In the period 23–28 February 2026, the Bulgarian Music Association implemented a second professional trade mission within the framework of the project “Export and sustainable positioning of the Bulgarian music scene on the international market”. The Bulgarian delegation visited three key cities Prague, Brno and Bratislava with an intensive program of meetings, presentations and visits to emblematic spaces of the local music ecosystem.

In Prague, the program began with an official welcome and presentation of the Czech music market at the SoundCzech office. The delegates met with leading programmers and producers and visited some of the most active concert spaces in the city, including Palác Akropolis, Café V lese, ROXY, ARCHA+, Rock Café and Jazz Dock. Part of the program also included a tour of Radio Wave.

Among the highlights of the visit was a visit to the recording studio Studio Martínek, where the delegation was welcomed by the studio director Jan Kośulič. He presented the studio’s activities and its work with international productions. Kośulič is a music producer with four Grammy nominations, which made the meeting particularly valuable for the participants, as it provided an insight into the standards and processes in the global music industry. The evening networking meeting brought together representatives of the Prague music industry and created conditions for direct professional conversations and future partnerships.

In Brno, the delegation continued with visits to key venues and independent structures such as ArtBar, Stará Pekárna, Metro Music Bar, Kabinet Múz and Indies Records, as well as Fléda. A special meeting was also held with the artistic director of JazzFestBrno, focused on the possibilities of including Bulgarian artists in future editions of the festival. The evening informal meeting with representatives of the local music business consolidated the contacts established during the day.

The final part of the visit took place in Bratislava, where the delegation got to know the Slovak music sector in detail through presentations and meetings in spaces such as Nová Cvernovka, A4 – proikort součníj kultúry, Kácečko and Šafko Klub. The visit to the recording space Pulp Studio and meetings with local organizers and programmers complemented the overall picture of the music infrastructure in Slovakia.

The visit provided the Bulgarian participants with a practical insight into the functioning of the music ecosystem in the Czech Republic and Slovakia and created real prerequisites for future collaborations. The meetings were aimed at building long-term partnerships, exchanging good practices and expanding opportunities for international representation of Bulgarian artists.

With this second professional mission, the Bulgarian Music Association continues its consistent work to strengthen regional ties and the sustainable positioning of the Bulgarian music scene in Central Europe.

The project is funded by the European Union through the NextGenerationEU instrument, Export and sustainable positioning of the Bulgarian music scene on the international market. This publication has been created with the financial support of the European Union – NextGenerationEU. The sole responsibility for the content of the document lies with the “BULGARIAN MUSIC ASSOCIATION Association” and under no circumstances can it be assumed that this document reflects the official position of the European Union.