Jazz Services has received the following press release from the PRS For Music Foundation, who are today launching the first ever UK-wide New Music Biennial, presenting a series of brand new music commissions to audiences across the UK in 2014.
From today organisations can apply for up to £20,000 to commission and perform new work across all genres.
The text of the press release is below, and it can be downloaded on the link following the release.
New Music Biennial puts UK composers on the world map in 2014
PRS for Music Foundation is proud to announce the launch of the first ever UK-wide New Music Biennial, presenting a series of brand new music commissions to audiences across the UK in 2014. Organisations from all over the country are invited to submit ideas for commissions that they would like to realise with a UK based composer. Beginning in January 2014, the first edition of the New Music Biennial has been developed in partnership with Creative Scotland, Arts Council England and British Council. It will support and promote up to twenty new commissions which will be performed across the length and breadth of the UK as Scotland prepares to celebrate the Commonwealth Games. These commissions will be brought together across two weekend events hosted by London’s Southbank Centre (4-6 July) and Glasgow UNESCO City of Music (2–4 August) in the summer of 2014, coinciding with the city’s hosting of the Commonwealth Games.
The call for proposals opens today. Cultural and creative organisations, festivals, ensembles, promoters and venues from England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales are invited to present ideas for new work. As this first edition of the New Music Biennial coincides with Scotland’s hosting of the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, it will have an international focus, connecting with the Commonwealth and beyond. Applicants to the New Music Biennial are invited to present their own, unique interpretation of this international dimension – whether a conceptual realisation or collaboration with partners overseas. Any musical genre will be considered. A panel of experts, chaired by Roger Wright, Controller BBC Radio 3 and Director, BBC Proms, will select the 20 works following the deadline for applications on March 4. All selected works will premiere in 2014 and be featured on BBC Radio 3.
The New Music Biennial builds on the success of New Music 20x12, a music commissioning programme that saw more than 250,000 people experience new work from leading figures in the fields of contemporary classical, jazz and folk music. Composers including Mark-Anthony Turnage, Sally Beamish, Jason Yarde, Emily Howard, Julian Joseph, Sheema Mukherjee, Howard Skempton, Anna Meredith and Graham Fitkin were commissioned for the exciting programme and were brought together with a wide array of organisations and performers in a weekend celebration at Southbank Centre which was a highlight of the Cultural Olympiad. Rambert Dance Company, actress Juliet Stephenson, the OAE, Music in Prisons and performance poet Ian McMillan are just a few of the many artists who were involved in New Music 20x12. The New Music 20x12 works were made available to people through a variety of ways - over 120 concerts, downloads from NMC Recordings (www.nmcrec.co.uk), BBC Radio 3 broadcasts and films on The Space (www.thespace.org), the new digital arts service developed by Arts Council England in partnership with the BBC.
Vanessa Reed, Executive Director of PRS for Music Foundation, said:
“We’re delighted to launch the first ever New Music Biennial which will present high-quality new music to more people than ever before. Its combination of a UK-wide commissioning programme, open call for submissions and presentation of new music across a broad range of genres, means that there’s no other initiative of this kind in the UK. We’re grateful to Creative Scotland, Arts Council England and the British Council for enabling us to present the New Music Biennial 2014 as Glasgow welcomes visitors from across the world.”
Iain Munro, Director of Creative Development at Creative Scotland commented:
“Creative Scotland is proud to be working with these partners for the 2014 New Music Biennial. Judging by the success of New Music 20x12, the commissions in 2014 will be works by talented composers from across the musical spectrum, presented by organisations who may be established or new commissioners, and performed to audiences throughout the UK by a wide array of talented musicians.”
Roger Wright, Controller BBC Radio 3 and Director BBC Proms, said:
“This is a great opportunity to showcase the vibrancy and quality of the UK’s new music scene across a number of genres and I’m thrilled that, as the home of classical music, BBC Radio 3 will broadcast each of the new works.”
Anna Meredith, composer who participated in New Music 20x12 said: “I loved being part of New Music 20x12. It gave me a platform to try something new and bold for my own commission. I'd love to see what new music and ideas can be developed through the New Music Biennial and it’s a great idea to create this following the success of 20x12”
New Music Biennial is a PRS for Music Foundation initiative, in partnership with Creative Scotland, Arts Council England and the British Council. It is presented in collaboration with BBC Radio 3, NMC Recordings, Southbank Centre and Glasgow UNESCO City of Music. Additional support has been given by John S. Cohen Foundation, Jillian Barker and David Cohen, who initiated New Music 20x12, Arts Council Wales and Arts Council Northern Ireland.
More information about the New Music Biennial open call can be found on our website - www.prsformusicfoundation.com/Partnerships/Flagship-Programmes/New-Music...
For more information about New Music Biennial contact Sarah Thirtle sarah@prsformusicfoundation.com or Talia Hull talia@littledeskpr.com
- ENDS -
