The purpose of the article is to study art education as a means of forming cultural identity and civic consciousness. To achieve this goal, theoretical methods of cognition were used, in particular, the most important methods of analysis, synthesis, and content analysis. The results show that modern technologies are widely used in the field of higher art education. This includes not only technical aspects, but also theoretical and pedagogical approaches to teaching. In modern methods of higher education, the emphasis is on the development of students' personalities, broadening their outlook, skills and abilities. Traditional models of learning that existed before the introduction of distance learning are undergoing significant changes, leading to experimental approaches to teaching in art universities. Particular emphasis is placed on the democratisation of educational processes, digitalisation of art education and the use of computer technology. The desire to ensure unity in diversity, which is a necessary component of modern European integration aimed at overcoming the negative effects of globalisation, is also important. One of the key components of the development of modern higher art education is the use of digital technologies. This allows students to create a significant amount of creative work while studying and include it in their professional portfolio. This approach is particularly relevant in the European labour market. Ukraine's experience in applying modern teaching methods in the field of music is in line with European development trends. At the same time, due to Russian military aggression and obsessive propaganda, there is a need to update research on Ukraine-centric music topics. It is important to emphasise the development of Ukrainian art, the study of the life and legacy of prominent teachers, performers and artists, and the integration of the acquired knowledge into the educational process. The conclusions emphasise that the combination of Ukrainian specificity and modern digitalisation trends creates objective conditions for the development of musicology in Ukraine and its presentation at the international level.