Elizabeth Maconchy

The Arts Council has issued announcements for a number of approaching funding deadlines for music and the arts. The first is the traditional Deis Recording Award, which provides funding for innovative and exceptional traditional art recordings, including music, song and storytelling. The deadline for the is Thursday, 5 April 2012.

The deadline for the Young Ensembles Award is Thursday, 26 April 2012. This award is directed at artistic groups, including music ensembles, of people aged between 12 and 23, and funds projects of challenging and ambitious art in which the members of the ensemble have a significant creative role.

Awarded only once every three years, the Elizabeth Macconchy Composition Fellowship is once again open for composers interested in furthering their advanced training to doctoral level. The award celebrates the life of Irish composer Dame Elizabeth Maconchy Le Fanu, who died in 1994, and is best known for her thirteen string quartets, as well as three operas and a number of vocal works. The award is intended to provide an opportunity to a composer to further their craft through three years doctoral study at a recognised institution. Past recipients of the Fellowship include Judith Ring and Donal Sarsfield. The deadline for applications is Thursday, 3 May 2012.

The yearly Touring and Dissemination of Work Scheme is once again open for applications for touring projects from January to June 2013. This year’s award has a particular focus on new Irish choral music, tours that will bring music into new contexts and to new audiences, as well as multi-disciplinary areas. In traditional music, the focus is on collaboration and innovation. The date for receipt of applications is Thursday, 3 May 2012.

Finally, the deadline for the Opera Production Award is Thursday, 17 May 2012. This Award is open to all opera productions, from small to main scale, to be presented in 2013, with an emphasis on a collaborative approach between artists and producers.

artscouncil.ie