News Article

The East Coast Music Association (ECMA) is pleased to announce an exciting new business exchange partnership with Showcase Scotland at the 2016 Celtic Connections Festival taking place in Glasgow, Scotland from January 27-31. Showcase Scotland at Celtic Connections is the largest international music industry event in Scotland. 180 delegates attend from around 23 countries and generate £2.2 million a year in bookings for the showcasing artists.

ECMA will be presenting three showcasing artists at the 2016 Showcase Scotland reception held at the prestigious Celtic Connections Festival. This is a tremendous opportunity to showcase in front of a large network of influential international music buyers, booking agents, festival and venue programmers, media, and international representatives from around the world.

Select artists must demonstrate they are export-ready and/or have exporting experience and the ability and team infrastructure to maximize on this showcase opportunity. Open to all ECMA members in good standing.

Deadline for submission interest is July 13, 2015.

Submission Information:
Please submit:
– a brief bio (150 word maximum)
– a link to your up-to-date ECMA artist profile (please ensure that your profile features either an MP3 or video link)
– a short summary outlining your project goals and objectives and expected outcomes that will result from performing at the ECMA and Showcase Scotland reception showcase at Celtic Connections 2016.
Please send your expression of interest and information to [email protected].

Approval Process:
The Showcase Scotland steering group at Celtic Connections will make the final decision on which ECMA artists will be invited to showcase.

The ECMA awards and stages committee will jury the general list of submissions to develop a long list of the 10 best-qualified applicants. This list will be forwarded to Showcase Scotland on July 31st, 2015 from which the steering group will choose which 3 applicants they wish to invite to showcase.

Note: This is a promotional showcase opportunity and no financial remuneration or performance fee will be paid. As this is a VIP private invite-only event, performances will not be advertised in the Celtic Connections program to the general public and does not guarantee a performance at the Celtic Connections Festival.

Selected artists will be responsible for seeking funding assistance to assist with travel, flights, accommodations, per diems, marketing materials, and work visas/certificate of sponsorship fees.