AI MusicCon at STC 23 ·

Musical Life and Artificial Intelligence

The opportunities and challenges that Artificial Intelligence presents for music and culture remain one of the defining topics of our time. SoundTrack_Cologne, in cooperation with Landesmusikrat NRW, is bringing back the AI MusicCon for its third edition, this time with a full day of programming on Wednesday, 15 July 2026 at Comedia Theater Cologne, featuring keynotes, roundtables, hands-on workshops, and an AI installation.

The AI MusicCon aims to cut through the hype, shed light on real-world applications, legal frameworks, and future developments, and to foster an open, fact-based dialogue about AI in music and culture.

This year's programme opens with keynotes by Prof. Dr. Martin Andree on reclaiming the internet from Big Tech and Prof. Dr. Francisco Tigre Moura on AI's threat to cultural diversity, followed by discussions on rights attribution featuring Michael Duderstädt (GEMA) and Helienne Lindvall (ECSA). Legal perspectives on EU transparency obligations and content labelling will be addressed by Dr. S. Dennis Engbrink, while the newly launched NRW competence network K3 KI.Kunst.Kultur will make its debut.

Hands-on workshops, including algorithmic audio coding, open-source AI music tools with professors from HfMT Köln, and a music pedagogy workshop, round out the programme alongside talks on AI in music education and a closing panel on the bottom line of AI in music and culture.

The AI MusicCon can be attended as part of the SoundTrack_Cologne festival accreditation or with a separate ticket.

Download the full programme here.