Minister Josepha Madigan has welcomed the announcement by Music Network of funding awards totalling €245,440 under the Music Capital Scheme 2019 divided between non-professional performing groups (€163,400) and individual talented musicians (€82,040).
This initiative, which is in existence since 2008, is managed by Music Network and funded by the Department of Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht.
The Music Capital Scheme is designed to provide support for the purchase of musical instruments, and to respond to a broad range of capital needs within the music sector in Ireland. A particular area of difficulty for musicians and ensembles is purchasing musical instruments. The cost of instrument purchase, maintenance and repair can be a costly barrier to the development of many organisations and individuals and the Music Capital Scheme aims to address this.
The capital scheme is made of two distinct awards that provide funding towards the purchase of musical instruments both to performing groups and individual musicians at a professional performing standard.
Under Award 1, €163,400 for the purchase of musical instruments was awarded to 34 not-for-profit and community music groups across a wide range of musical genres including Marching/Concert/Pipe Bands, Multi-genre, Irish Traditional, Popular Contemporary, Contemporary Classical, Pop, Choral and Samba.
Of these, 5 awards totalling €33,510 were made to the prioritised counties of Clare, Laois, Roscommon and Westmeath.
Under Award 2, €82,040 was awarded to 19 highly skilled musicians performing at professional level to assist with the purchase of instruments/equipment. Musical genres covered in these allocations were Contemporary Classical, Classical, Flamenco, Electro-acoustic, Irish Traditional and Early/Baroque.
Commenting on these allocations, Minister Madigan said:
The 2019 round of the Music Capital Scheme will again benefit so many deserving organisations and individuals, just as it has since it was initially launched just over a decade ago. I am delighted that my Department was once again in a position to financially support the scheme. I see it as one of our key funding initiatives year on year.
Lack of a decent instrument should not be an impediment to the development of a clearly gifted individual or indeed the development of numerous bands and groups who repay our faith tenfold through their engagement with their local communities.
The social and health benefits of learning to play a musical instrument have long since been established and I am thrilled that my Department plays a part in this.
Continued success to all of the grantees for many years to come.