The Scottish National Jazz Orchestra has commissioned a large-scale ensemble concert. Image credit: The SNJO.
PRS Foundation, together with Creative Scotland, Arts Council of Wales, Arts Council of Northern Ireland and Arts Council Ireland has announced the UK and Ireland-based organisations, music groups and composers that will receive funding through the co-commissioning and touring programme Beyond Borders.
The 6 exciting collaborative cross-border projects are:
Uri Agnon (UK) commissioned by Contemporary Music for All (CoMA) (England), in partnership with FOCUS Wales (Wales), sound festival (Scotland) and the University of Newcastle (England), to present three performances of “MARCH”, a flexible work for actor and community ensemble that moves between intimate monologue, mass protest and absurd game show, bringing together 25–100 local music-makers at each venue and building on the commission first created for CoMA Festival 2024.
Maya Youssef (England) commissioned by Liverpool Arab Arts Festival (England), with support from the Bagri Foundation (UK) and presenting partners across England, Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland, to create and tour “New Paths to Old Worlds”, a new work for the qanun and ensemble exploring belonging across Syrian folkloric traditions and Anglo-Celtic musical heritage, premiering and touring in England, Northern Ireland and Wales before a planned performance at Celtic Connections in Scotland.
Dave Milligan, Fergus McCreadieand Janet Aitken (Scotland) commissioned by the Scottish National Jazz Orchestra (Scotland) in collaboration with Breabach (Scotland), to create a large-scale ensemble concert programme with performances across Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
Alice Ní Ríaan (Republic of Ireland) presented by United Strings of Europe CIO (England) as part of “Send Back the Echo” the works by Jasmine Rodgman, Dame Evelyn Glennie, Jessie Montgomery and Gareth Farrto explore deafness, communication and different ways of listening through music, sign language and live signed description, touring to venues in England, Scotland and the Republic of Ireland.
David Fennessy (Republic of Ireland) commissioned by Dublin International Chamber Music Festival (Republic of Ireland), Cowbridge Music Festival (Wales) and Kings Place (England) for The Hermes Experimentto create a new 10–12-minute work for harp, clarinet, voice and double bass, premiering in Dublin in June 2027 before performances in Wales and England, with ambitions for further performances, recordings and broadcasts.
Ben Lunn (England) and four D/deaf, neurodivergent and disabled composers from Wales, Scotland and north-east England commissioned by Music House | Music Wales (Wales) in partnership with Drake Music Scotland (Scotland), working with the Zöllner-Roche Duo and mentors Ben Lunn and Sarah Lianne-Lewisto create new works for clarinet and accordion for shine | leoma | afterglowperformed in Cardiff, Gateshead and Aberdeen alongside recent music by disabled Scottish composers, and recorded through an accessible process enabling remote creative input.
Elizabeth Sills, Grants & Programmes Manager at PRS Foundation said, “Beyond Borders has made a significant and lasting impact over the last 16 years by bringing together organisations and composers, investing in ambitious new music and performances, connecting communities and audiences across the UK and Ireland. We’re delighted to welcome the 6 selected pieces being supported this year. We look forward to seeing each build on the programme’s fantastic legacy of exceptional and award winning pieces, and championing the talent and collaboration from each nation.
Our sincere thanks go to our partners Creative Scotland, Arts Council of Wales, Arts Council of Northern Ireland and the Arts Council of Ireland, whose vital support continues to make this impactful initiative possible.”
Beyond Borders was established in 2010 to support high quality co-commissions and tours, stimulating collaboration between composers, performance groups and music organisations across the four different UK countries and, since 2014, the Republic of Ireland.
Beyond Borders successes have included “Songs of Separation”, a collective of 10 English and Scottish folk musicians whose album won ‘Best Album’ at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards 2017. Martin Green’s “Flit”, combining live music and animation which reflects on first hand stories of migration, also won over audiences and critics nationwide in 2016, and was funded through Beyond Borders. Stuart Macrae’s stage work “Ghost Patrol”, co-commissioned by Music Theatre Wales and Scottish Opera won the Opera category at the Southbank Sky Arts Awards in March 2013.
You can read the full list of Beyond Borders grantees since 2010 on PRS Foundation’s website.
To find out more about the programme, please visit the PRS Foundation’s Funding page.
Background
About PRS Foundation
PRS Foundation has for 25 years invested in the future of music – funding new music and supporting careers from the grassroots up. Since 2000, PRS Foundation has given more than £50 million to over 9,000 new music initiatives. 7 out of the last 8 Mercury Prize winners had received PRS Foundation support (including recent winner Sam Fender) and the charity has supported BRITS, RPS, AIM and Ivors Award-winners.
PRS Foundation supports outstanding talent from all backgrounds, covering the whole of the UK and all genres, with grantee success stories including Little Simz, Wolf Alice, Dave, Years & Years, AJ Tracey, Anna Meredith, Yola, Glass Animals, Ezra Collective, English Teacher, Sarathy Korwar, Floating Points, Nadine Shah, The Fanatix, Imogen Heap, IDLES, Kae Tempest and Kojey Radical.
Widely respected as an inclusive, collaborative and proactive funding body, PRS Foundation supports an exceptional range of new music activity through direct grants to music creators and through support for pioneering organisations, including venues, festivals, promoters and other talent development organisations. PRS Foundation founded the Women Make Music fund, co-founded global gender equality initiative, Keychange and most recently launched the POWER UP initiative to tackle anti-Black racism in music. www.prsfoundation.com
About Creative Scotland
Creative Scotland is the public body that supports culture and creativity across all parts of Scotland, distributing funding provided by the Scottish Government and The National Lottery. Further information at creativescotland.com. Follow Creative Scotland on Facebook, LinkedInand Instagram.
About Arts Council of Wales
Arts Council of Wales is responsible for funding and developing the arts in Wales. We believe the arts are central to the life and wellbeing of the nation. We invest public fundingusing these funds to create opportunities for people to enjoy and take part in the arts.
Our principal sponsor is the Welsh Government. We also distribute funding from the National Lottery and raise additional money where we can from a variety of public and private sector sources. Working together with the Welsh Government, we are able to show how the arts are helping to meet the Government’s policy ambitions.
About Arts Council Ireland
The Arts Council of Ireland/An Chomhairle Ealaíon is the Irish government agency for developing the arts. We work in partnership with artists, arts organisations, public policy makers and others to build a central place for the arts in Irish life. The Council recognises that the arts have a central and distinctive contribution to make to our evolving society. Established in 1951, to stimulate public interest in and promote the knowledge, appreciation and practice of the arts, the Council is an autonomous body, which is under the aegis of the Department of Arts, Heritage & Gaeltacht.
For further information on the Arts Council of Ireland/The Arts Council please visit www.artscouncil.ie . Follow us @artscouncil_ie and www.facebook.com/artscouncilireland
About Arts Council of Northern Ireland
The Arts Council of Northern Ireland is the lead funding and development agency for the Arts providing support to arts projects throughout the region, through its Treasury and The National Lottery funds. Arts Council funding enables artists and arts organisations to increase access to the arts across society and deliver great art that is within everyone’s reach.
To date, National Lottery players have helped to raise £52 billion for Good Causes, with more than 670,000 projects funded since 1994. With hundreds of lottery grants in every postcode district and £32 million raised each week for Good Causes, most people will have benefited from a National Lottery-funded project.
Source: www.creativescotland.com
