About the Basel Academy of Music, Basel Academy of Music

Basel Academy of Music consists of three institutes:

• the classical music department including sonic space basel, music and movement and educational music united in Institut Klassik
• the early music department in the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis and
• the jazz music department including jazz producing in Institut Jazz.

History
Als erste ihrer Art in der deutschsprachigen Schweiz wurde 1905 das Konservatorium (seit 1999 Hochschule für Musik), eine Berufsschule für angehende Berufsmusikerinnen und -musiker, von Hans Huber als Pendant zur Allgemeine Musikschule in Basel gegründet. Die Schola Cantorum Basiliensis agierte nach ihrer Gründung durch Paul Sacher 1933 zuerst eigenständig und wurde 1954 mit der Musikschule und dem Konservatorium unter dem Namen Musik-Akademie der Stadt Basel vereinigt. Eine nächste Erweiterung und Neubenennung fand 1999 mit der Integration der Berufsabteilung der Jazzschule Basel statt. Das Konservatorium hiess neu Hochschule für Musik (HSM) und erhielt den Status einer Fachhochschule.
Seit 2008 gehört die HSM Basel mit seinen drei Instituten Klasseik, Schola Cantorum Basiliensis und Jazz zur Fachhochschule Nordwestschweiz FHNW. Der Standort der HSM befindet sich mitten in der Basler Altstadt: auf dem Campus der Musik-Akademie und dem Jazzcampus. Somit besteht das einzigartige, bewährte Gefüge der Gesamtakademie weiter – die räumliche und organisatorische Zusammengehörigkeit von Berufs- und Laienausbildung.

On the campus of the Basel Musik-Akademy, lecturers and students, children, young people and adults from Basel and around the world meet and inspire each other. In addition to the Academy of Music, it is also home to the Basel Music School. Historic buildings, a charming courtyard, a modern library with study areas and several concert halls form a lively ensemble. Countless concerts throughout the year are open to the general public. A cafeteria with outdoor seating makes the place a popular meeting spot.

The campus is a 10-minute walk or a 5-minute bus ride (bus no. 30 to Steinenschanze) from the SBB railway station. There are also numerous bicycle parking spaces around the campus. Car parking is available in the municipal car parks.

Musik-Akademie Basel
Leonhardsstrasse 6
4051 Basel

Site map Campus Musik-Akademie

Academy of music, music school, jazz club, meeting place and a building complex that is unique in Europe: this is the Jazz Campus of the Basel Academy of Music and the University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland. A place for jazz, for musicians, for Basel and for jazz enthusiasts of all ages. A laboratory for a pioneering musical form of our time, which is lived in Basel and communicated to the wider world.

The campus can be reached from the SBB railway station by tram no. 2 to Wettsteinplatz or tram no. 8 to Rheingasse. There are also numerous bicycle parking spaces in front of the campus. Car parking spaces are available in the municipal car parks.

Jazzcampus Basel
Utengasse 15
4058 Basel

Temporary home of the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis and the MuST programme

Since mid-August 2025, the new temporary home of the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis for university teaching has been the Letzi temporary facility in St. Alban-Vorstadt. With the renovation work on the MAB campus (Campus 2040), various areas will be relocated over the course of the next few years and temporarily housed in the Letzi school building.
The concerts of the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis will continue to take place on the MAB campus, and the postal address will remain the same.

Provisorium Letzi
A location of the Basel Musik-Akademie
St. Alban-Vorstadt 95
4052 Basel

In order to meet the requirements of contemporary music education, numerous buildings on the MAB campus are being renovated and expanded. The 2040 project envisages fundamental renovation work in the south courtyard in the first construction phase and, in a second phase, the addition of a new structure above the current library. This will house a Salle Modulable for contemporary multimedia performance formats. Further information can be found here.

The Director's Board is responsible for the strategic direction and operational management of HSM Basel FHNW.
It consists of the Director, the heads of the institutes, the Director's Officer/Head of University Development, Head of Services HSM Basel and assistant positions.

MOM is the representative staff body at the FHNW. Participation has been governed by the FHNW collective labour agreement (GAV) since 1 January 2007. 

The purpose of the Basel Academy of Music FHNW Participatory Commission is to represent staff interests at the Academy level and become involved in the running of current operations according to the respective areas of participation and participatory rights. 

The Basel Academy of Music FHNW Academy Participatory Commission includes lecturers, research associates, as well technical and administrative staff members from of the Academy’s institutes, in consideration of appropriate gender representation.

In particular, the MOM maintains contact with the employees it represents, accepts their concerns, wishes and criticism and expresses these to the employer. In conflict situations, she can support and accompany employees.

Below you find the MOM representatives of HSM Basel FHNW; they can be contacted via the following e-mail: mab-forum@mab-bs.ch

• Birgit Leber (MOM Representative for Administration/Academic mid-level Faculty/Technical Services)
• Christian Dierstein (MOM Representative for the Institute Klassik)
• Barbara Doll (Co-Presidium, MOM Representative for the Institute Klassik)
• Katharina Arfken (Co-Presidium, MOM Representative for the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis)
• Urs Wiesner (MOM Representative for the Institute Jazz); currently represented by Benedikt Mattmüller and Malcolm Braff due to illness.

The Student Body of the Basel Academy of Music represents the interests of the students of HSM Basel. It promotes the exchange of experiences among students from all institutes and degree programmes, supports student projects, communicates with lecturers and the director and is involved on behalf of selected committees at the Academy.

One member of the student council is on the board of students.fhnw, the student organization of the FHNW. This represents the interests of all FHNW students. The board consists of nine members from the nine schools of the FHNW, sets the strategic direction of the student organization and controls the office.

fachschaft.hsm@students.fhnw.ch

The FHNW and the Basel Academy of Art and Design FHNW recognize and endorse with their diversity policy the rich cultural and social backgrounds of their students and staff members and promote the awareness of diversity as a potential and resource. The principles of diversity and equality find clear expression at the federal level, in university law, in the FHNW treaty, as well as in numerous strategic papers and documents. The existence of a central staff unit and part-time equal opportunities officers at each university underpin the significance of the principle of diversity and equality.

Trained counsellors are available to all students, employees and participants in continuing education throughout the FHNW for low-threshold counselling. These counsellors are bound to confidentiality and can be chosen freely.

Students can find further information on the Basel University of Music intranet.

For Further informations visit the Diversity-Website for the entire FHNW

Diversity
Basel Academy of Music and Musik-Akademie Basel
Kaspar von Grünigen
T   +41 61 264 56 51
kaspar.vongruenigen@mab-bs.ch

Excellent university teaching in music is our common concern; artistic expertise and a teaching personality with charisma form the foundation of university teaching in music. The application of numerous suitable prospective students is an important indicator in this respect.

The lecturers at HSM Basel are committed to the high quality of their teaching. They are obliged to carry out at least one self-evaluation of their teaching per academic year. Their own teaching development is therefore an integral part of teaching and is aimed at both the continuous process of personal improvement and the joint development of music teaching as a whole. Furthermore, teaching development is an integral part of our collective cultural development process.

https://lehrentwicklung.ch/

Hochschule für Musik Basel FHNW
Leonhardsstrasse 6
4009 Basel

Phone +41 61 264 57 57
Mail hsm@fhnw.ch