
New Music Organization Fund
This program is for outstanding organizations which work regularly with, and support the development of, music creators and artists and offer a crucial resource to their community.
Applications Open
The New Music Organization Fund offers grants to music organizations, performance groups, dance organizations, festivals, presenters, and venues who need support to sustain their programming of new music, nurturing of music creators, and other services. This program is for outstanding organizations which work regularly with, and support the development of, music creators and artists and offer a crucial resource to their community. The main criteria for this fund are: artistry, impact, need, equity and inclusion.
This fund is for organizations only; individuals may not apply.
- The application deadline is March 30, 2023, at 11:59 pm Eastern.
- Apply online at newmusicusa.smapply.io/
- Please see the FAQs page and recorded webinar
Approach
This year, we have made some minor changes to the Organization Fund, in response to your 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. This means that all applicant organizations will be asked to select their preferred funding opportunity from the following: General Support, Creation of New Work, or Music for Dance projects. Please note applicants may only apply for one.
We are particularly interested in supporting organizations that have a deep and consistent impact on their community of artists and music lovers. For this reason, we ask applicants to submit an endorsement from a member of their community. For organizations seeking general support, this could be an artist, stakeholder, or audience member (see below). For creation of new work and music for dance grants, this should be a letter of support from the composer, musician, and/or choreographer.
Successful applicant organizations, to any of the opportunities offered, will exhibit some or all of the following traits:
- Committed to relationship building and collaboration with artists, other organizations, and the community
- Commitment to commissioning new work
- Commitment to programming new music and providing opportunities for creators throughout the year/season
- Offers learning, engagement, and/or development opportunities and is committed to building future audiences for the organization’s work
- Demonstrated artistic merit and performance history of the applicant institution
- Committed to equity, diversity, and inclusion in their organization, engagement, and programming
- Committed to cultivating creativity, as well as, leveraging new music in service of individual and community transformation
Funding Areas (select only one)
General Support
This option is for outstanding organizations which work regularly with, and support the development of, music creators and artists and offer a crucial resource to their community. Funds are to be used for general costs which support year-round programming and new music activities. It does not need to be tied to any specific project, but we are asking you to tell us about the programs, events, and initiatives that New Music USA’s support best aligns with. This year, with additional support, we are able to support additional organizations whose work leverages new music in service of individual and community transformation. Organizations applying for this option should not have an average annual budget of over $2 million over the last 3 years.
Organizations seeking general support will be asked to present their year-round work on or offline, including:
- Music program planned
- Opportunities provided to artists and music creators
- Community of artists served (we support music creators/artists based in the US and US territories)
- Audiences the activity will reach
- Equity, diversity, and inclusion within their organization and programming
- Impact on their community
Creation of New Work
This option is for organizations that are interested in funding the creation and/or commissioning of new work. The organization must produce, co-produce, perform or otherwise present event(s) in which new music serves a central role. Projects must take place anytime between July 2023 and June 2025. There are no restrictions on the organization’s general operating budget.
Music for Dance
This option is for dance organizations that work regularly with music creators and musicians. This option aims to support and encourage the use and creation of new and live music for dance performances, support collaborations between music creators/composers and choreographers, foster meaningful collaborations between musicians and dance companies, and to create performance opportunities for musicians.
Funds would be used to support live music for dance, musician fees, commissioning new work, collaboration with composer, etc. Projects must take place anytime between July 2023 and June 2025. There are no restrictions on the organization’s general operating budget.
Awards
This year we aim to fund approximately 60 to 70 organizations with an average award of $7,000. You may apply for up to $20,000. Awarded organizations will be required to credit New Music USA’s support.
Review criteria
New Music USA is committed to diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility. We strive for our applicants and awardees to represent a broad spectrum of diversity across size, genre, race, ethnicity, gender, age, ability, sexual orientation, religious belief, and geography. We encourage applications from Black, Indigenous, People of Color led, LGBTQIA+ led organizations, and organizations representing persons with disabilities.
Applications will be evaluated based on the following criteria.
- Artistry – as demonstrated by submitted media; artistry of the organization, creators, and/or musicians involved
- Impact – the impact the organization has on its community of artists and audiences served; this includes a history of the regular and ongoing performing, programming, and engagement of diverse living US/territories-based music creators and/or impact on the creators and musicians involved
- Need – how you’d use the support and why it is important now
- Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion – as demonstrated by the diversity of artists presented and/or the organization’s commitment to equity and inclusion
Please see the FAQS for a breakdown of the Review Criteria.
Eligibility
General Support
Applicant organizations must:
- be based and doing work in the US
- have a commitment to producing, performing, and/or commissioning the work of living, US/territories-based music creators
- be committed to equity, diversity, and inclusion in their organization, engagement, and programming
- be committed to working and performing in their community
- have a minimum of three years of performing, programming, and budget activity at the time of the application
- not have an average annual budget of over $2 million over the last 3 years
- not be a university
Creation of New Work/ Music for Dance
Applicant Organizations must:
- be a presenting organization based and doing work in the US
- have a minimum of three years of performing, programming, and budget activity at the time of the application
- confirm any newly created work be entirely new work; proposals for expansions, arrangements or re-staging of existing works are not eligible
Applicant creators/musicians must:
- be based and doing work in the US and remain so for the duration of the project
- not be enrolled in a degree-giving program
- have completed any and all previous awards from New Music USA including the Creator Fund, Next Jazz Legacy, Reel Change, and Amplifying Voices at the time of notification
Deadline and Timeline
The deadline will be March 30, 2023, at 11:59 pm Eastern. Decisions will be made in June 2023. Funds for General Support are to be used for the 2023-24 season (July through June). Creation of New Work and Music for Dance funds are to be used between July 2023 and June 2025 based on the project timeline.
Application requirements
The application will be submitted online. Please provide the following:
Endorsement Letter
- General Support – Community Endorsement Letter
- A statement of endorsement from an artist or other member of your community (e.g. audience member, stakeholder, partner, performer). Please highlight:
- Why your organization is important to different groups within your community
- What’s unique about your programs and activities?
- Why New Music USA’s support would be important to your organization in this current climate
- A statement of endorsement from an artist or other member of your community (e.g. audience member, stakeholder, partner, performer). Please highlight:
- Creation of New Work and Music for Dance – Artistic Letter of Support
- A statement of endorsement/commitment from the creator and/or musicians on the project and their role
- A statement of endorsement/commitment from the choreographer on the project and their role (Music for Dance only)
Information About Your Organization (all)
- Organizational bio (max. 150 words for including on our website if you are awarded)
- Your mission statement.
- A brief outline of all your upcoming programming (on and/or offline) highlighting your commitment to new music, the new music program planned, any artist development opportunities.
- Tell us about your community and the impact you have. Please consider the community you are seeking to serve including creators, artists, audiences, participants, partners and the broader community. Let us know any ways you are cultivating creativity and leveraging new music in service of individual and community transformation.
- A summary in just a few sentences of any specific aspects of your program and work with music creators that New Music USA’s funding would help to advance (this will be used on our website if awarded)
- Why this funding is so important to you now
Information about the Project (Creation of New Work/Music for Dance only)
- Creator/musician bio (max. 150 words for including on our website if awarded)
- Project description including an outline of the project describing what it is, who is involved, and the anticipated timeline
Equity and Inclusion (all)
- A brief outline of how you address equity, diversity, and inclusion within your organization and programming
- An outline of your policy for paying artists and creators including in the context of canceled performances or commissions
Music Examples (all)
- 2 to 3 samples of music you have commissioned or programmed; you may provide links to YouTube, Vimeo, Soundcloud, or upload mp3 files.
- For Creation of New Work/Music for Dance
- Be sure to include a work sample of the music creator and/or musicians you are planning to work with
- We recommend up to 5 minutes per work sample. You can submit any length of a work sample, however, If you are submitting longer works, please write suggested start and end times to view/listen.
Finances (all)
- Amount requested (all applicants)
- A budget for your current financial year (please include your request to New Music USA in your income projections) – for all applicants
- Organizational budget totals representing the last three years (for General Support only)
- Most recent financial statement or audit (for General Support only)
- Budget of the project (for Creation of New Work and Music for Dance only)
Further questions or information
- Please see the FAQs here
- Sign up for New Music USA’s webinar on 3/15/23, 2pm ET, here
- Please email [email protected]; please note that due to the high volume of inquiries please allow 48 to 72 hours for a response.
Credit for image above: Axelrod Contemporary Ballet Theater, credit Alana Roolart.
Read the full announcement on the 2022 Organization Fund awardees here.
2022 Organizational Development Fund Awardees
Rocky River, OH
ABREPASO flamenco is a Cleveland-based nonprofit music and dance company directed by Alice Blumenfeld that aims to deepen appreciation for flamenco and create original flamenco choreography and music, finding new entry points into and new pathways within the art form; funds will help expand repertory and offerings of flamenco in Northeast Ohio.
Northville, MI
As the first reed quintet to grace the Billboard Charts (May 2021), the untamed band of 5 reed players and entrepreneurs are united by a shared passion: to make music that sparks joy and wonder; funds will support its 22-23 season of world premieres, its 5th album release featuring Shara Nova and the music of Nico Muhly, its annual high school residency and new music festival in Detroit, and more than 100 total workshops and performances nationwide.
Brooklyn, NY
Alarm Will Sound commissions, performs and records new music for large ensemble with the aim of moving contemporary music towards the center of today’s culture; funds will support Artist Fees for musicians, guest artists, and commissioned composers.
Oakland, CA
Alphabet Rockers make music that makes change, working in partnership with communities to create media reflecting the culture of belonging needed in the world; funds will be used to curate and stage live productions of “The Movement,” featuring songs for all ages about justice, belonging and community care.
New York, NY
American Lyric Theater (ALT) was founded in 2005 to fill a void in the training of operatic writers; funds will be used to support the commission of three new operas from Resident Artists in the company’s Composer Librettist Development Program, which provides invaluable support to mentor gifted emerging opera composers and librettists, with a focus on artists from historically underrepresented groups in opera.
New York, NY
Since 1965, Americas Society has been one of the main stages in New York City for music and artists from Latin America, the Caribbean, and Canada; funds will support the payment of rehearsals and performing fees for new music ensembles performing works by composers from Latin America, the Caribbean, and Canada during the 2022-2023 season of the Music of the Americas Concert Series.
New York, NY
andPlay is committed to expanding the existing violin/viola duo repertoire by commissioning new works and actively collaborating with living artists; funds will support andPlay’s administrative and organizational capacity for its 22-23 season.
Los Angeles, CA
Angel City Arts is committed to cultivating and revitalizing jazz culture in LA; funding will go towards the 2022 Angel City Jazz Festival, a vehicle to present the best contemporary West Coast jazz and beyond.
New York, NY
Arts For Art (AFA) is a NYC-based organization dedicated to the promotion and advancement of FreeJazz -- an African American indigenous art form in which improvisation is principle; funding will help cover artist/production fees and administrative costs in implementing the Community Development Program, the goal of which is to cultivate a wider and more diverse following for improvised art forms, and to ensure the continued long-term stability of the organization.
Seattle, WA
arx duo is dedicated to the expansion of the percussion chamber music repertoire through the creation and presentation of new works, engaging with young artists and audiences, and bringing communities together through music; funds will complete the costs of recording our album with new commissions from Juri Seo and Robert Honstein, as well as cover part of our cost of the new commission of Steven Mackey's "Memoir"
San Francisco, CA
Audium- the first theater of its kind in the world- has been pioneering the idea of live sound movement for over 50 years; this grant will help expand Audium’s artist residency and featured artist programs, which commission local Bay Area artists to create original works of spatial sound and new media.
Axelrod Contemporary Ballet Theater
Deal Park, NJ
"AXCBT is rooted in a deep commitment to ballet and contemporary dance and cultivates an environment rooted in diversity, inspiration, encouragement, and equality; funds will be used for “The lost Princess of Oz,” a new Literary Ballet music score written by composer Chris Becker. "
Black Mountain College Museum + Arts Center
Asheville, NC
Black Mountain College Museum + Arts Center (BMCM+AC) celebrates and extends the legacy of Black Mountain College (BMC). Funding will support the BMCM+AC Performance Initiative, which brings innovative contemporary musicians and performing artists to Western North Carolina and supports the work of artists working in BMC’s avant-garde lineage.
BodyStories: Teresa Fellion Dance
New York, NY
Teresa Fellion founded BodyStories: Teresa Fellion Dance in late 2011, after working as an independent choreographer since 2004; funds will be used to compensate and credit collaborators in a just manner and provide opportunities to new and upcoming musicians and composers.
Boise, ID
The Boise Phil is a classical orchestra based in Boise, Idaho that presents a broad array of music from historical works to commissioned pieces by living composers; funds will go towards sponsoring the performances of three co-commissioned works by Jennifer Higdon, Jimmy López Bellido, and Vijay Iyer during Boise Phil's 2022-2023 season.
Takoma Park, MD
Boulanger Initiative advocates for women and all gender-marginalized composers; funds will continue efforts towards increasing gender equity in the music industry through our programs.
Bowdoin International Music Festival
Brunswick, ME
The Bowdoin International Music Festival is approaching its 60th anniversary as a world-renowned chamber music performance and training program; funding will help sustain and strengthen our annual Gamper Festival of Contemporary Music, as well as move us closer towards our goal of fully-funding tuition for all composition students.
Philadelphia, PA
Bowerbird is a Philadelphia based non-profit organization that shares music, dance, film, and related art forms with audiences at locations across the region; funds will allow Bowerbird to produce concerts of new and experimental music in venues across Philadelphia.
Los Angeles, CA
Brightwork newmusic is the only organization in Southern California with a performing ensemble, monthly concert series, and educational initiatives all focused through the lens of contemporary classical music; funds will help sustain general operating at a critical stage in their organizational growth.
Brooklyn, NY
"Brooklyn Raga Massive (BRM) is an adventurous artist collective dedicated to preserving and expanding the rich genre of South Asian classical music by providing direct support to musicians, and facilitating cultural exchange through performances, new compositions, and educational programs."
Boston, MA
Castle of our Skins is a Black arts institution dedicated to fostering cultural curiosity and celebrating Black artistry through music; funds will support its annual Black Composer Miniature Challenge project and Shirley Graham DuBois Creative in Residence program, both of which support African diasporic creatives from around the world through the realization and documentation of new work.
Washington D.C.
Chamber Dance Project, dancers & musicians (CDP,) mission is to create extraordinary experiences in contemporary ballet on stage with live music and in film; funds will support our artists – dancers and musicians for live performances and events.
Nashville, TN
Chatterbird creates uniquely orchestrated chamber music that explores alternative instrumentation, stylistic diversity, interdisciplinary collaboration, and celebrates friendly, accessible concert settings; funding will support the artistic season, including three large concerts featuring newly commissioned music, educational engagement and partnerships, composer residences, and community-focused experiences.
Indianapolis, IN
Classical Music Indy (CMI) is Central Indiana's premier syndicator of Peabody-award-winning classical music radio programs, producer of 24/7 classical music streaming and award-winning podcasts, community programs provider, and advocate for classical music and classical music-makers; funds will be used to create studio recordings of five new chamber works for mixed ensembles by Indiana-based composers.
Coalition for African Americans in the Performing Arts (CAAPA)
Fort Washington, MD
Uniquely positioned in the world of classical music and opera, the Coalition for African Americans in the Performing Arts (CAAPA)’s mission is dedicated in “Bringing Color to the Classics”™ in support of Black classical musicians, youth, senior citizens, opera singers, and others in the performing arts.
Peekskill, NY
Copland House is dedicated to nurturing and renewing America’s vibrant, diverse musical legacy, and to fostering greater public awareness and appreciation of our nation’s composers and their work.
Woodstock, NY
"Ornette Coleman, Karl Berger, and Ingrid Sertso formed the Creative Music Foundation in 1971; CMS will use its award to advance its new education and professional development programs for music creators, particularly BIPOC, female, trans, and genderqueer artists; and promote and present more new up-and-coming artists who have historically been underrepresented in the music field. "
Memphis, TN
Crosstown Arts is a multidisciplinary contemporary arts center located in Memphis, TN; funding will support the ongoing collaboration between Memphis-based Blueshift Ensemble and Iceberg New Music as well as growing its new music programming in its 2022-2023 season.
Washington D.C.
The Dance & Music Festival (DMF) is a family friendly festival that aims give our youth and families hope for their future and encourage mentorship, positive self-images, and role models; funding will develop communities and strengthen neighbors by hosting free family friendly events showcasing dance, music, and visual arts.
El Paso, TX
El Paso Jazz Girls is a cost-free program for young female musicians to learn about jazz, meet each other, play together, and create a support system; support will help fund El Paso Jazz Girls' annual cost-free summer program, teacher development workshops for the Texas community, and local performance opportunities for our participants.
New York, NY
Ensemble Pi is a socially conscious new music collective committed to performing works by living American composers, as well as underrepresented composers of the past; funds will support new projects exploring personal devastation brought on by war.
Chicago, IL
Experimental Sound Studio (ESS) is a Chicago-based nonprofit organization dedicated to artistic evolution and the creative exploration of sound; funds will support staff capacity, new voices in leadership, and the build-out of expanded resource accessibility as ESS works to evolve and mature the momentum, lessons, and connections forged over the past two years of programming amidst a constantly changing landscape.
Des Moines, IA
Since 2013, Girls Rock! Des Moines has been empowering cis-girls, gender-expansive, nonbinary, and trans youth through music education, collaboration, and performance opportunities; funds will help GRDSM hire new staff members.
Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival
Southfield, MI
The Great Lakes Chamber Music Festival was born in 1994 of a remarkable relationship between religious and cultural institutions; funds support collaboration with regional and national organizations to commission new works by underrepresented composers, and share them with the larger Metro Detroit community.
Haverhill, MA
In daring performances, Guerilla Opera has garnered a national reputation for innovative contemporary opera with The Boston Globe raving that “radical exploration remains the cornerstone of everything it does”; funds will aid in supporting our Guerilla Opera Staff, allowing them to root more in the art we are creating and focus on supporting our artists and creators during their process.
New York, NY
Founded in 1977 by experimental composers and sound artists, Harvestworks’ mission is to support contemporary artists in the creation of art works achieved through the use of new and evolving technologies; funds will support inviting more composers from the BIPOC and LGBTQ communities to their residency program.
Astoria, NY
NYC-based quartet Hypercube specializes in cutting-edge works for saxophone, guitar, piano and percussion, while spanning electric and acoustic worlds; funds will support scholarships for its Cubelab programs, with special attention to BIPOC composers, LGBTQIA+, woman-identifying and low-income/need-based participants.
Los Angeles, CA
Impulse New Music Festival provides talented early-career musicians with critical tools, training, and mentorship for building a career in new music; this support will help advance the work done with music creators in our summer festival and workshops.
Institute for Composer Diversity
Fredonia, NY
The ICD is housed at the State University of New York at Fredonia, and dedicated to the celebration, education, and advocacy of music created by composers from historically underrepresented groups through database resources and programming analysis; support will be used to expand the ICD databases and resources, as well as supporting the ICD Database Expansion and Community Impact Initiative.
International Contemporary Ensemble
New York, NY
ICE has become a leading force in new music throughout the last 20 years; funding will support work with eight composers who have been selected for new commissions through ICE’s “Call For ___” in-house commissioning program.
Nashville, TN
Intersection is a Nashville-based contemporary music ensemble dedicated to challenging the traditional concert experience, supporting living composers, engaging youth in new music, promoting collaboration, technology, and the avant-garde, while embracing the musical and cultural diversity of Nashville; funds will support a return to live performances and enable Intersection to increase staff capacity.
New York, NY
One of the most acclaimed, renowned, and respected groups performing today, JACK Quartet has maintained an unwavering commitment to their mission of performing and commissioning new works, giving voice to underheard composers, and cultivating an ever-greater sense of openness toward contemporary classical music; funds will support fees for commissioned artists via JACK Studio + JACK Creative Fund.
Jazz Power Initiative (d/b/a of The Jazz Drama Program)
New York, NY
Founded by jazz musician/educator Eli Yamin and teacher/writer Clifford Carlson, after identifying the need for youth-friendly jazz education programs in Uptown Manhattan, specifically vocal jazz, JPI’s music education and performance programs place jazz at the center of American culture and history; the grant will support operating support and new organizational development for Jazz Power Initiative.
Jeremy McQueen’s Black Iris Project
New York, NY
Founded by choreographer Jeremy McQueen in 2016, The Black Iris Project (BIP) is a ballet collaborative and education vehicle which creates relevant classical and contemporary ballet works that celebrate diversity and Black history; funds will help choreographer Jeremy McQueen and composer Brian Nabors develop a new ballet entitled “Blood in the Soil”, examining the often complex intersectionality of Black Americans.
Boston, MA
Juventas New Music Ensemble (Oliver Caplan, Artistic Director) is the only contemporary chamber group with a special focus on emerging voices; the grant will support Juventas's 2022-23 Season "Stories of Our Time," a musical journey, exploring some of today’s most critical social issues through the voices of emerging composers.
Khemia Ensemble is dedicated to reflecting broader perspectives in contemporary classical chamber music by presenting engaging performances, commissioning new works, and mentoring the next generation of musicians; funding will support 2022-23 season projects.
San Francisco, CA
Funding will help Kronos, which approaches its 50th anniversary in 2023-24, continue to pursue creative collaborations and projects that foster connections between musical traditions and artistic genres, engage audiences and artists in new ways, and amplify the voices and concerns of marginalized or underrepresented communities.
Chicago, IL
Lampo supports artists working in new music, experimental sound, and other interdisciplinary practices; this award will provide vital assistance to commission and produce more ambitious and complex new work.
New York, NY
LPI aims to highlight freestyle dance and music voices under-recognized in the traditional performing arts landscape and to transform individuals’ relationship to music/dance while providing entertainment, building community, educating audiences in cultural history, and supporting emotional and social well-being; funds will support musicians’ engagement in LayeRhythm club and theater events.
West Hills, CA
Leela Institute, based in both SF and LA, was founded by senior disciples of legendary kathak master Pandit Chitresh Das, and is the only one of its kind Indian-American dance company; funds will support the development of our next original work and provide more platforms for our artistic output, and allow us to collaborate more deeply with composers and musicians who share our values, and whose work inspires us.
Denver, CO
Life/Art Dance Ensemble is a Colorado-based modern dance company, support will allow Life/Art to commission works from emerging local artists, adequately compensate them, and provide a platform for their work to be experienced.
Chicago, IL
Live the Spirit Residency and its Englewood Jazz Festival are cultural anchors in Chicago's Englewood community, deeply rooted in and reflective of the rich artistic heritage of Black creative music in Chicago; funds will be put towards the 23rd annual Englewood Jazz Festival from September 14–17, 2022 and offers concerts, free all-ages jazz workshops, and a series of panel discussions.
Los Angeles, CA
The mission of LACO is to enrich and connect our community through intimate and transformative musical experiences that exemplify and foster artistic excellence, education and innovation.
Luna Composition Lab (Partnership Grantee)
New York, NY
Luna Composition Lab provides mentorship and performance opportunities to young composers who are female, non-binary or gender nonconforming. Funded by a New Music USA Partnership Grant.
Michele Brangwen Dance Ensemble
New York, NY
The Michele Brangwen Dance Ensemble is an interdisciplinary performing ensemble of contemporary dance and music; funds will support our 2022-2023 Season of live performances and enable the creation and premiere of a new dance & music work entitled "The Faces Of Sun And Moon," which will explore our ability to connect, both literally and poetically, to sources of renewable energy, like sun and wind.
Brooklyn, NY
Mivos Quartet is dedicated to advancing and performing new music in all its variety to diverse audiences worldwide; these funds will help commission and premiere diverse new music for string quartet, fund composition awards for emerging composers, and fund recordings of recent new works.
Saint Paul, MN
MIXTAPE is an artistic organization focused on dance theater and the professionalization without gatekeeping resources of the Twin Cities Hip Hop dance community; this grant will go toward paying artists a fair wage for their labor so that they can create work around social justice issues such as racial inequity, sexual violence, and climate change.
New York, NY
Music From The Sole is a tap dance and live music company that celebrates tap's Afro-diasporic roots, particularly its connections to Afro-Brazilian dance and music, and its lineage to forms like house dance and passinho (Brazilian funk); funds will strengthen focus as music creators, including preparing for recordings of recent works, and marketing ourselves to presenters who might not normally book a hybrid dance company/ band.
Houston, TX
Musiqa is a non-profit organization dedicated to the performance of contemporary chamber music; funding from will help the organization fulfill a commitment to the creation of new work and support for composers at every stage in their careers and providing an essential platform for diverse voices from around the nation.
M³ – Mutual Mentorship for Musicians (Partnership Grantee)
New York, NY
M³ was created to empower and elevate musicians of historically underrepresented gender identities in the US and worldwide through a new model of mentorship and an ongoing performance series of new collaborative commissions. With the aim of building new paradigms of mentorship, M³ celebrates a wide network of artists, providing a think tank for new ways to connect, collaborate, support and create.
Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company, Inc.
New York, NY
The Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company is a rare Asian American woman led professional touring company with programs for educational settings, community organizations and mainstage venues; funds will be used to enhance the organization's capacity to coordinate among our music collaborators throughout the creative process.
Houston, TX
Nameless Sound presents international, national, and local artists in the fields of experimental music, sound art, improvisation, and jazz; funds will go towards two concert series, the Creative Music Concert Series and the weekly They, Who Sound series, as well as guests artist engagements with youth in our Creative Music Communities program.
New Mexico Contemporary Ensemble
Albuquerque, NM
The New Mexico Contemporary Ensemble (NMCE) is an artistic collective that works to connect regional and international artists with New Mexico communities; funds will support their James Tenney Memorial Symposium and a new virtual collaboration.
Flushing, NY
The New York Kathak Festival is a nonprofit organization that presents and promotes dancers, scholars, and practitioners of Kathak, a classical dance tracing its origins to India; funds will support the creation of an original Indian classical score to be used across all programming, as well as support performances by Indian classical musicians at our upcoming concerts.
NewEar Contemporary Chamber Ensemble
Kansas City, MO
newEar Contemporary Chamber Ensemble dedicates itself to commissioning and performing music of our time and providing listeners with unique and stimulating musical experiences that are rooted in artistic excellence and enhanced by educational opportunities.
nienteForte Contemporary Music
New Orleans, LA
nienteForte is a presenting series whose mission is to champion contemporary music in New Orleans by hosting residencies featuring world renowned new music ensembles, artists, and composers from around the globe; funds will contribute greatly to upcoming residencies.
Nimbus Arts Center / Nimbus Dance
Jersey City, NJ
Nimbus Arts Center bridges the gap between world-class performance and community engagement by presenting work that speaks to and elevates diverse audiences and producing annual new dance premieres that challenge audiences to reflect on today’s most pressing societal issues; funds will go towards the 22-23 season.
Omaha, NE
Omaha Under the Radar emerged from a desire to support innovative performers, arts educators, and creators living and working in Nebraska and throughout the Midwest, and to connect this community to audiences and artists throughout the US; funds will be used to support the 2022-23 Generator Series held at KANEKO, to increase staff support, and to increase the frequency of our SOUNDRY workshops.
Brooklyn, NY
Opera On Tap was created to promote opera as a viable, living and progressive art form and to support the developing artists who continue to keep the art form alive. Support from New Music USA will support Opera On Tap’s development activities in relation to our new music projects, including the Immersive Opera Project and New Brew.
Philadelphia, PA
Currently in its fourth decade, Orchestra 2001 has performed at Carnegie Hall, the Library of Congress, Phoenix’s Musical Instrument Museum, and more; funds will support artistic, production, and administrative expenses for three of Orchestra 2001’s signature series: EMERGING MARKETS, presenting concerts in local markets where Philadelphians work and shop; ¡CONEXIONES!, highlighting music by Latin American composers; and JOURNEYS: Classical Music from the African Diaspora.
New York, NY
Orpheus Chamber Orchestra is a radical experiment in musical democracy, proving for fifty years what happens when exceptional artists gather with total trust in each other and faith in the creative process; funds will support concerts at Carnegie Hall, a national tour, the presentation of new music and expansion of repertoire for chamber orchestras through newly imagined arrangements.
Brooklyn, NY
Pathos Trio is a two percussion and piano trio committed to combining aesthetics of contemporary classical music with their interests in dark, heavy, dense sounds drawn from various genres of music, while also aiming to bring adventurous music to audiences through collaborations with young, living new music composers; funds will go toward general operating costs.
Houston, TX
Through collaboration with local artists, PDC Works creates and presents multidisciplinary performances that entertain, intrigue, educate and inspire learning; support will be used to fund the performances of local musicians and dancers in "Take Root.”
Brooklyn, NY
Periapsis Music and Dance is a Brooklyn-based organization dedicated to cultivating a new collaborative repertoire between choreographers and composers; funding will support our administrative structure, which in turn will allow us to expand our programming and our artistic ambitions, offering more frequent performances and more opportunities for artists, and leading to a larger overall scale of activity.
Piano Spheres
Piano Spheres supports and encourages the composition, performance, and video production of major new works for the piano as well as rarely heard treasures from centuries past; funds will support the Leonard Stein Artist Residency for Historically Underrepresented Groups with resident artist Dr. William Chapman Nyaho.
Philadelphia, PA
PRISM Quartet seeks to place the saxophone in unexpected contexts, chart fresh musical territory, and to challenge, inspire, and move audiences with music from a diverse range of creators; PRISM will use funds to advance contemporary composers’ work through its concert series and label XAS Records, and provide educational + mentorship programs to aspiring artists from diverse backgrounds.
San Francisco, CA
San Francisco Girls Chorus prepares girls and young women from diverse backgrounds for success, on stage and in life, through rigorous, empowering music education, and enriches Bay Area cultural life through innovative vocal performance; funding will support SFGC’s year-round music education programs for girls, young women, and gender-expansive youth, and commissions and performances of new music in the 2022-2023 concert season.
San José, CA
SJCO is a twenty-member professional string orchestra that champions living composers with a wide spectrum of ethnic and/or stylistic backgrounds; funds will support performance of new works during the 2022-23 season.
New York, NY
This funding will help Sandbox to prioritize the time we spend creating and exploring with our collaborators. Through initiatives like our Creator Mentorship Program, we are able to set aside time and resources for workshops with creators, documentation of the works we’ve created, and public presentations of this music for our community of listeners.
Durham, NC
ShaLeigh Dance Works (SDW) is a nonprofit, dance-theatre company dedicated to inspiring people of all abilities, social backgrounds, cultures, and generations with the transformative power of dance; funds will support the 2023 new music program enVISION: The Next Chapter, which researches the perception of music and sound in the absence of vision and how access informs our creative process.
Sidra Bell Dance New York (SBDNY, Inc)
White Plains, NY
Sidra Bell Dance New York is an internationally recognized boutique brand of prolific movement illustrators based in NYC that presents and fosters a canon of innovative and progressive dance theater in realms of ideas, environs and (im)possibilities; funds will go toward a new creation with composer Dan Cooper for film.
Siudy Garrido Flamenco Company
Miami, FL
With a mission that is to nurture and embrace a contemporary vision of Flamenco art in America, the funds will be utilized on finalizing the mixes of the tracks and the mastering of the whole album.
Skaneateles, NY
"The Skaneateles Festival is a summer music festival in Upstate New York; funds will support a new project called Freedom Sounds, for which the Festival will invite composers, performing artists, longtime and new listeners to consider a simple question with many answers: What does freedom sound like?"
Sō Percussion Summer Institute
Brooklyn, NY
Formed at the Yale School of Music in 1999 and based in Brooklyn since 2004, Sō Percussion has cultivated a unique repertoire that focused on American music - beginning with John Cage and exploring the rich diversity of today's musical culture; funds will be used to support scholarships and guest artist fees at our 2022 So Percussion Summer Institute.
Atlanta, GA
staibdance is a contemporary dance company that embraces the development and performance of original work while equally nurturing creative impulses from our cultural community; funding will support a resident, experimental sound artist to create and develop an aural world which will bolster our newest, multi-disciplinary work titled ARARAT.
Oakland, CA
A community art space in Oakland, CA that supports experimental, community, and healing arts practices and provides the Bay Area with a “Room for Belonging” – a sanctuary space where non- binary and non-dominant ideas can flourish; funding will support the 25th season of TACmusic.
New York, NY
Talea Ensemble champions musical creativity, cultivates curious listeners, and brings visionary new works to life with vibrant performances that remain in the audience’s imagination long after a concert; funds will allow Talea to strengthen + build out the Talea Access Project and support creative ways to connect with its community outside of performance, such as the Open Forms podcast + discussion series.
Brooklyn, NY
The American Opera Project’s mission is to develop and present new and innovative works of lyric theater, provide a creative home to emerging and established artists, and engage contemporary communities in a transformative operatic experience; support will go towards artist fees for workshops of projects in AOP's opera-incubator, First Chance.
The Dream Unfinished
The Dream Unfinished is an activist orchestra and its mission is to use classical music as a platform to engage audiences in dialogues surrounding social and racial justice; funding will go directly towards supporting live performances.
The Fuse Factory Electronic and Digital Arts Lab
Columbus, OH
The Fuse Factory is an art and technology initiative that facilitates practical and critical engagement with performance, sound and visual arts, high and low technologies, and new media; funds will go towards compensating the musicians participating in our Frequency Fridays 2022-2023 season, touring artist program, and our artist-in-residence program.
Los Angeles, CA
The Industry is an experimental company that expands the operatic form, bringing together interdisciplinary artists to create collaborative performances that authentically engage the cultural landscape of LA; funding will support its ambitious upcoming programming schedule.
San Francisco, CA
The Lab gives significant funding, time, and space to traditionally underrepresented musicians and artists, and a site for interdisciplinary artistic production; funding will support performances and partnerships for experimental composers and musicians at The Lab in 2022–23.
The Philadelphia Jazz Tap Ensemble
Philadelphia, PA
The funds will assist in the production and performance of a new site-specific commission, Trouble the Water, which will premiere in August 2022 at the Fairmount Waterworks and then later in Fall 2022 at the Philadelphia Fringe Festival.
East Meredith, NY
The West Kortright Centre is dedicated to excellence in the arts, featuring a diverse blend of world-class concerts, workshops, art exhibits, and community events; funds will support concert programming, bringing the very best and innovative American music to rural upstate New York.
Chicago, IL
Third Coast Percussion is a GRAMMY® Award-winning Chicago-based percussion quartet and GRAMMY®-nominated composer collective; support will strengthen TCP’s Currents Creative Partnership, a collaborative program for innovative music creators who are at the beginning of their careers, have less experience writing for percussion, or are expanding their creative work in new directions.
Traverse City, MI
The mission of the Traverse City Dance Project is to produce and present professional dance in Northern Michigan and beyond; funds will be used in support of our NewVo Fellowship program, through which the Traverse City Dance Project commissions and facilitates new collaborative works between choreographers and composers.
New Paltz, NY
Unison Arts offers opportunities to grow our creative community through innovative environmental, racial, and social justice-centered art practices, as well as exceptional exhibits and performance; funds will build and sustain community in the performing arts across the Hudson Valley.
Philadelphia, PA
Wildflower Composers (formerly the Young Women Composers Camp) aims to amplify the voices of female and gender-expansive composers and work toward a more equitable future for contemporary music; funds will support the expansion of 2022/2023 programming to include an in-person winter retreat for composers between the ages of 18 and 30, as well as virtual courses on specialized topics within composition such as film scoring.
San Francisco, CA
The mission of World Arts West (WAW) is to support local artists sustaining diverse world music and dance traditions by providing needed services and performance opportunities while deepening the public’s support of and engagement with these inspiring culture bearers.
Brooklyn, NY
WMI is dedicated to presenting the best in traditional as well as contemporary music and dance from around the globe; funding will support engaging artists to create kid-friendly free podcasts of improvised international folk tales underscored with musical interpretations and to pay innovative artists who advance and experiment with “world music” to perform live in NYC, highlighting WMI’s motto: Many Cultures – One World.
Brooklyn, NY
Yaa Samar! Dance Theatre (YSDT), founded in 2005 by Artistic Director Samar Haddad King in NYC, operates under the belief that art should be liberating, transformative, and accessible to all; funds will support operational expenses for the development of a new production featuring an original soundscore.
New York, NY
"YDC is a unique, tuition-free summer dance ensemble of New York City teenagers, dedicated to creating and performing their own original work; funding will support the collaboration between professional composers and YDC’s teen choreographers as they work together on the creation of original music and dance, to be presented in concerts throughout NYC, free and open to the public. "
Partnership Grants
New Music USA also awards a small number of Partnership Grants to complement funding available through open calls and fixed deadlines. Recipients represent exceptional artist-led initiatives that align with the priorities of our Creator and Organization Funds by providing music creators and individual artists with unique opportunities for collaboration, mentorship, and peer learning. Congratulations to the organizations Luna Composition Lab and M³ (Mutual Mentorship for Musicians), which received awards to support their immersive and impactful work in the new music community. As was announced this spring with the 2022 Creator Development Fund recipients, creator Niloufar Nourbakhsh has also received a Partnership Grant to support her work with the ANIM Composition Residency.
Let’s Hear It for Our Panelists
New Music USA extends deep gratitude to the panelists who reviewed the 2022 Organizational Development Fund applications: Rez Abbasi, Meghan Bennett, Susanna Bolle, Jennie Brown, Freddie Bryant, Danielle Buonaiuto, Tracy Fletcher, Lisa Giordano, Anne Hege, Susie Ibarra, Jennifer Jolley, Brooke Larimer, Laura Lentz, Jimmy López Bellido, Delaney Martin, Evis Sammoutis, Kamala Sankaram, Helen Simoneau, Nadia Sirota, Ciyadh Wells, and James Young.
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, the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, the Cheswatyr Foundation, and Fifth House Ensemble. Support for the Organization Fund is 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’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, the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, the Cheswatyr Foundation, and Fifth House Ensemble. Support for the Organization Fund is 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. Find out more here.
New Music USA also acknowledges and is grateful for the support of its Endowment Donors, including the Mellon Foundation, Mary Flagler Cary Charitable Trust, Helen F. Whitaker Fund, Baisley Powell Elebash Fund, Hewlett Foundation, Fidelity Foundation, Rockefeller Brothers Fund, Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation, and Francis Goelet Charitable Lead Trusts.
Funding Transparency
Both the New Music Creator Fund and the New Music Organization Fund are made possible by the generous funders who either donated to our 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 50% of our funds going to New York-based artists or organizations. Please find more detailed breakdown info in our FAQs.