The Journal of Music has today (4 September) announced a new Music Writer Mentoring Scheme specifically for Irish traditional music. The new initiative is supported by the Arts Council under the Deis Recording and Publication Award.

The Journal is seeking five emerging writers to participate in the scheme. Applicants do not have to have had work published previously. The most important quality is an in-depth knowledge of Irish traditional music and/or song and a passion for writing about music. The scheme is open to applicants across the island of Ireland.

Over six months, the writers will work with the magazine’s editorial team towards publication of their work. The Journal is seeking to build long-lasting relationships with writers who can contribute to the magazine on an ongoing basis in the area of traditional music and song 

Commenting on the scheme, Paul Flynn, Head of Traditional Arts with the Arts Council, said:

The Arts Council is conscious of the importance of mentoring within the traditional arts. The new Traditional Music Writer Mentoring Scheme is a great opportunity for writers to engage deeply with the Journal of Music. It is a chance to develop their writing skills and unique critical voice, and to contribute to the discourse around the music, while being supported by the Journal. This is a great time for writers to engage with traditional music across Ireland. Traditional music is a highly developed, sophisticated and complex art form, with continuity of practice over centuries. It is also a fertile ground of invention, collaboration and experimentation, which will be an immensely rewarding subject for new writers to engage with.

Toner Quinn, editor of the Journal of Music, added:

Irish traditional music is one of the most popular genres on the Journal and the extent of activity means that we need to continually expand the range of writers that we have to cover events and recordings. I am delighted that the Arts Council has provided support for this initiative through the Deis scheme and we look forward to reading the applications and discovering new writing talent.

In order to apply, please email submissions [at] journalofmusic.com for a PDF with full details. The deadline for submissions is Friday 4 October.

This is the sixth such Music Writer Mentoring Scheme that the Journal has launched. The first two took place in County Clare and Galway City, supported by Clare County Council and Galway City Council. The third scheme took place in Northern Ireland last year, supported by the Arts Council of Northern Ireland. The Journal is currently running a Music Writer Mentoring Scheme in Galway City and County, supported by the arts offices of Galway City Council and Galway County Council.

Last week, the Journal of Music published its first set of Reviewing Guidelines for writers, which have come about as a result of the mentoring scheme workshops. For more information on our mentoring schemes, please visit https://journalofmusic.com/page/music-writer-mentoring-schemes.