The Indiana Music Economy Sessions
Pattern and the Indiana Music Alliance (IMA) are launching the Indiana Music Economy Sessions, a statewide series designed to connect regional music leaders, strengthen local music ecosystems, and explore how music can support tourism, talent attraction, small business growth, and community identity across Indiana.
The series builds on the recently completed regional READI 2.0 arts, culture, and creative economy strategies, several of which identified music assets as important contributors to regional identity, tourism, quality of place, and economic development. The Indiana Music Economy Sessions will bring together leaders in selected regions to explore how those assets can be better connected, supported, and positioned for long-term impact.
The first session will take place in Fort Wayne on Friday, June 5, at the Fort Wayne Philharmonic Center, in partnership with Visit Fort Wayne, Northeast Indiana Regional Development, and the Fort Wayne Philharmonic.
Telling the Story of a Music Place: Venues, Audiences, and Fort Wayne’s Sound is a lunch conversation focused on how Fort Wayne venues and cultural spaces can grow audiences, tell stronger stories, and become more visible anchors for local culture.
The session will explore how music venues and cultural spaces can better communicate their value as part of Fort Wayne’s broader music ecosystem. Through practical examples, outside perspectives, and local discussion, the conversation will examine how venues can move beyond programming alone and play a stronger role in community development, tourism, talent attraction, and local identity.
“Indiana already has strong music assets — venues, festivals, educators, studios, music businesses, and artists,” said Polina Osherov, executive director of Pattern. “The opportunity now is to better connect those assets, tell a stronger story, and build the kind of infrastructure that helps music contribute more visibly to Indiana’s economy and quality of place.”
The Fort Wayne event marks the first stop in a broader statewide series hosted by Pattern and IMA. Additional Indiana Music Economy Sessions are planned in South Bend–Elkhart on June 16, Bloomington on August 28, and Madison on September 11.
Each gathering will focus on the unique opportunities within its local music community while contributing to a larger statewide conversation about Indiana’s creative economy and the role music can play in regional growth.
The series will culminate in Pattern’s Creative Economy Summit on September 15–16, where leaders from across Indiana’s creative industries will gather to discuss innovation, cultural development, creative entrepreneurship, and the future of creative work in the state.
By connecting regional music conversations to a statewide summit, Pattern and IMA aim to strengthen collaboration across communities, increase visibility for Indiana’s music assets, and reinforce the role music and culture play in shaping Indiana’s identity and economic future.
Event Details
Telling the Story of a Music Place: Venues, Audiences, and Fort Wayne’s Sound
Friday, June 5
10:30 AM – 12:30 PM
Fort Wayne Philharmonic Center
826 Ewing Street
Fort Wayne, IN 46802
Tickets are $15 and include lunch. No refunds.
Agenda
10:00 AM – 10:30 AM: Networking
10:30 AM – 11:30 AM: Panel
11:30 AM – 12:30 PM: Lunch & Informal networking
To secure your spot, register here: Telling the Story of a Music Place: Venues, Audiences, and Fort Wayne’s Sound
