Meet the Composer and NEST – June 1 Deadline
In cooperation with Meet the Composer, Inc., NEFA offers grants to nonprofit organizations in New England to provide meaningful interaction between composers and audiences, in conjunction with performances of the composer’s work. Eligible projects encompass the full range of music composition, including jazz, European classical, and songwriting.
Meet the Composer grantees are encouraged to plan activities for composers that will ensure informative contact with audiences. These include workshops, lectures, open rehearsals, and appearances on local media broadcasts.
Program Goals
Meet the Composer seeks to increase opportunities for composers in New England by fostering the creation, performance, dissemination, and appreciation of their music, and to provide meaningful interactions and experiences between composers, their music, and the citizens of New England.
Funders: Generous funding for Meet the Composer/New England is provided by Meet the Composer, Inc., with support from the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP), the Virgil Thomson Fund, and additional support from the six New England state arts agencies and the National Endowment for the Arts.
Contact Info: For more information about Meet the Composer, e-mail regionaltouring@nefa.org or call NEFA at 617.951.0010
To apply for the Meet the Composer grant, visit the Meet the Composer Application Guidelines and Instructions page.
Also due June 1 is the next quarterly application for NEST.
NEST is a cooperative program with the state arts agencies of New England, and provides support to nonprofits for performances, readings, and related community activities by artists on the New England States Touring list, or “roster.” Performing and literary artists on the NEST roster represent a range of disciplines, such as music, dance, opera/musical theater, poetry, writing, interdisciplinary work and the folk arts.
Nonprofit presenters* may choose from over 900 New England writers, performing artists, and ensembles listed on the NEST roster and apply for NEST funding to help support an engagement by one of these artists, as long as that artist is based outside of the presenter’s home state. The NEST roster is a compilation of the touring artist rosters from the state arts agencies of New England (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont).
*A “presenter” may be any nonprofit organization that is interested in bringing cultural arts programming to its community. Libraries, schools, theatres, service agencies, & arts organizations are all examples of eligible nonprofits that can apply for NEST funding as presenters.
Program Goals
NEST strives to give the citizens of New England access to excellence and diversity in the live performing arts. The program also:
• provides artists with the opportunity to enrich their work through contact with a variety of communities
• makes artists available to underserved communities
• assists artists and companies in building audiences; thereby increasing demand for their work
Grant Guidelines
NEST grants are available in amounts up to 50% of the artists’ fees. The total fee may include travel, accommodations and per diem. Minimum grants are $100 for engagements of individual artists and $200 for companies or ensembles.
The NEST Roster
How to get a copy
The roster is available in three formats:
• A pdf file*: Click here to download.
(* You can search this document in Adobe Acrobat Reader by clicking “edit” then “find” then typing in key words.)
• In hard copy for a $15 processing fee. Click here for an order form, or call NEFA at 617.951.0010.
• Online at each of the six New England state arts agencies’ websites (each state has their own touring roster online individually, and the NEST roster is made up of all of these combined)
Click here for direct link to the Rhode Island Roster.
How to join the Roster: Performing and literary artists from New England who are interested in
joining the roster should contact their state arts agency see the links above for individual state roster info. Each state has its own process for updating and adding artists to its roster.
Once an artist joins the touring roster in her home state, she is automatically added to the larger New England roster. It’s beneficial for roster artists to let presenters know that they are a “NEST Roster Artist”,
and mention the roster in promotional materials, as potential presenters may be more likely to book an artist knowing that funding assistance for the artist’s fee is available from the NEST program.
Contact Info:
For more information about NEST, e-mail regionaltouring@nefa.org or call NEFA at 617.951.0010.
Each quarterly deadline date represents the final day that applications will be accepted for that given quarter. Organizations are encouraged to submit their applications as early as possible.
To apply for the NEST grant, visit the NEST Application Guidelines and Instructions page.
