The City of Sydney finds new grant to support live music

In another triumph for the City of Sydney Live Music & Performance Taskforce, the City of Sydney has amended its cultural grants program to embrace the live music sector in specified precincts.

Rather than grants supporting not-for-profit community projects, it announced that the new funding will help for-profit businesses which support live music. These cover hotels, cafes, pubs and clubs for the first time. Artists wanting to hold live events to promote their music, as well as others, are also eligible.

Venues which showcase live music will get help in stimulating their business. Those from “priority precincts” in Kings Cross are eligible for a matched grant of up to $5,000 for costs associated with acoustic audits. The City expects this will increase the amount of venues hosting live music.

For more info, see cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au.

NSW is both the largest contributor (32%) of Australia’s venue-based live music sector, estimated at $1.21 billion by Ernst & Young four years ago, and the highest level of industry employment contributing 4,794 full time equivalent positions.