National Geographic Music (National Geographic)

Journalist, broadcaster and producer Gerald Seligman was announced as the new General Director of the WOMEX organization, in a press announcement released yesterday. Seligman will be replacing outgoing director Christoph Borkowsky, who will be stepping down as day-to-day director of WOMEX to concentrate on his record label and events management group. Seligman will be the third General Director of WOMEX, the international organization behind Europe's popular, annual World Music Expo event, and the first American ever to hold the position.

"When I took over from WOMEX Founding Director Ben Mandelson in 1997,"
said Borkowsky, in the press release, "I was the lucky guy who could just ride thewave of an emerging event. Ten years later we see the soundtrack of globalisation still becoming more important by the day, and WOMEX changing... from event to institution."

"Each football team needs a new coach from time to time," he added. "WOMEX as well. I'm most happy that Gerald is taking over. He's got the right skills, experience—and respect in the community that the job requires. But I think he is in for a much harder ride than I had a decade ago. Both the whole operation itself as well as the surrounding field for WOMEX are more challenging now."

Gerald Seligman came to WOMEX in January 2006 after over 20 years in the music business. He began his career as a journalist and radio programmer based in New York, before turning to freelance production. After moving to Brazil in 1990, he worked first for Polygram, then EMI, which soon moved him to London to take over international direction of its 43-country strategic marketing division. While there he created Hemisphere, the influential world music label that saw over 2 million sales during his tenure. As a Grammy-nominated producer and compiler, he has delivered over 120 CDs and is a frequent international conference speaker and consultant.

"I was involved with WOMEX from its second year," says Seligman, "always attending, chairing countless conference sessions, I was on its first jury, I've even travelled for WOMEX. WOMEX is unique in the world of music trade fairs and the only one I know of that grew organically from a community itself. It wasn't imposed from outside by a company wanting to fill a commercial niche. There was a need and Christoph and his indispensable partner Ben Mandelson stepped up to fill it, providing the kind of vision and guidance that only insiders could," Gerald says. "It's an honour to take over WOMEX direction, if a bit intimidating in terms of continuing their good work."