2023 Organization Fund Awardees Announced

New Music USA announces 2023 Organization Fund Awardees 

Total of $620,750 awarded to 85 organizations from across the U.S. 

New Music USA is proud to announce the selection of 85 awardees for the 2023 New Music Organization Fund, which provides grants to outstanding organizations that work regularly with, and support the development of, music creators and artists, and offer a crucial resource to their community. Totaling $620,750 in funding, this year’s awards support groups working in an array of genres that need support to sustain their programming of new music, nurturing of music creators, and other services. 

Awardees have demonstrated a deep and consistent impact on their community of artists and music lovers, and include music organizations, performance groups, dance organizations, festivals, presenters, and venues that span 20 states. This reflects New Music USA’s aim to work locally and regionally to increase and deepen its impact across the many diverse music communities in the US, and follows the announcement of $208,050 in funds awarded to 60 creators from across 21 states this spring through the Creator Fund. 

For this grant cycle, which attracted 523 applications, New Music USA made some minor changes to the Organization Fund in response to community feedback, to better highlight our support of music for dance and to enable applicants who prefer funding for commissions to apply alongside those who are seeking general support for ongoing new music programs. Applicants were asked to select their preferred funding opportunity from one of the following categories: General Support, Creation of New Work, or Live Music for Dance projects. Live Music for Dance Awardees constitute 18% of the awardee group, Creation of New Work awardees are 21%, and General Support are 61%.  

See the full list of awardees below and on the New Music Organization Fund Program Page, which also features playlists of music that has been supported by the awardee organizations. 

Live Music for Dance 

• Ananya Dance Theatre – Minneapolis, Minnesota 
• Art of the Matter Performance Foundation/Deborah Slater Dance Theater – San Francisco, California 
• AXIS Dance Company – Berkeley, California 
• Creative Netwerk – Astoria, New York 
• Dark Circles Contemporary Dance – Las Cruces, New Mexico 
• Flyaway Productions – San Francisco, California 
• Heidi Duckler Dance – Los Angeles, California 
• Jeremy McQueen’s Black Iris Project – New York, New York 
• José Limón Dance Foundation – New York, New York 
• Katha Dance Theatre – Crystal, Minnesota 
• La Donna Dance, Inc. – New York, New York 
• LED – Boise, Idaho 
• Nava Dance Theatre – San Francisco, California 
• ODC Theater – San Francisco, California 
• Parsons Dance – New York, New York 
• ShaLeigh Dance Works – Rougemont, North Carolina 
• The Leela Institute – West Hills, California 
• Treehouse Shakers – New York, New York 
• Yaa Samar! Dance Theatre – Brooklyn, New York 

General Support  

• American Composers Orchestra – New York, New York 
• ANIKAYA/Akhra, Inc. – New York, New York 
• Ars Nova Workshop – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 
• Audium Theater – San Francisco, California 
• Bang on a Can – Brooklyn, New York 
• Brooklyn Raga Massive – Brooklyn, New York 
• CapitalBop – Washington, District of Columbia 
• Chicxs Rockerxs South East Los Angeles – Bell Gardens, California 
• Composers Now – New York, New York 
• Copland House – Peekskill, New York 
• Creative Music Foundation, Inc. (AKA Creative Music Studio) – Woodstock, New York 
• DC Jazz Festival – Washington, District of Columbia 
• D-Composed – Chicago, Illinois 
• Earshot Jazz Society of Seattle – Seattle, Washington 
• Either/Or Ensemble – New York, New York 
• Elastic Arts Foundation – Chicago, Illinois 
• Experiments in Opera – Brooklyn, New York 
• HEAL Center for the Arts – Saint Louis, Missouri 
• Hub New Music – Ann Arbor, Michigan 
• Imani Winds Foundation – New York, New York 
• InfraSound – Brooklyn, New York 
• International Contemporary Ensemble – Brooklyn, New York 
• Inversion Ensemble – Austin, Texas 
• ISSUE Project Room – New York, New York 
• Luna Composition Lab – New York, New York 
• Motor City Sings – Detroit, Michigan 
• Music Kitchen – Food for the Soul – New York, New York 
• Musiqa – Houston, Texas 
• Mutual Mentorship for Musicians – Woodside, New York 
• New Music Gathering – Brooklyn, NY 
• Next Edge Arts, Inc. – Raleigh, North Carolina 
• NYC Winter Jazzfest – Brooklyn, New York 
• Peninsula Women’s Chorus – Palo Alto, California 
• Project [BLANK] – San Diego, California 
• Qubit – Brooklyn, New York 
• Ravinia Festival – Highland Park, IL 
• Roulette Intermedium – Brooklyn, New York 
• Sound Off: Music For Bail – New York, New York 
• Sparks & Wiry Cries – Lansing, New York 
• The Crossing – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 
• The Jazz Gallery – New York, New York 
• The Lab – San Francisco, California 
• The Merian Ensemble – Atlanta, Georgia 
• Trilogy an Opera Company – Newark, New Jersey 
• Trinosophes Projects – Detroit, Michigan 
• Unison Learning Center, Inc., d/b/a/ Unison Arts – New Paltz, New York 
• Verdigris Ensemble – District 14, Texas 
• Wild Up – Los Angeles, California 

Creation of New Work 

• Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts – Omaha, Nebraska 
• Beth Morrison Projects, Inc. – Brooklyn, New York 
• Cal Performances – Berkeley, California 
• Contemporary Youth Orchestra – Cleveland, Ohio 
• EMPAC / Curtis R. Priem Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute – Troy, New York 
• Harlem Stage – New York, New York 
• Kronos Quartet – San Francisco, California 
• Mantra Percussion Inc. – Woodside, New York 
• Original Music Workshop d.b.a. National Sawdust – Brooklyn, New York 
• Orpheus Chamber Orchestra – New York, New York 
• Palaver Strings – Portland, Maine 
• Pittsburgh Opera – Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 
• Portland Jazz Composers Ensemble – Portland, Oregon 
• PRISM Quartet, Inc. – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 
• Silkroad – Brighton, Massachusetts 
• The West Kortright Centre, Inc. – East Meredith, New York 
• VisionIntoArt – Brooklyn, New York 
• Works & Process, Inc. – New York, New York 

New Music USA is committed to making all of its grant programs equitable, by removing barriers in the application process and by consistently elevating all artists and organizations who receive our support. Organization Fund applicants are given straightforward guidelines and are asked to supply a brief project description (either written or video recorded) and work samples. The main criteria for this fund were: artistry, impact, need, equity and inclusion. 

The peer review process for New Music USA’s Organization Fund applications reflects ongoing efforts to dismantle bias. For this round, New Music USA engaged 19 artists, composers, musicians, and administrators from locations around the country to build a panel with 78% of people identifying as women and nonbinary, and 51% of people identifying as BIPOC.   

Scott Winship, Director of Grantmaking Programs at New Music USA, says,  

“We believe supporting locally focused organizations across the US is crucial to building a sustainable future for music creation. It has been moving to explore the inspirational work of this year’s awardees and applicants, and we are proud to support these 85 organizations doing impactful work across the musical spectrum. We can’t wait to see the dynamic projects they bring to life in their communities.”

Chadi El-Khoury from Las Cruces, New Mexico-based awardee Dark Circles Contemporary Dance shares:

“The award from New Music USA has energized our team at Dark Circles Contemporary Dance, allowing us to create groundbreaking work that challenges conventions and gives voice to the under or misrepresented… this exciting opportunity enables us to delve into reimagining Western narratives, challenging the canonization of the white, heterosexual cowboy and shedding light on the under or misrepresented voices of BIPOC and queer people who played significant roles in shaping the American West.”

Ben Will from Detroit, Michigan-based awardee Motor City Sings adds:  

“Motor City Sings is very excited to be supported by New Music USA’s Organization Fund. With this support we plan to increase our operations team to expand our programming efforts of removing stigma from discussions of mental health and suicide prevention through the joy of music.”

Thank You to Our Panelists 

New Music USA extends warm thanks to the panelists from across the US who reviewed Organization Fund applications: Nanci Belmont, Ixi Chen, Cory Combs, Kitty Daniels, Aliana de la Guardia, Alexa Dumont, Carmina Escobar, Teresa Fellion, Jonathan Golove, Juliette Jones, DaEun Jung, Alia Kache, Lisa Lipton, Christopher Nicholas, Carl Hancock Rux, Roshni Samlal, Alexandria Smith, AhSa-Ti Nu Tyehimba-Ford, and Yongyun Zhang.  

Funding Transparency  

Both the New Music Organization Fund and New Music Creator Fund are made possible by the generous funders who either donated to New Music USA’s endowment or generously donate to New Music USA annually. Some of these funders had or have specific requests regarding the kinds of work we support because of their geographical location or particular genre areas, which includes around 46% of funds going to New York-based artists or organizations. Please find more detailed breakdown info in the FAQs. 

Thank You to Our Funders  

New Music USA’s Organization Fund is funded in part by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature; with public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council; and with support from the Howard Gilman Foundation, Fifth House Ensemble, and The Cheswatyr Foundation. 

Support for the Organization Fund and Live Music for Dance are also provided by contributions from the New Music USA endowment, and support for New Music USA and its many programs and activities is provided by foundations, corporations, government agencies, and hundreds of individual contributors. New Music USA is grateful for the support of its endowment donors, including Mary Flagler Cary Charitable Trust, the Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation, the Baisley Powell Elebash Fund, Fidelity Foundation, Francis Goelet Charitable Lead Trusts, Hewlett Foundation, the Mellon Foundation, Rockefeller Brothers Fund, and Helen F. Whitaker Fund. 

About New Music USA 

New Music USA supports and amplifies the sounds of tomorrow by nurturing the creation, performance, and appreciation of new music for adventurous listeners in the United States and beyond. We empower and connect US-based music makers, organizations, and audiences by providing funding through our grants; offering support and fostering new connections through our programs; deepening knowledge through our online magazine, NewMusicBox; and working as an advocate for the field. New Music USA envisions a thriving and equitable ecosystem for new music throughout the United States. newmusicusa.org 

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