Fair Pay in Music
How to approach fee negotiations, funding and applications effectively

 

Fair pay and sustainable funding are not luxuries, but the very foundations of an artist’s livelihood. This workshop combines financial literacy, strategic thinking and cultural practice – to foster greater openness, security and recognition within the music industry.
This workshop focuses on the key question: as a musician, how can I realistically budget for my artistic work, represent it with confidence and secure long-term funding? Together, we’ll explore the topics of fair pay, fee negotiations, grants and funding applications – in a practical, clear and immediately applicable way.

Objectives

  • Gain confidence in handling money, fees and funding mechanisms
  • Be able to plan your own projects professionally and calculate costs fairly
  • Develop greater self-confidence in negotiations and when submitting applications
  • Understand the structures of the funding landscape and make successful use of them 

 

 

Franziska Wallner © Christian Schneider

 

Course lecturer Franziska Wallner


Franziska Wallner completed her concert performance degree in clarinet at the Mozarteum University, worked as an instrumental teacher for several years, and has performed as a soloist and chamber musician across a range of genres in various concerts, orchestral and opera productions, as well as film and media productions. At the Mozarteum University, she heads the Institute for Coaching & Career and the Career Centre, focusing on career development, physical and mental health, start-ups and self-employment. Franziska Wallner is a board member of the IG freie Musikschaffende (Association of Independent Musicians) and co-founder of the association “JEDE*RFRAU – artistic and feminist initiatives in Salzburg), where she is active as one of the artistic directors and as an organiser. She was elected as a member of the Salzburg State Cultural Advisory Board for the music sector for the term 2025–2029.
 

Antonia Grüner © Maria Frodl

 

Course lecturer Antonia Grüner


Antonia Grüner is a specialist in classical music, global music, new folk music, jazz and improvised music at mica - music austria. She studied law in Salzburg, La Rochelle and at the Humboldt University in Berlin. Antonia Grüner worked at the Salzburg Festival, the Camerata Salzburg and at Karsten Witt's artist agency in Berlin as an artist manager for renowned classical musicians and singers. From 2013 she worked in the artistic operations office of Jeunesse - Musikalische Jugend Österreichs, from 2016 to 2021 she was the artistic director of the organisation. Antonia Grüner is a member of the City of Vienna's Advisory Board for Music and a member of the Artistic Board of Kultursommer Wien.

 

An initiative by the University of Music and Performing Arts Graz in collaboration with mica - music austria. 

Webinar
 

 

Date
TH, 16.04.2026
1.30 pm–4.30 pm


Location
online via Zoom

ECTS
The workshop, including preparation and follow-up, counts as 4h of 60 minutes each for the Career Center elective 

Registration
careercenter@mdw.ac.at