For the purpose of cooperation between member organizations, EBU has created diverse thematic groups, such as sports, documentaries, investigative journalism, etc. In the Television Music Expert Group, representatives of EBU member organizations – heads of culture and music editorials – have joined together for the exchange of information and classical music projects, as well as for the establishment, development and strengthening of cooperation. Involvement in the group is determined by self-initiative – the specific employee who represents cultural projects in the broadcasting organization can decide for himself whether he wants to participate. At the center of the large group is a core of experts and a management group or office with 10 members.
“Membership in the group is a wonderful opportunity to cooperate and get involved in the common view of European public media on the field of culture,” said Ieva Rozentāle. She joined the group in 2014 – right after becoming the head of the LTV Culture editorial department. “Initially, I worked in the big family, but after the very active and successful cooperation with the head of the Television Music Expert Group at the time, BBC director Peters Maniuras, implementing ambitious projects together in Riga Born in Riga and Eurovision Choir of the Year, he invited me to become a member of the management group or office – at that time the first representative from a small member state and broadcasting organization, joining experts from France, Norway, Germany, Austria, Great Britain and Spain.
In January of this year, Ieva Rozentāle accepted the invitation to become the head of the Television Music Expert Group. The other nine representatives of the management group voted for her confirmation in the position for two years.
“I am grateful for the honor shown, and I think it is really important that we, representatives of broadcasters from Eastern Europe, can be involved and be heard in the broad group of EBU broadcasters. The situation in the world has changed a lot, so we should use every opportunity to tell our Western colleagues about the war in Ukraine.”
As the most important tasks of 2023, Ieva Rozentāle names the activation of the work of the expert group, which has decreased during the pandemic, as well as the competition started in Latvia Eurovision Choir of the Year continuation. “The Eurovision of Choirs has taken place twice – first in Riga, then in Gothenburg, Sweden. Due to the pandemic, the tradition was interrupted, but we hope that the competition will take place again in late autumn this year.”
The agenda of the EBU Television Music Expert Group includes the creation of various collaborations and co-productions. For example, during Covid, a catalog was created in which member states offered their cultural projects to each other for free, allowing for freer access to content when it was difficult to produce. Along with the competition Eurovision Choir of the Year the group also oversees the co-production of the Vienna Philharmonic’s New Year’s Concert.
