The Entrepreneurship Center for Music (ECM) at CU Boulder is a national leader in professional development for musicians. As one of the first such programs in the country, the ECM is itself an entrepreneurial endeavor, developing new paradigms for education, leadership, and advocacy in the emerging field of arts entrepreneurship.
Conceived in 1999 by a visionary dean named Dan Sher, the Entrepreneurship Center for Music at CU-Boulder was founded to address a critical gap in the College of Music’s training of young musicians. The ECM takes students beyond their world-class musical training and equips them for success in the marketplace, developing the tools they need to build careers in music – careers that were artistically fulfilling and financially sustainable.
With the arts business undergoing enormous changes in how content is produced, distributed, and consumed, ECM programming goes beyond the traditional career skills taught at some music schools: at the ECM, students are encouraged to develop entrepreneurial skills to explore the vast opportunities inherent in a changing marketplace, and develop plans to implement career-enhancing ventures across the artistic spectrum. Moreover, our program recognizes the deep value of a music education beyond the professional practice of music: classes, workshops, and mentoring celebrate the many transferable skills developed during a music degree, equipping students with an even broader range of options and possibilities.
ECM programming includes classes for credit (including an undergraduate Certificate), workshops, special guests, residencies, internships, mentoring, opportunities for community-based projects, and connection with Boulder’s world-class entrepreneurial ecosystem. For more information, check out our Programs!