New Music USA Announces New Music Inc – Los Angeles Awardees

$140,000 awarded to a cohort of 10 small-budget, artist-led music organizations based in Los Angeles 

Awardees receive an unrestricted grant of $10,000 and up to $4,000 for travel, plus 17 months of mentorship and cohort learning opportunities led by local Program Coordinator, Los Angeles Performance Practice 

New Music USA is proud to announce the cohort of 10 new music groups and organizations that have been selected as the awardees for New Music Inc – Los Angeles (NMI-LA), New Music USA’s incubator program that helps small-budget, artist-led new music groups and organizations generate new ideas, strategies and collaborations at pivotal stages in their development. The New Music Inc – LA cohort joins prior regional cohorts in Baltimore, Chicago, and New York City, bringing this crucial program to its fourth US city.  

NMI-LA elevates each participating organization through financial support coupled with 17 months of mentorship and hands-on skill-building in a cohort environment, led and facilitated by local Program Coordinator Los Angeles Performance Practice (LAPP), a non-profit organization devoted to the production and presentation of contemporary performance by artists whose work advances and challenges multi-disciplinary artistic practices.  

The program’s mentorship and development opportunities include 1:1 meetings with the Program Coordinator, cohort learning sessions, development of organizational plans, peer-to-peer feedback from local arts professionals, and travel to other New Music Inc cities (Baltimore, Chicago, and NYC). The fundamental goal of NMI-LA is to support and strengthen the new music ecosystem in Los Angeles by addressing its internal challenges and promoting the long-term sustainability of the new music sector and the local organizations that contribute to its vibrancy. 

An outgrowth of the New Music Capacity Building Program that was launched in 2020, New Music Inc fulfills New Music USA’s goal to expand its services to the community beyond purely financial investment. Following previous regional cycles of New Music Inc in Baltimore, Chicago, and New York City in 2023-2024, the program’s growth to Los Angeles also marks a major step forward in New Music USA’s goal to deepen and expand its impact across multiple US cities. Work is in progress to bring the program to additional US cities to further reflect the new music community’s geographic diversity, and to enable New Music USA to extend its reach to areas of the country that are underrepresented in national music funding opportunities. 

The NMI-LA grant cycle drew 95 applications from a diverse range of new music organizations across Los Angeles including performance groups, collectives, festivals, record labels, and venues. Applications were evaluated and awardees were selected based on the following criteria: artistry, impact, need, and capacity. 

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

“New Music Inc – Los Angeles exemplifies our organization’s continued efforts to deepen our regional impact in rich and vibrant new music communities across the US. The program’s unique blend of financial support coupled with professional development resources represents our commitment to broadening the scope of our investment in the new music community beyond purely financial means. We are grateful to our funders in Los Angeles – the Music Man Foundation and the Perenchio Foundation – for enabling us to provide these vital resources that small, artist-led organizations need to thrive.” 

Brandon J. Rolle, Executive Director of New Music Inc – LA awardee Brightwork newmusic, adds: 

“We are thrilled for this opportunity to build and strengthen our nonprofit alongside our neighboring arts organizations. As a composer and arts administrator, I know first-hand how our new music community thrives when we collaborate, pool resources and share knowledge. New Music Inc embodies that spirit and empowers us to be focused and intentional about how we grow our organization in the next decade.” 

Visit the program page to learn more about New Music Inc.  

 Meet the Awardees  

• Angel City Arts
• Bridge to Everywhere
• Brightwork newmusic
• DC6 Singers Collective
• Laós Chamber Music
• Monday Evening Concerts
• Oracle Egg
• Piano Spheres
• South Side Symphony
• The Resonance Collective  

New Music USA sincerely thanks the panelists who reviewed the applications for New Music Inc – LA:  

Elizabeth Cline, JB Dyas, Neel Kant Agrawal, Katy Dammers, and William Ruiz Morales  

Thank You to Our Funders  

New Music Inc – Los Angeles is made possible by The Music Man Foundation and Perenchio Foundation. 

If you are a funder or donor interested in exploring how to expand New Music Inc to your city, please contact Marc Giosi, Director of Development at New Music USA: [email protected].   

About New Music USA  

New Music USA is a national non-profit organization dedicated to advancing new music in all its forms. Our mission is to nurture a vibrant and inclusive community for artists and listeners by supporting the creation, performance, and appreciation of new music throughout the United States. Through responsive grant-making; skill-building; mentorship and convenings for creators from all backgrounds; and platforms designed to connect music-makers with organizations and their audiences, New Music USA works to ensure a thriving, connected, and equitable ecosystem for the music of our time. newmusicusa.org 

# # #