New Music USA

BREAKING NEWS: Congratulations to composer @dr.tyshawnsorey_official , who has just been named the winner of the 2024 Pulitzer Prize in Music for his work ‘Adagio (for Wadada Leo Smith)’! 🌟 🎶 This announcement is particularly exciting for us here at New Music USA because ‘Adagio (for Wadada Leo Smith)’ was commissioned through our Amplifying Voices program, which fosters collaboration and collective action between US orchestras and composers toward racial and gender equity in classical music through a network of co-commissions. This commission was made possible with support from the Sphinx Venture Fund (@sphinxorg ), @ascap , and the Wise Music Charitable Foundation. ‘Adagio (for Wadada Leo Smith)’ is an introspective saxophone concerto with a wide range of textures presented in a slow tempo, a beautiful homage that’s quietly intense, treasuring intimacy rather than spectacle. It was commissioned by the @lucernefestival and the @atlantasymphonyorchestra . It received its world premiere in Lucerne on August 20, 2022 and its US premiere in Atlanta on March 16, 2023. The soloist for both performances was @timothymcallistersax . Please join us in congratulating Tyshawn Sorey, as well as the finalists for this year’s Pulitzer Prize in Music, @felipe_lara23 for ‘Double Concerto for esperanza spalding, Claire Chase, and large orchestra’, and @marykouyoumdjian for ‘Paper Pianos’! #WeAreNewMusic @pulitzerprizes

HUGE congratulations to all of this year’s Grammy winners and nominees from across the new music orbit. We are beyond inspired by each and every one of you! 🎶 🎙️ 🎊 🌟 Here are some of our favorite moments from the ceremony that reflect the strength and breadth of our incredible community: @jessiemontgomerymusic (NMUSA grantee - Amplifying Voices) accepts the Grammy award for BEST CONTEMPORARY CLASSICAL COMPOSITION - “Montgomery: Rounds” @imaniwinds (NMUSA grantee - Organization Fund) accept the Grammy award for BEST CLASSICAL COMPENDIUM - “Passion for Bach and Coltrane” @teddyconducts (NMUSA Advisory Council member) accepts the Grammy award for BEST CLASSICAL INSTRUMENTAL SOLO - “The American Project” ft @yujawang.official and @louisvilleorchestra @miguelzenonmusic (NMUSA Advisory Council member and Next Jazz Legacy Bandleader) accepts the Grammy award for BEST LATIN JAZZ ALBUM - “El Arte Del Bolero Vol. 2” @roomfulofteeth (NMUSA grantee - Project Grants) accepts the Grammy award for BEST CHAMBER MUSIC/SMALL ENSEMBLE PERFORMANCE - “Rough Magic” @officialmeshell (NMUSA grantee - Project Grants and Next Jazz Legacy Creative Mentor) accepts the Grammy award for BEST ALTERNATIVE JAZZ ALBUM - “The Omnichord Real Book” We are so proud of all of you! #WeAreNewMusic 🎥: courtesy of the Recording Academy

👀 Did you know that we create playlists featuring the work of our grantees to accompany our grantee announcements? 🎶 Exploring these playlists is a fantastic way to get to know our grantees and their work! We make the playlists available on Spotify and YouTube for the following programs: New Music Creator Fund, New Music Organization Fund, and New Music Inc. Check out this selection from our 2024 Creator Fund grantee playlist on YouTube: “Vasvaseh” by Dearborn, MI-based grantee Salar Ansari (@passedoutonapersianrug ), ft. Lila, created in celebration of Nowruz, the Persian new year, in 2021. Like what you hear? Click the link in our bio to find the full YouTube playlist for Creator Fund 2024! #WeAreNewMusic

Our New Music Inc cohort in Baltimore recently gathered virtually for a learning session led by Lisa Bleich (@lbleich ) about leadership and organization tactics! 🤝 These monthly cohort learning sessions are a key facet of New Music Inc, our Baltimore, Chicago, and New York-based incubator program that emphasizes hands-on skill-building for small, artist-led organizations in addition to offering financial support. During the session, the group engaged in an interactive conversation identifying common leadership challenges and strategies toward institutional sustainability. Lisa Bleich has built her 25-year career on two core beliefs: authentic, empathetic communication creates strong communities, and with the right support, people can solve their own challenges. A native Baltimorean, Lisa's work spans mediation, community organizing, and leadership across education, community health, and public sectors. Thank you, Lisa, for sharing your expertise with our grantees! #WeAreNewMusic

We are thrilled to celebrate a major milestone for Reel Change awardee Nikhil Koparkar (@nikhilkmusic )’s funded film project, Dead Whisper (@dead_whisper_movie ), directed by Conor Soucy (@conor_sauce )! Last month, @variety published an exclusive article on @verticalentertainment ’s acquisition of the film, marking a significant step forward for their creative team. The film will debut in select theaters on July 5th, and on @appletv and @primevideo beginning to July 9th. Congrats to Nikhil for scoring the film, Conor for directing it, and everyone involved in its success! 👏 Read the Variety article: link in bio. #WeAreNewMusic 🎥: Courtesy of @conor_sauce

As we approach the culmination of another remarkable year at New Music USA, we want to extend our deepest gratitude for your invaluable support and dedication to our shared vision of a thriving, connected, and equitable ecosystem for the music of our time, in all its forms. Here are just a few highlights from the past year: Photo 1: New Music USA President & CEO @iamvanessareed with composers Allison Loggins-Hull (@alogginshull ), @kathryn_bostic , and @niaimanifranklin at the @dallassymphony ’s Women in Classical Music Symposium. Photo 2: Tania León taking her bow following the Washington, DC premiere of her Amplifying Voices work, 'Pasajes’, by the @natsymphonydc at the @kennedycenter . Photo 3: The 2023 Next Jazz Legacy cohort performing at @nycwjf at @lprnyc , New York, NY. Photo 4: Celebrating the grantees of Reel Change: Fund for Diversity in Film Scoring in Los Angeles, CA. As we prepare to close out our fiscal year on June 30, we invite you to join us once again by giving to the vibrant future of music. Your contribution to our year-end campaign will directly support our ongoing efforts to empower artists, engage audiences, and promote creativity through grantmaking, community building, and advocacy. Donate to New Music USA’s Spring Campaign: link in bio #WeAreNewMusic

2022 Portland Small Grant Fund awardee @rebelwisemusic ’s funded project has been officially released! 💿 Check out their new album, “Fully Loaded Altar” on your preferred music service: link in bio Rebelwise is an artist collective based in Portland, OR, committed to uplifting their people and communities by delivering high-caliber videos and music with intentional lyricism and life-affirming values. We love seeing funded projects come to life! If you’re one of our grantees out there seeing this, we encourage you to tag us @NewMusicUSA in your posts so that we can celebrate your achievements together! #WeAreNewMusic

Tomorrow night, 2024 Next Jazz Legacy awardee @nicolemccabe_ will perform in LA with her NJL bandleader, 6x GRAMMY-nominated pianist/composer @geraldclayton ! The pair will perform with the house band at @samfirstbar , as part of their weekly series, “Tuesday Happenings.” Tickets & more info: link in bio Have a great show tomorrow night, Nicole and Gerald! 🎷 📸: Nicole McCabe; PC: Adrian Dizon

Earlier this month, our Director of Grantmaking Programs, Scott Winship, traveled to Houston, Texas to represent New Music USA at the League of American Orchestra’s annual conference. There, we worked with our friends at @americancomposersforum , @amercomporch , and @orchleague to host constituency meetings for composers who attended the conference. Twice during the conference, constituency groups met to discuss topics like marketing, development, executive leadership, and more. One of the highlights of the conference was the outstanding keynote address given by composer @gabrielalenafrank . She celebrated composers’ role as living story tellers and encouraged orchestras to ‘level up’ in terms of how they think about programming, so that today’s composers can use the orchestral medium, a “gleaming jewel of a repository of our culture,” to gift their testimonies of today to future generations. In her words: “How strange it would be for our descendants to look back on the stories we preserve for this era and see less; as if we think our stories are not as important as Beethoven’s stories.” You can watch it through the link in our bio.

One of the extraordinary composers we’ve been honored to work with – @dr.tyshawnsorey_official – has been awarded the prestigious Pulitzer Prize in Music for his work Adagio (for Wadada Leo Smith). This mesmerizing composition showcases Sorey’s unique ability to blend tradition with innovation, paying homage to the past while boldly embracing the future. We couldn’t be more happy for him and everyone at the @atlantasymphony who brought this co-commission to life! In fact, this piece was supported in part by New Music USA's Amplifying Voices program. Amplifying Voices is designed to cultivate a more diverse and inclusive landscape within orchestral music, where voices that have long been marginalized can finally be heard and celebrated. However, to continue supporting artists like Tyshawn Sorey and to expand our reach even further, we rely on the generosity of individuals like you. Would you consider making a donation to New Music USA today? Your support can help us fund more projects like Sorey's, amplifying diverse voices and fostering innovation! Donate today: link in bio #WeAreNewMusic

Grantee event! Organization Fund awardee @dcomposedchicago and @thenapministry Presents: Freedom Lullabies On Juneteenth, join D-Composed, a Black chamber music collective, and Tricia Hersey, Founder of The Nap Ministry for Freedom Lullabies. "This rest experience celebrates the power of our Ancestor’s freedom and uplifts Black composers' works with revolutionary text readings." While the D-Composed string quartet performs the music of Black composers live, Tricia Hersey will read revolutionary text from historical figures such as WEB DuBois, Audre Lorde, bell hooks, and excerpts from her New York Times Bestselling Book, "Rest is Resistance." Attendees will collectively rest and nap amongst the lush sounds and affirmative text as we celebrate liberation and dream for the future. • Wed, Jun 19, 2024 • Gary Comer Youth Center, Chicago • Doors Open: 12:30 | Performance Begins: 1:00 PM • The approximate run-time of the performance is 45-minutes Register: link in bio

Now Accepting Applications! Reel Change: Fund for Diversity in Film Scoring 🎞️ Hear directly from 2023 awardee @andres.sotomarin about the incredible impact that support from Reel Change had on his score for the film, Colibrí! Reel Change is a five-year grants and mentorship program for composers of diverse backgrounds who have been marginalized in film composition. It supports film projects currently in production by providing additional funding, gear, and mentoring to assist composers at a pivotal moment in their careers. Supported expenses include composer compensation, musician fees, recording, sound mastering fees, studio expenses, orchestration, production equipment, and more! Details & application: link in bio Reel Change is powered by @SESAC and composer @christophebeck , sponsored by @amazonmgmstudios and administered by @newmusicusa . 🔊: Excerpt from Soto’s funded score for the film, Colibrí.