A vision of Ibizas musical future

The Ibiza Music Cluster (IMC), successfully launched in early 2009 (we gave a full account in the August 2009 edition), has moved a step forward. After preliminary discussions between Pioneer’s European management team and IMC’s coordinator, executive directors of the Pioneer Multinational based in Tokyo came to Ibiza in early October for further talks. Aki Ide, CEO of Pioneer DJ products worldwide, Sanpei Asai, Global Director of Product Planning and Hisashi Kajigaya, Global Director for Engineering, met for high-level talks with Xico Tarrés, President of the Consell, IMC coordinator Paco Medina and Pepa Marí, Councillor for Tourism. Also present were Pioneer’s European marketing manager, Mark Grotefeld and Antoni Tort, Head of Sales and Marketing for Spain.

So far, one of the main focuses of the IMC has been to ensure that Ibiza becomes the premier international destination for music, now attention is turning to attaining another of the cluster’s goals: the setting up of an international technology centre for research and innovation in the music industry. Pioneer is to equip the auditorium in the new music conservatory, now almost complete, with state-of-the-art technology. In addition, they are to maintain a training centre for professionals and other workers from the industry, plus a showroom and research institute for advanced musical studies.

As we heard from Mark Grotefeld and Paco Medina just before going to press, talks between IMC and Pioneer are going very well. Details are being finalised at the moment. It is hoped that contracts can be signed in January, so that Pioneer will be on board in time for February’s official opening of the conservatory.
This, together with the improvements to Playa d’en Bossa and the restoration of the Teatro Pereyra, could mean that the idea of ‘Ibiza Music Island’ doesn’t just remain a pipedream but becomes reality.