INSTRUMENTAL
GRANT
PROGRAM
As part of the Ukrainian Classical Musicians Support Fund by Kyiv Contemporary Music Days, we are launching Instrumental, a program helping purchase musical instruments for classical musicians who suffered from Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
The program provides individual financial support in the amount of up to 5,200 euros.
WHY INSTRUMENTS
Analyzing the needs of the applicants of the Fund, which has been up since March 2022, we found that many musicians who were forced to relocate due to the war need help purchasing musical instruments to continue their professional activities.
Instruments are important not only for performers: they are also necessary for education and for writing music. The availability of certain instruments in Ukraine directly informs the ability of Ukrainian composers to create works for these instruments.
Therefore, the demand for musical instruments goes far beyond the personal needs of musicians — it is an infrastructural problem that Kyiv Contemporary Music Days aims to address with Instrumental.
WHAT THE PROGRAM SUPPORTS
Instrumental may cover all or part of the cost (but only if the applicant has the funds to cover the remainder) for:
purchase of a new or used musical instrument;
repair of an existing musical instrument;
restoration, maintenance, upgrade of an existing musical instrument;
purchase of accessories for an existing musical instrument.
WHAT CAN BE CONSIDERED A MUSICAL INSTRUMENT:
An actual musical instrument (violin, clarinet, triangle, etc.) and its accessories (bow, reed, stick, etc.);
Software and other types of equipment necessary for professionals in the field of classical music to continue their professional activities at the appropriate level or for professional development;
A combination of the above items (for example, a violin, bow, strings, and rosin; or a microphone, sound card, and cables), if the applicant can justify the purchase of such a combination.
WHO CAN APPLY
Professionals in the field of classical music — performers, composers, musicologists, music teachers, sound engineers, etc. — can apply for Instrumental.
Applicants must meet the following formal criteria:
Age of majority (18 years of age or older);
Citizenship / residency of Ukraine or documented experience of active professional activity in Ukraine during recent years;
Proven experience in the field of professional classical music in recent years (detailed requirements are listed in the application form);
At least two letters of recommendation from representatives of the professional musical community (individuals) or one letter from a professional musical institution (union, ensemble, NGO, school, etc.);
Documents necessary for receiving the grant (ID, Ukrainian taxpayer number).
It is possible to apply both individually and as a representative of a collective (ensemble, orchestra, educational institution, etc.) and justify the purchase of a musical instrument based on the needs of such a collective.
HOW TO APPLY
To apply for Instrumental, you must fill in an online application no later than 22 January 2024, 11:59 PM Kyiv time. Please note that you need a Google Account to submit the application. Applicants who pass the formal criteria will receive a response regarding the evaluation results in February 2024.
The applications will be evaluated by a specialized Board consisting of Ukrainian experts in the field of classical music. The selection criteria include the justification of the need for a specific instrument, active professional activity in the field of classical music, professional achievements, and the applicant’s potential for presenting Ukraine at the international level.
The selection results will be announced at the beginning of March 2024.
Contact address for inquiries and suggestions: instrumental@kcmd.eu.
APPLY NOW
Program Jury
Photo by Valentyn Kuzan
Antonii Baryshevskyi — Ukrainian pianist and professor. Winner of the First Prize in the Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Master Competition, “Premio Jaen”, and F. Busoni International Piano Competition. Guest professor at Davidsbündler Music Academy in The Hague and a regular member of the Landesakademie in Ochsenhausen (Germany).
Photo by Serhii Anishchenko
Mykhailo Chedryk — composer, Ph.D. student in music history at the National Music Academy of Ukraine (supervisor Anna Hadetska). Project coordinator at Kyiv Contemporary Music Days since 2017. Classical music program manager at the Ukrainian Institute from 2019 to 2023.
Photo by Serhii Anishchenko
Albert Saprykin — composer, co-founder and head of Kyiv Contemporary Music Days.
Photo by Elza Zherebchuk
Viktoriia Vitrenko — Ukrainian soprano, conductor, and artistic director. Alumna of the German Music Council's project for contemporary music “InSzene Vokal.” Winner of the Michiko Hirayama Prize by the Scelsi Foundation in Italy (2023). Co-founder and co-curator of the InterAKT initiative, an independent collective of interdisciplinary artists based in Stuttgart.
Photo by Stanislav Yuferov
Anna Yuferova — composer, Ph.D. in art history, associate professor, head of the department of humanities and musical innovation of the R.Glière Kyiv Municipal Academy of Music, consultant of the Digital & Cognitive Musicology Lab (DCML) at the Ecole polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Switzerland.
PROJECT TEAM
Kateryna Alymova, Dmytro Babenko, Mykhailo Chedryk, Polina Horodyska, Vasyl Lutsyk, Tetiana Melnychenko, Albert Saprykin, Mariia Tytova, Daria Vdovina, Les Vynogradov