ICH North – passing on our musical heritage

ICH North – passing on our musical heritage will enhance the role of intangible cultural heritage (ICH) in the form of musical heritage in the Aurora area.

The approach of the project is demand-based and sustainability is a keyword. The project will give musical heritage more visibility, using social innovations to transfer knowledge and revitalize ICH/music, thus furthering safeguarding.

ICH North will promote cross-border cooperation related to musical ICH and enhance the role of musical communities in the area, building bridges between institutions, educational institutions and heritage communities. The project will develop new joint innovative services and products in cultural and creative industries, including digitization and digital innovations. The project is community-based in accordance with the UNESCO Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (2003) and will use co-creation between communities and institutions with a bottom-up approach.

During the three-year project several different project actions will be developed and implemented in a total of five work packages. A Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) will be developed and implemented with a global target group, focusing on safeguarding practices of the musical heritage in the North. A digital map will be produced and launched, bringing forth the musical heritage communities. Educational material on ICH for non-formal education and music organizations and adults with potential leadership in musical heritage communities will be produced. A work package

will focus on a transnational platform for musicians and entrepreneurs, branding and promoting local cultural and musical heritage with possible products and innovations for cultural tourism. Finally, a joint strategy for safeguarding musical heritages for archives in the Aurora-area will be developed, as well as a road map to further cooperation and development after the project ends.

The project is funded by Interreg Aurora, with co-financing by Region Västernorrland, Troms og Finnmarks fylkeskommune, Nordisk Kulturfond and Lapin Liitto as well as the project partners: Centria University of Applied Sciences, Kulturens Bildningsverksamhet, KulturÖsterbotten, Novia University of Applied Sciences, The Arctic University of Norway UiT, the Finnish Folk Music Institute and Västernorrlands Museum. The project was planned as a part of an Interreg Nord-funded project, also called ICH North.

We strive towards the following sustainable development goals: