Resonate Magazine | Australian Music Centre

The 2020 APRA AMCOS Art Music Fund applications are now open, closing at 5pm AEDT on 24 February 2020. This will be the fifth round of grants from the Fund that was initiated in recognition of the limited opportunities for art music composers to have their works performed. A total pool of A$100,000 per annum is again available as funding for composers to create commissioned work that is complemented by an exploitation program.

The Art Music Fund is available for Australian and NZ composers for the creation of commissioned work that is innovative, displays professional compositional craft and represents a benchmark of excellence in its field. The intention is to support composers to create works with a long artistic life.

The previous 39 recipients have come from a range of art music backgrounds, from improvisational jazz to sound art to children's opera. The works have been performed and reached audiences in Australia, New Zealand and all around the world.

The Art Music Fund exists to commission new work that is innovative, displays professional compositional craft and represents a benchmark of excellence in its field. The commissions must have committed partners to ensure the work is presented multiple times with the intention to create a long artistic life for the work and, by extension, its composer.

The Art Music Fund is assessed by an external panel of musicians. With an aim to represent a complete view of the industry, we are particularly aware of ensuring the panel of experts includes diverse voices across culture, gender, geography, generation, and genre.

This fund supports a wide range of music styles including: notated composition; electroacoustic music; improvised music (including innovative, original jazz); sound art; installation sound; multimedia, web and film sound and music; and theatrical, operatic and choreographed music. The Fund is not intended to support popular and rock music of commercial importance, nor folk and traditional music.

All applicants will be asked to explain how their arts practice aligns with the qualities identified in the Art Music Fund (innovation, compositional craft, and excellence), regardless of style. It is expected that composers will collaborate with ensembles, orchestras, producers, recording companies, broadcasters, festivals and other parties to propose the writing of a work that will be guaranteed multiple exposures by way of performances, recordings, broadcasts or digital dissemination.

Successful applicants will be notified by the end of April.

> For full details and online applications, as well as previous recipients, please see the APRA AMCOS website.