as they recover from the pandemic. This new report reveals that rising expenses for staff, accommodation, and programming are outpacing the increased income, as ticket sales and subsidies are not increasing accordingly.
Many venues, weakened by COVID-19, are struggling to stay financially sustainable. As a result, they’re cutting staff and limiting investment in diverse and experimental acts.
⚠️ Ongoing government support is essential to help these venues continue to play a key role in Europe’s cultural and economic landscape.
Observation and research is a big part of Live DMA's activity. Access all of our reports and dive into the sector's realities!
12/12/2024
CLUB CULTURE LABEL FRANCE!
November 29, 2024, will remain a key date for nightlife in France. Rachida Dati, the Minister of Culture, announced the creation of the "Club Culture" label, a major advancement that officially recognizes clubs as essential spaces for artistic creation and cultural innovation. More than 20 years after the creation of the Techno Parade by former Cultural Minister Jack Lang, this label highlights clubs that:
- Support artistic creation and foster the emergence of new talent;
- Commit to an inclusive environment, actively combating violence and ensuring gender parity in their line-ups;
- Promote accessibility, making partying and culture accessible to everyone.
Clubs that earn this label will proudly display the title "Club Culture – a space for artistic expression and celebration", symbolizing their commitment to artistic diversity.
CONGRATS!!
04/12/2024
đź”” Live DMA translated HELVETIAROCKT 's report on sexualized violence in clubs and at festivals in Switzerland.
What support do clubs and festivals need in order to take action against sexualized violence?
This report seeks to identify the specific types of support clubs and festivals require to effectively prevent and address sexualized violence. It sheds light on the contextual factors surrounding sexualized violence in clubs and festivals and reports a needs analysis to identify obstacles and challenges in the implementation and establishment of appropriate measures.
đź“Ś WEBINAR, 27/11/24 at 14:00 CET
Last chance to register and participate in a webinar with HELVETIAROCKT to share resources and share solutions to adress sexual violences in clubs and festivals. Join us tomorrow at
Our new study is out! This resource provides a condensed overview of research on volunteering in the live music sector, highlighting different cultural approaches, motivations, benefits, and risks. It also includes a panorama of legal definitions of volunteering in different European countries.
âžť Full analysis:https://live-dma.eu/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/VOLUNTEERS-RESOURCE.pdf
We translated the report “Nicht nur Plakate in den Toiletten” that HELVETIAROCKT published one year ago.
📌Join us for an insightful online session on “Not Just Posters in the Bathrooms: Addressing Sexualized Violence in Swiss Clubs,” scheduled for November 27 from 14:00 to 15:00 CET.
This free webinar with Grace Goodwin, researcher in gender equality in music and founder of GENIE (Gender Equality Networks in Europe), Hazbi Avdiji, project officer Helvetiarockt and Letizia Carigiet, project officer Helvetiarock and co-author of the report, will dive into the report, which examines the specific support music clubs and festivals need to effectively combat sexualized violence.
They will explore how these venues, central to cultural and social life, often lack the resources and training required to address and prevent such issues. In addition to the Swiss findings, they will discuss potential solutions emerging from Switzerland, as well as insights from similar studies across Europe that highlight diverse approaches to promoting equality and safety in the cultural sector.
Attendees will also receive access to the newly released English translation of the Swiss report, available also at www.diversityroadmap.ch on the day of the event.
31/10/2024
New podcast!!
Sounds of live music venues: Le Ciel, in Grenoble (FR)
🌤 Le Ciel is not only an essential concert venue in Grenoble but also a vibrant hub for artistic creativity. The dedicated team, comprising both employees and volunteers, works tirelessly to create an optimal environment for musicians, encouraging both artistic creation and experimentation.
With 24/7 accessible studios, artist residencies, workshops, and masterclasses, Le Ciel offers a comprehensive range of resources to support artists throughout their creative process.
Live DMA is a European non-governmental network working to support and to promote the conditions of the live music sector. Live DMA is by nature an international collaboration network based on shared visions and values. Ever since its foundation, exchange of best practices and experiences have been the pivot of the network’s existence.
Through time, Live DMA has grown in terms of size and impact. Today, the network is composed of 20 members situated in 16 countries. The members are regional and national live music associations that represent more than 3000 music venues, clubs, and festivals located all over Europe.
In 2017, the European Commission recognized Live DMA as European network and granted, via the Creative Europe programme, funding to develop the network’s project Live Style Europe. Live Style Europe is a “building capacity program” with the objective to empower music venues, clubs, festivals, and regional and nationals live music associations and to provide them with skills and tools in order to adapt to the changes of the music sector.
Music venues, clubs, and festivals are one of the main providers for talent development in Europe. From local band support to renowned stages, they are the social gathering places where people can easily meet and enjoy a large range of diverse artists. Venues and festivals are an important part of our neighborhoods, in both rural and urban areas. They are open to diversity, they have a strong impact on the local economies, they increase the attractiveness of the cities, and, they are strongly connected to the people. As Live DMA’s survey results show, Live DMA venues organized over 380 000 live acts and attracted more than 56 million visitors. About 82 000 volunteers participate every day in the venues’ activities and in the dynamism of the local lives.
By gathering independent players from the entire live music sector, Live DMA proposes a collective voice in order to work on European challenges and highlight the substantial cultural and social work of live music professionals.
As member of the European Music Council and the European Alliance for Culture and the Arts, Live DMA is also actively engaging with other European cultural networks in order to make changes in the European approach of culture with the aim to include culture and the arts in the long-term goals of the European project.
