City of Music is a designation given by UNESCO to a number of cities around the world "that have identified creativity as a strategic factor for sustainable urban development", to promote cooperation among them and to help establish further music-related activities in the cities. The network is a sub-network of the wider UNESCO Creative Cities Network, or UCCN. The UCCN launched in 2004, and has member cities in seven creative fields. The other fields are: Crafts and Folk Art, Design, Film, Gastronomy, Literature, and Media Arts.

The purpose of the UNESCO Creative City Network is to use creativity to drive the sustainable development of cities.

In March 2006, Seville was designated as the first City of Music. Bologna was named approximately two months later.

Seville has a "legendary Flamenco scene," and UNESCO lists Flamenco as an "intangible cultural heritage."

Hamamatsu is the founding city of musical instrument companies Yamaha, Kawai, and Roland. It has also a Museum of Musical Instruments.

Liverpool—"the city that spawned The Beatles"—earned its designation due to music's "place in the heart of the city's life." UNESCO also noted a "clearly defined" music, education, and skills strategy for young people.

Idanha-a-Nova "lives by the rhythm of music," Ghent is a "city full of culture," and Auckland is the "beating heart of New Zealand's music industry."

According to Lonely Planet, Daegu is a "pleasant and progressive place," and Leiria is an "agreeable mixture of medieval and modern".