Chamber Music America Awards Grants of $1.3 Million to Small Ensembles

The American non-profit organization will support these groups through the difficulties of the pandemic and facilitate the creation of new music

The grants, which total $1,290,450, have been broken down into six programs. Each program is funded by a different organization, so as to have a broad reach across a range of musical styles. Three of the subcategories support endeavors in Western Art Music, while the other three are aimed at jazz.

The six programs include New Jazz Works, Performance Plus, Presenter Consortium for Jazz, Classical Commissioning, Ensemble Forward, and Digital Residency.

The full list of recipients can be found here.

Through the Classical Commissioning program, twelve ensembles have been awarded $209,900 for the commissioning of new works by American composers. This portion of the grant is funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, which is the largest supporter of the arts and humanities in the United States.

$103,550 from the Chamber Music America Residency Endowment Fund will support a new Digital Residency Program, which will help musicians to adapt to and upskill in the virtual environment. Since the pandemic began, musicians have been increasingly reliant on the virtual space to maintain audience engagement with their work. This portion of the grant will facilitate community-based virtual residencies that introduce new audiences to Western art music, while encouraging existing audiences to engage with such music in a new capacity.

Additionally, the New York Community Trust has contributed $87,200 for the Ensemble Forward program, which supports chamber ensembles made up of young players who are based in New York. These ensembles will receive coaching from established artists, as well as advice on how to build their careers and a range of networking opportunities.

"This has been such an extraordinary year for the small ensemble music field,” said Margaret M. Lioi, the CEO of Chamber Music America. "We are so grateful to our funders for helping us maintain our grant programs during this incredibly difficult time, and applaud the creativity, fortitude, and resilience of our musicians and presenters. Despite the unprecedented challenges they faced, they were unwavering in their commitment to the music and their audiences. CMA is privileged to have helped their projects come to fruition."