- The international Musikmesse and Prolight + Sound trade shows at the Frankfurt Show and Exhibition Center closed their doors on Saturday evening after a successful four-day run jam-packed with musical and dramatic highlights. "Over 108,000 visitors from 146 countries witnessed a dazzling display of new products, stars and events presented by 2,257 exhibitors," said Detlef Braun, Member of the Executive Board of Messe Frankfurt.
- Particularly successful at Musikmesse was the new business area for improved contacts between manufacturers, distributors and musical-instrument retailers. "The show is an extremely important platform where exhibitors can launch their new products—and judge their position in relation to their competitors. In this connection, the show is distinguished by great internationality whereby the new B2B area was a very useful improvement this year. Naturally, the show is also important to help consumers develop a feeling for music," said Gerhard A. Meinl, chairman of the Federal Association of German Musical Instrument Manufacturers.
- Confirming this assessment, Dr Christian Blüthner-Haessler, CEO of Julius Blüthner Pianofortefabrik, said, "We generated lots of business and gained many new customers during the four days of the show. Particularly in a time when the climate in the sector is rather inclement, Musikmesse 2015 came fully up to expectations."
- The Professional Lighting & Sound Association of Germany (Verband für Licht-, Ton- und Veranstaltungstechnik - VPLT) was also very pleased with the results of the show: "From our point of view, it was once again clear that the heart of the sector beats at Prolight + Sound. This year, thanks to numerous products and services, the media, theater, show and events segments came even more closely together and were to be seen at a glance at the same time and place during the four days of the show. Simultaneously, we see here just how international our business is," said Helge Leinemann, Member of the Board of VPLT. Besides Germany, the top ten visitor nations at Prolight + Sound are the Netherlands, Italy, Belgium, Switzerland, France, Austria, China, Great Britain, Sweden and Poland.
- At the same time, the extensive program of events makes Musikmesse an extraordinary musical experience. With the show opening to the general public on two full days this year, greater emphasis than ever before was given to making the show an unforgettable occasion. With over 1,000 concerts, workshops, autograph sessions and presentations, the Musikmesse event program had something for all tastes.
- One of the most important aims of Musikmesse is to promote music making among young people. To this end, Messe Frankfurt once again increased the spectrum of facilities and services. Thus, on the one hand, opening the show on the Friday made it easier for school groups to attend the show. On the other hand, the Music4Kids participatory exhibition sent over 8,000 children aged from three to ten on a journey of musical discovery with extraordinary instrument creations, sound experiments and sound installations. At the School Jam finale, young talents competed for the title of ‘Germany’s Best School Band’. Moreover, the European School Music Award for particularly worthwhile music-teaching projects was presented at the show.
