Applications open for Music Bursary Award (Ireland)

Objectives

• The award emphasises the value and benefit to an artist’s development derived from an extended process of engagement with their artistic practice at any stage of their professional career. The award therefore provides artists with the time and resources to think, research, reflect and engage with their artistic practice by enabling them to do one or more of the following:
  • Spend focused time substantively developing their artistic practice
  • Spend time researching/thinking about/developing a new idea for separate dissemination
  • Spend focused time developing their technical skills in a particular area or developing/learning new skills related to their practice or area of interest
  • Spend time working with a mentor or collaborator(s) to develop an idea or to assist in developing or upskilling within a particular area of the applicant’s practice or an area related to the applicant’s practice
  • Undertake a short period of training by way of master classes or other professional training opportunities (whether national or international)
  • Purchase a limited amount of equipment and materials to assist with the development of their practice (Note: this can be no more than 15% of the value of the overall request for support).
• Potential proposals could be those that:
  • Enable a composer or performer working in any genre to buy time for substantive development of their artistic practice
  • Facilitate the development or completion of a specific body of artistic work excluding dissemination
  • Enable artists to invest time in focused study of particular repertoire or area of technique.

Priorities

• The Arts Council has identified the following as strategic priorities for support through this award:
  • Professional development of emerging Irish composers, conductors and performers of proven promise and diverse backgrounds.
  • Artists working across a broad spectrum of genres and music practices, including jazz and improvised music
  • Professional artists working on the creation or performance of new music or editions of important historic/non-contemporary Irish music not yet generally available
  • Professional artists developing specialist period-performance practice as conductors or instrumentalists
  • New applicants working across a broad spectrum of music genres.

Funding Information

• The maximum amount that may be awarded to each successful applicant is:
  • €20,000
• The minimum amount that can be applied for is:
  • €5,000

Who can apply?

• The award is open to professional artists working in all genres and at all stages in their professional careers. To be eligible to apply, applicants must:
  • Be professional practising artists – although they might not earn income continuously or exclusively from their arts practice, applicants must identify themselves and be recognised by their peers as professional practicing artists
  • Have a demonstrable track record in their genre of music practice
  • Be resident in the Republic of Ireland. However, they may accept applications from outside the Republic of Ireland. In this case, you must detail in your application form how your proposal would benefit the arts in the Republic of Ireland. They would need to be satisfied with your explanation.

Who cannot apply?

• People who are not eligible to apply include the following:
  • Individuals currently in undergraduate education (including those undertaking foundation courses)
  • Individuals seeking support towards fees for postgraduate courses (including unaccredited)/higher education or study
  • Individuals seeking support towards work undertaken as part of postgraduate studies
  • Individuals seeking costs towards undertaking an internship
  • They cannot accept applications from those employed or contracted on a full-time basis by an arts organisation funded through Arts Council programmes or through direct state subsidy or by a commercial arts entity
  • Aosdána members in receipt of a cnuas.

For more information, visit The Arts Council.