Project Support Program
Project Support Program
2026 Preliminary Round Guidelines
About the Program
The Project Support Program provides funding for special projects and initiatives of exceptional importance to contemporary American concert music, jazz, or both. Restricted grants through this program are available for performing ensembles, presenters, music service organizations, and record companies for discrete, standalone activities that encourage and improve public knowledge and appreciation of contemporary concert music and contemporary jazz by American composers.
Quick Links
- Eligibility
- Funding Provisions
- How to Apply
- The Application
- Review Procedures
- Application Cycle & Deadlines
- Contact & FAQs
Eligibility
Who is eligible?
Eligible applicants must meet the following requirements at the time of application:
- A minimum of 2 years of programming history (or, for record companies, release history)
- 501(c)(3) non-profit status (or foreign equivalent), or fiscal sponsorship from an organization with 501(c)(3) non-profit status
- For recording projects only: Record companies are eligible to apply with or without non-profit status so long as they have a Federal Tax ID (EIN).
- Operations conducted at a professional level
Eligible types of organizations:
- Ballet/dance
- Chamber Ensemble
- Chamber Orchestra
- Choral or Vocal
- Festival
- Jazz Ensemble
- Library/archive
- Music service organization
- Opera
- Orchestra
- Presenter
- Professional Development
- Radio/TV
- Record company
What is eligible?
For each cycle, activity must occur between September of the current year and August of the following year to be considered eligible for support. The Support Year for the current cycle is September 1, 2026 to August 31, 2027.
Eligible activity must include or support music that meets all of the following criteria:
- Contemporary: For the Fund’s purposes, music composed within the last 40 years is considered contemporary. For jazz submissions, only original works or substantially original, non-derivative arrangements composed within the last 40 years are considered contemporary.
- American: Music by composers with U.S. citizenship, wherever they may live, as well as non-citizen composers who have lived and worked in the U.S. and/or its territories for a significant period of time.
- Concert Music or Jazz: For the Fund’s purposes, concert music includes opera, orchestral and chamber music for instrumental and/or vocal ensembles, as well as experimental genres and similar formats. For jazz submissions, the music must include improvisation; applications featuring through-composed works without improvisation will be evaluated with concert music applications if otherwise eligible.
Eligible types of projects include:
- Live music performances
- Recordings and/or live streams
- Dance or theater performances with live music
- Sound installations
- Professional development programs
- Artist-in-residence programs
- Radio/podcast programs
- Artist support programs
- Journalism/criticism
- Library/archive programs
What is not eligible?
The following types of activity are not considered eligible for support through this program:
- Programming outside of contemporary American concert music or contemporary American jazz, including commercial, pops, folk, Broadway-style musical theater, sacred, holiday, and traditional concert band music.
- Music publishing projects
- Student ensembles
- Volunteer, community, and amateur ensembles
- K-12 or collegiate educational activity
- Composer commissioning fees or honoraria
- Competitions or awards
- Artist residencies/retreats
- Endowment funds
- Capital projects
- Capacity building
If your project includes activity that doesn’t strictly meet eligibility requirements, but you feel would contribute greatly to the public knowledge and appreciation of contemporary American concert music, jazz, or both, please contact our Grants Team for advice.
Funding Provisions
In general, grants will range between $2,000 and $20,000, although larger grants may be awarded to larger organizations with an extraordinary commitment to contemporary American concert music, jazz, or both. The Fund does not award grants larger than the amount requested by the applicant.
Applicants should be aware that support in one year does not imply continuation of that support in subsequent years.
How to Apply
For new applicants:
You will need to submit an account request. Staff will assess your organization’s eligibility and only organizations that are considered eligible will receive account approval. Staff may reach out via email with eligibility questions. Please allow up to 5 business days for your account status to be determined.
The last day to submit an account request for the current cycle will be Friday, July 24, 2026.
Once you have an account, you will need to set up an organization profile. More information about organization profile set-up and management can be found here.
Organization profiles are limited to one per organization. If you do not know whether your organization already has a profile, or know that your organization has applied for funding in the past but do not have access to login credentials, please contact our Grants Team.
For returning applicants:
Log in to your user account here. If you are a member of multiple organizations, select the organization for which you wish to begin an application. Then click on the "Apply Now" button at the top of this page to begin the online application process.
For all applicants:
All applicants must provide the following information on their organization profiles prior to the preliminary round deadline. This information will be included and reviewed as part of your application.
- Organization Name
- CEO (Chief Executive Officer (or equivalent) of Organization)
- Date Founded
- Address
- Website & social media links
- Financial information*
- For organizations with 501(c)(3) non-profit status, upload a copy of the IRS determination letter confirming tax exempt status under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.
- For non-profit organizations not based in the United States, upload a letter from a lawyer in the home jurisdiction of the organization confirming its equivalence to a publicly funded U.S. 501(c)(3) organization in lieu of an IRS determination letter.
- For organizations applying with a fiscal sponsor, select your fiscal sponsor from the drop-down list and upload proof of fiscal sponsorship in the form of a letter or signed sponsorship agreement. If you do not see your fiscal sponsor in the drop-down list, please contact our Grants Team.
*Please note that payment and banking information is not required in advance of the application deadline and will never be visible as part of your application.
The Application
Please note: It is not necessary to complete the application in one session. The system will periodically save a draft of your application, however, please save your work often using the save button to avoid potential loss of progress.
The following is a description of the application. Fields are presented in the order in which they appear in the application form with instructions and advice for each item.
Type of organization:
Select the organization type that best describes your organization from the dropdown list. The options are as follows:
- Ballet/dance
- Chamber Ensemble
- Chamber Orchestra
- Choral or Vocal
- Festival
- Jazz Ensemble
- Library/archive
- Music service organization
- Opera
- Orchestra
- Presenter
- Professional Development
- Radio/TV
- Record company
Requested amount
Enter the amount of funding requested for the project, in US Dollars. In general, the Fund does not recommend that organizations ask for more than 30% of their project expenses.
Total cost of project
Enter the total expenses for the project, in US Dollars.
Number of concerts/primary activities projected for support period
Enter the number of concerts or other primary activity projected for the support period and identify the type of activity. For example:
- 24 concerts
- 40 albums
- 20 workshops
- 3 conferences
Please only provide information related to your organization’s primary activity. Please do not combine activities to achieve a higher number or list multiple types of activity in this field.
Application checkboxes
Check all statements that apply to your application.
- The proposed project includes live music
- The proposed project is a commercial recording
- The proposed activity includes staged or other visual elements
- The majority of proposed project activities include contemporary jazz
- The proposed project includes touring
- The proposed project includes work with composers that are new to the applicant
- The proposed project includes premieres
Narrative summary
Provide a general description of your project and any other significant points to make your case for support. (2,000 characters maximum)
- Please be specific, but succinct.
- If your organization does not have a strong history of contemporary music programming, please address how this project fits with your organization’s mission and other programming.
- Bullet points or similar formatting are highly recommended.
Support season activity highlights
List your most compelling activity highlights for the upcoming season. (1,500 characters maximum)
- Please include titles of works, composers, and location(s) related to the listed performances and/or programmatic activity, as applicable.
- As much as possible, please prioritize activity that involves contemporary American concert music and/or jazz.
- Bullet points or similar formatting are highly recommended.
Previous two season highlights
List your most compelling activity highlights from the two seasons prior to the support season. In most cases, this would be your current and previous seasons. (1,500 characters maximum)
- Please include titles of works, composers, location(s), and audience data related to the listed performances and/or programmatic activity, as applicable.
- As much as possible, please prioritize activity that involves contemporary American concert music and/or jazz.
- Bullet points or similar formatting are highly recommended.
Key artistic personnel, leadership, and/or partners
List up to 10 of your organization’s most important artistic leaders, personnel, and/or partners as related to the proposed project. (1,500 characters maximum)
- Artistic personnel can be ensemble members and/or key administrative or artistic directors in the case of presenting organizations.
- Please provide links to websites and/or bios as available.
- Bullet points or similar formatting are highly recommended.
Plans and timetable
Provide a detailed timeline for your project, including rehearsals, production, marketing/promotion, live programming dates, and/or distribution, as applicable. (1,500 characters maximum)
- Bullet points or similar formatting are highly recommended.
IMPORTANT: You are responsible for complying with all legal and contractual requirements that may apply to the creation of your materials. The Copland Fund hereby disclaims all legal responsibility in connection with your submissions. In case of questions, consult your legal advisor.
Review Procedures
Applications are reviewed by panels of independent peers from the contemporary American music field. Panelists are engaged to review applications that align with their area of expertise. In order to ensure a fair review process, the Fund does not release the names of current or past panelists.
The following criteria will be applied in evaluating preliminary round proposals:
- Quality of the repertoire and creativity of the project programming
- Artistic quality of personnel, partners, and leadership and anticipated level of execution of the project
- Feasibility of the project
- Geographic location of applicant organization and/or project reach
- Impact and audience engagement
Application Cycle & Deadlines
All applicants interested in applying for support through the Project Support Program must submit a preliminary application. Full applications in the Main Round will only be accepted from invited applicants; no other applications will be considered.
- Preliminary Round application deadline: July 30, 2026
- Preliminary Round decision deadline: October 1, 2026
- Main Round application deadline: November 12, 2026
All deadlines are at 11:59 pm Eastern Time on the given date.
Contact & FAQs
For questions about this program, we encourage applicants to first consult our Frequently Asked Questions page. If a question is not answered there, please contact our Grants Team using our contact form or one of the methods below.
Phone: 212-461-6956 (Monday-Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. ET)
E-mail: onlinegrants@coplandfund.org
Updated: May 14, 2026
Eligibility FAQs
Can I apply to the Fund as an individual?
No, individuals are not eligible to apply for support through the Fund’s programs, with or without a fiscal sponsor. Individual artists are encouraged to work with the organization(s) involved with their project which may be eligible to submit an application for support for that project.
Individuals may find other grant opportunities on Candid.
Does the Fund provide funding for educational institutions or initiatives?
Activities involving school-age students, student ensembles, or credit-bearing university activities are not eligible for support through any of the Fund's programs. Educational institutions may apply for support as presenters for activities such as faculty recital series and concert presentations featuring professional musicians.
Youth choruses that perform contemporary concert music specifically composed for children’s voices may be considered. Please contact our Grants Team for more information.
Organizations may also apply for support for professional development and training activities that meet all other eligibility criteria.
Does the Fund make grants for retroactive support?
The General Support and Project Support Programs provide funding for activity that occurs between September of the current year through August of the next year. The timing of the activity in relation to application deadlines or award announcements is not considered so long as it takes place during the stated support year window.
Does the Fund give grants to arts organizations outside New York City?
Yes! Non-profit and fiscally sponsored organizations with eligible activity throughout the United States and internationally are welcome to apply for support. For examples of the Fund's geographic breadth of support, please see our past grants page.
A university is serving as our fiscal sponsor, and they want us to include indirect costs in our budget. May we do so?
The Copland Fund will not fund indirect costs on a project, so it is advised that you do not include them in the budget.
Can I apply to the Fund for a commission, or as part of a consortium project?
The Fund does not provide grants for commissioning fees. In the case of consortium projects, contact our Grants Team with your specific details.
What is the Fund’s definition of a ‘performing ensemble’?
Performing groups such as orchestras, opera companies and chamber music groups with a consistent core membership, as well as ‘flexible’ ensembles with consistent artistic leadership and identity, are considered performing ensembles. Dance companies are also eligible to apply for projects that involve live performances of contemporary American music. Performing ensembles may seek support from the Performance Program.
Are music education projects eligible for funding?
Education projects focused on pre-college age children are generally not eligible. The Fund will consider professional level performance projects with an education component, as well as training programs for professional and emerging professional-level musicians or composers, provided that they have a focus on contemporary American music.
What is the Fund's definition of "concert music?"
For the Fund’s purposes, concert music includes opera, orchestral and chamber music for instrumental and/or vocal ensembles, as well as experimental genres and similar formats.
What is the Fund’s definition of a ‘presenter’?
Music festivals, music venues, and any other organization that organizes and presents live musical performances by a variety of performing groups can be considered a “presenting organization”. Presenters may seek support from the Performance Program.
Our organization does not have non-profit status. Can we apply?
Yes, provided you obtain fiscal sponsorship from a non-profit organization with 501(c)(3) status. Be sure to review program guidelines and application instructions to submit proper documentation.
How does the Fund define professional development?
For the purposes of our grant programs, professional development activity is a program or initiative for young, emerging, or other professional musicians, including composers. These types of activities may include mentorship or training, performance opportunities, or other activities that benefit the professional attendee(s) in gaining experience or otherwise building their career(s).
Please note that the Fund does not provide support for individuals or members of an organization to attend professional development programs or activities.
What is the Fund’s definition of a ‘music service organization’?
Organizations that support composers and performers through activities such as grants, residencies or training programs, or aid in the preservation and dissemination of contemporary American music, are considered music service organizations. Music service organizations may seek support from the Supplemental Program.
Will the Copland Fund consider funding for holiday or pops concerts?
Holiday and pops programming is not eligible for support, however, such programming will not have an adverse effect on your application if there is sufficient eligible contemporary concert music activity throughout your season.
Should I apply to the General Support or Project Support Program?
If your organization has a history of substantial commitment to contemporary American concert music or jazz and plans to continue that commitment, we recommend applying for support through the General Support Program.
If your organization does not typically engage in substantial activity involving or supporting contemporary American music but has an upcoming program or project featuring eligible activity, we recommend applying for support through the Project Support Program.
Does the Fund support jazz?
Yes, the Fund supports contemporary American jazz. For jazz submissions, the music must contain improvisation and only original works or substantially original, non-derivative arrangements composed within the last 40 years are considered contemporary.
Are youth choruses eligible for support?
Projects involving youth choruses performing at an exceptionally high level are eligible for support, provided that they are performing contemporary American concert music intended for young voices.
I missed the preliminary round deadline. Can I still apply?
No, not for the current grant cycle. All applicants wishing to apply for support through the General Support or Project Support Programs must first submit an application to the corresponding preliminary round. Applications for each program’s main round will only be accepted from organizations that have submitted a preliminary application and have been invited to apply to the main round. No other applications will be considered.
What is the Fund's definition of "contemporary music?"
For the Fund’s purposes, music composed within the last 40 years is considered contemporary. For jazz submissions, only original works or substantially original, non-derivative arrangements composed within the last 40 years are considered contemporary.
Does the Fund support musical theater?
No, Broadway-style musical theater projects are generally not supported. Opera and dance projects involving live performances of contemporary concert music are supported.
May I apply to more than one grant program?
No. Organizations may apply to either the General Support Program or the Project Support Program, but not both in the same year. Applicants are not required to apply to the same program every year, but may only apply to one program per year.
What is the Fund's definition of "American music?"
Music by composers with U.S. citizenship, wherever they may live, as well as non-citizen composers who have lived and worked in the U.S. and its territories for a significant period.
Does the Fund support popular music?
Popular music is not supported. The Fund’s emphasis is on contemporary American concert music and jazz.
Does the Fund provide funding for community, volunteer, or amateur ensembles?
Due to the competitive nature of the Fund’s grant programs, community, volunteer, and amateur ensembles are generally not competitive for support. For specific inquiries, please contact our Grants Team.