European Soundmakers - Musical Instrument Confederation

15/10/2026

Official. Recognised. Overdue. 🎶

Musical instruments are now unambiguously included as cultural goods in European statistics — and the manufacture of instruments is classified as a ‘fully cultural’ activity by Eurostat.

This is the result of years of work by CSFI, our French founding member. And it changes what’s possible for our sector.

Swipe to understand what this means —
and what doors it opens 👉

📩 Want to be part of what comes next? [email protected]

10/09/2026

“Joining European Soundmakers is a natural step toward creating a more connected and effective European MI community that can unite around these aims.”

— Anthony Short, Executive Director, Music Industries Association

This is exactly the kind of collaboration we were built for.

08/09/2026

An exciting project with big hopes for the future of the MI industry with a united voice!

EUROPEAN SOUNDMAKERS 🎙 Comúsica ha impulsado la nueva voz europea del sector como miembro fundador deEuropean Soundmakers - Musical Instrument Confederation. Una iniciativa clave para reforzar la representación del sector, defender sus intereses y avanzar con una sola voz en Europa. 🇪🇺
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▶ https://comusica.com

08/09/2026

Bravo 👏👏👏

🌿 Retour sur le Comité des Plantes de la CITES

Du 17 au 23 juillet dernier, la CSFI participait au Comité des Plantes de la CITES à Genève, aux côtés des représentants internationaux du secteur des instruments de musique.

Pendant plusieurs jours, de nombreux sujets importants pour la facture instrumentale ont été examinés :
☑️ mise en œuvre des décisions de la CoP20
☑️ réglementation des essences utilisées pour la fabrication des instruments
☑️ traçabilité des matériaux
☑️ et de nombreux autres dossiers suivis de près par notre profession.

Cette présence permet à la CSFI de suivre les évolutions réglementaires au plus près et de contribuer aux échanges sur les sujets qui concernent les fabricants, luthiers, archetiers, réparateurs, distributeurs… et, plus largement, les musiciens.

👉 À retrouver sur le site de la CSFI. Nous vous proposons un compte rendu des principaux points abordés lors de cette réunion. 📖
https://csfi-musique.fr/reglementations/cites/travaux-post-cop20/pc28

📸 De gauche à droite : Michael Jousserand - European Soundmakers - Musical Instrument Confederation , Jacques Carbonneaux - CSFI, Niall Flemming - IPCI France-Europe , Heather Noonan - League of American Orchestras, Gabriel Pasquier - IPCI France-Europe, Thomas Gerbeth IPCI Allemagne et John Bennett - International Alliance of Violin and Bow Makers for Endangered Species . Absent de la photo : Scott Paul de Taylor Guitars.

18/08/2026

Big news for travelling musicians. ✈️🎶

The European Parliament and the Council have reached a provisional agreement on revised air passenger rights rules — including dedicated provisions on the transport of musical instruments on planes.

For too long, musicians have faced inconsistent, unpredictable airline policies when travelling with their instruments. This new framework changes that — giving professionals clearer, more reliable rules across the EU.

European Soundmakers has offered its support throughout this process, adding our signature to documents sent to EU authorities alongside PEARLE* and FIM, who have been advocating for this for over 15 years.

This is what a united European voice can achieve. 🇪🇺

📎 Full details: fim-musicians.org (link in bio)

10/08/2026

European Soundmakers was in the room. 🇨🇭

This week, our representative Michael Jousserand attended the CITES Plants Committee 28 in Geneva — a first for European Soundmakers. Alongside Jacques Carbonneaux of our founding member CSFI, we addressed world governments and conservation bodies on behalf of the musical instrument industry.

Why does this matter?

Two of the most important tree species in instrument-making are under threat:

🎵 African Blackwood (Dalbergia melanoxylon) — the wood at the heart of clarinets and oboes, sourced from Tanzania and Mozambique.

🎻 Pernambuco (Paubrasilia echinata) — irreplaceable for stringed instrument bows, and in use for over 250 years. Found only in Brazil.

We stood up to call for better forest management, stronger traceability and conservation partnerships — because protecting these species and protecting the future of music are the same fight.

This is what it means to advocate for our industry. 🌿

03/08/2026

Your brain on music — the science is extraordinary. 🧠🎵

Playing an instrument doesn’t just sound good. It rewires your brain, boosts your mental health and builds skills that last a lifetime.

Swipe to see what the research actually says 👉

(And maybe pick up that instrument you’ve been meaning to learn...)


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01/07/2026

Some conversations change everything.

A few weeks ago at NAMM Next, we had the privilege of introducing European Soundmakers to the global musical instrument community — and the reception reminded us why this work matters.

Thank you to NAMM for creating the space where American and European industry leaders can come together, exchange ideas and build something bigger than any of us could alone.

The bridge between our industries is stronger for it. We can’t wait to see where it leads. 🌍🎶

17/06/2026

The European musical instrument community just got stronger.

We are proud to welcome the UK’s Music Industries Association (MIA) as the newest member of European Soundmakers.

With the MIA on board, ESM now collectively represents the largest number of MI businesses across the European continent.

The UK remains — more than ever — an essential part of Europe’s musical and cultural industry ecosystem. 🎶

👉 Swipe to meet the MIA team joining us.

11/06/2026

Six countries. One voice.

Meet the founding members of European Soundmakers — the national associations who came together to build a unified European platform for the musical instrument and craftsmanship sectors.

Swipe to meet them all 👉