Musikimpuls Dunkelsteinerwald - Kick-off and setup

The central topic of music connects the municipalities © Daniela Matejschek
The central topic of music connects the municipalities © Daniela Matejschek

Preparations for the joint advertising of several municipalities together with Göttweig Abbey for the Provincial Exhibition in 2023 were already on the way when the one-year delay to the event was announced. The opportunity should now be taken to restructure this initiative. The central topic – “Music” – is intended to connect the participating municipalities and reinforce the sense of regional identity. The large collection of musical publications in Göttweig Abbey offers the possibility to do some academical research on the region’s music and allow it to flow into the initiative.

The Dunkelsteinerwald is home to many talented musicians who collaborate on musical forms of expression and music events with an established and varied offering. In addition, Göttweig Abbey houses a unique, larger than average collection of musical publications. The available potential has resulted in “Music” being identified as the central topic for the regional development process and thus forming an ideal basis for an incentive that is supported by the population and networks the municipalities.

Initial surveys in the municipalities and informational events for local residents revealed a lot of enthusiasm for the topic and promised diverse opportunities for designing a high-quality, cultural programme.

Twelf municipalities ( (Bergern im Dunkelsteinerwald, Dunkelsteinerwald, Furth bei Göttweig, Hafnerbach, Mautern, Nußdorf ob der Traisen, Paudorf, Obritzberg-Rust, Rossatz-Arnsdorf, Schönbühel-Aggsbach, Statzendorf, Wölbling ) and Göttweig Abbey are involved in implementing the project. Since half of the municipalities are located in another LEADER region, the project will be implemented as a cooperation project with the LEADER region Donau NÖ-Mitte.

The project is divided into three phases:

1. Networking
Cooperations between various institutions, individuals, groups, municipalities, etc. will be initiated. Professional support and project management will be ensured through the appointment of a research institution in the field of music. Players in the area of music and culture as well as non-musicians will be networked and integrated into the project.
Furthermore, efforts will be made to collaborate with a potential LEADER partner region in Europe.

2. Activation
Citizens will be informed about the music initiative with the aid of informational events and material. To this end, photos will be taken by each of the participating municipalities and made available for advertising measures. In addition, a website will be created and an informational event organised for the press and representatives of the municipalities.

3. Structuring
The available musical offering should be bundled across municipalities and regions and reworked under professional direction. With the help of external experts in the areas of music, regional development and public relations/marketing, an interdisciplinary environment is being created in conjunction with a regional controlling group and provides the opportunity for the development of new structures in the Dunkelsteinerwald.
The final name and look of the initiative should also be determined in this phase.

Discussed in the project selection committee: 13.02.2019
Project type: cooperation project with LEADER-Region Donau NÖ-Mitte
Project promoter: Arbeitskreis Wachau Dunkelsteinerwald Regionalentwicklungs GmbH
Funding level: 70%
Project duration: 15.02.2019 - 31.04.2020
Supported by the federal province and the European Union (LEADER).