The Institute for Contemporary Music IzM was founded in June 2005. As a cross-departmental interface, it conceives a range of projects on contemporary music for all faculties of the university. This includes workshops, colloquia and lectures with composers, performers and researchers, as well as excursions, lecture series, symposia and publications. In recent semesters, guests have included Helmut Lachenmann, Dieter Schnebel, Rolf Riehm, Brian Ferneyhough, Lucia Ronchetti, and the Arditti Quartet. IzM initiates interdisciplinary projects and cooperates regionally and nationally with institutions such as Ensemble Modern, Hessischer Rundfunk, Alte Oper, museums and theaters in the region, Archiv Frau und Musik e.V., and the Darmstädter Ferienkurse. The institute reflects events from regional and national cultural life and carries them into the university. IzM communicates contemporary music both internally and externally.
IzM's regular events include concert series such as the shortcuts, in which teachers and students present excerpts from their current work at fortnightly intervals and in which experimentation and encounter are part of the program. Since March 2015, the shortcuts have also taken place at the KunstKulturKirche Allerheiligen in Frankfurt. Every two years, IzM conceives and organizes the "New Music Night," an interdisciplinary festival in which the entire university participates. As "Ensemble IzM", students work together in changing line-ups for a wide variety of projects.
Since the winter semester 2006/07, the Ensemble Modern and the HfMDK have been jointly offering the master's program International Ensemble Modern Academy; the IzM regularly collaborates with the IEMA ensemble. The education project Response also takes place under the umbrella of IzM. Since 2019, renowned composers have been invited to work with all departments as part of the Endowed Guest Professorship in Composition. For the realization of events with electronic music and live electronics, the IzM cooperates with the Studio for Electronic Music and Acoustics SELMA of the HfMDK.
