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The Australian state of Victoria is set to receive a A$3.9m (£2m/€2.4m/$2.6m) funding boost to support its musicians, venues and festivals.
Recipients include music festivals and live music venues, as well as programmes that specifically support emerging regional musicians, culturally and linguistically diverse artists, event producers and young performers.
The first round of the ‘10,000 Gigs: The Victorian Gig Fund’ will support 144 venues to stage paid gigs by local artists, while Music Works grants totalling A$1m will fund 92 music projects. Music Works is a long-running programme that has supported a number of Australian artists, investing nearly A$13m in more than 800 projects over the last nine years.
The Live Music Festivals Fund and Victorian Gig Fund were announced earlier this year.
Among the 22 recipients of the Live Music Festivals Fund are Port Fairy Folk Festival, Queenscliff Music Festival and Riverboats Festival. Iconic Melbourne venues that have benefited from funding include The Tote, The Jazzlab, Mamma Chen’s and the Laundry, while regional venues such as Ballarat’s Volta and more.
The Grid Series artist development programme will head back to Geelong for a second year, supporting local early career musicians. The Push All Ages Grants will support live music venues, booking agents, artists, promoters and community organisations across Victoria to stage all-ages events.
Additionally, Multicultural Arts Victoria will present the third edition of its Newprint programme, which offers professional development opportunities for artists and creative workers such as music event producers from diverse communities.
The first rounds of the Live Music Festivals Fund and Victorian Gig Fund will be delivered by Music Victoria on behalf of the state government. The latest grants are part of a A$35.4m package delivered in the 2023-24 Victorian Budget to support the state’s live music industry.
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