Deadline: 23-Jul-2026
The Traditional Arts Project Award Grant supports high-quality once-off artistic projects led by traditional arts in the Republic of Ireland. The award helps professional artists, groups, and organisations develop and deliver creative projects in music, singing, dancing, storytelling, and oral artforms.
Funding is available across two strands: up to €20,000 under Strand 1 for small and medium-scale projects, and up to €80,000 under Strand 2 for larger-scale projects. Applicants must demonstrate professional practice, artistic quality, creativity, and clear benefit to the traditional arts community.
What is the Traditional Arts Project Award Grant?
The Traditional Arts Project Award Grant is a funding opportunity for once-off artistic projects rooted in traditional arts.
The award supports professional artists and organisations to create, develop, and deliver high-quality projects that contribute to traditional arts practice and communities.
Projects may focus fully on traditional arts or include collaboration with other artforms where traditional arts remain central to the project.
Main Purpose of the Award
The main purpose of the award is to support ambitious and high-quality creative projects in traditional arts.
The award aims to:
- Support once-off traditional arts projects
- Enable artists to develop and deliver creative work
- Strengthen artistic quality in traditional arts
- Encourage creativity and innovation
- Support collaboration where relevant
- Benefit the traditional arts community
- Provide opportunities for professional traditional artists
- Support projects across different scales
Funding Strands
The award is structured into two funding strands.
Each strand supports a different project scale.
Strand 1: Small and Medium-Scale Projects
Strand 1 supports small and medium-scale traditional arts projects.
Funding is available up to €20,000.
This strand may support projects that are focused, achievable, and clearly beneficial to the traditional arts community.
Strand 2: Larger-Scale Projects
Strand 2 supports larger-scale traditional arts projects.
Funding is available up to €80,000.
This strand is suitable for more ambitious projects requiring greater resources, wider collaboration, larger delivery structures, or broader public or sectoral impact.
Funding Amount
Funding is available as follows:
- Strand 1: up to €20,000
- Strand 2: up to €80,000
Applicants should choose the strand that best matches the scale, ambition, cost, and delivery needs of their project.
Who is Eligible?
The award is open to applicants based in the Republic of Ireland.
Eligible applicants may include:
- Individual professional artists
- Groups of individuals working collaboratively
- Organisations working in traditional arts
Groups must apply through a lead applicant.
Applicants must demonstrate a professional track record in traditional arts.
Professional Artist Requirement
Applicants must be professional artists working in traditional arts.
A professional artist is someone who:
- Actively pursues a career in an artform
- Considers their arts practice their main profession or career
- May or may not earn their main income from arts practice
- Is recognised by peers as a professional practising artist
Applicants must be able to demonstrate a clear track record in traditional arts practice.
Traditional Arts Covered
The award supports projects led by traditional arts.
Traditional arts may include:
- Music
- Singing
- Dancing
- Storytelling
- Oral artforms
- Agallamh beirte
- Lúibíní
Projects may also involve collaboration with other artforms, provided the project remains led by traditional arts.
What Types of Projects Are Supported?
The award supports high-quality once-off creative projects.
Supported projects may include:
- Traditional music projects
- Singing projects
- Dance projects
- Storytelling projects
- Oral artform projects
- Collaborative traditional arts projects
- New creative works rooted in tradition
- Performance-based projects
- Community or sector-facing artistic projects
- Larger-scale traditional arts productions
Key Focus Areas
The award focuses on artistic quality, creativity, and benefit to the traditional arts community.
Key focus areas include:
- Traditional arts
- Once-off artistic projects
- Music
- Singing
- Dancing
- Storytelling
- Oral artforms
- Artistic quality
- Creative development
- Professional practice
- Traditional arts community benefit
- Collaboration with other artforms
Key Concepts Explained
Traditional Arts
Traditional arts include artistic practices rooted in cultural, oral, musical, dance, storytelling, and community traditions.
Once-Off Project
A once-off project is a specific, time-limited artistic activity with a defined purpose, budget, timeline, and outcome.
Professional Artist
A professional artist is someone actively pursuing an arts career, recognised by peers, and committed to their artistic practice as a main profession or career.
Agallamh Beirte
Agallamh beirte is a traditional Irish oral artform involving a two-person dialogue or exchange, often performed with wit, rhythm, and cultural expression.
Lúibíní
Lúibíní are traditional Irish oral or sung compositions often performed in a lively, rhythmic, and communal style.
Ineligible Applicants
Applications are not accepted from certain individuals and organisations.
Ineligible applicants include:
- Organisations currently funded under Strategic Funding
- Organisations currently funded under Arts Centre Partnership Funding
- Organisations currently funded under Partnership Funding
- Individuals or organisations in receipt of Arts Grant Funding 2027
- Organisations without a professional track record
- Individuals without a demonstrable track record in traditional arts
- Members of the Council of National Cultural Institutions directly funded by the Department of Culture, Communications and Sport
Organisations funded under Strategic Funding, Arts Centre Partnership Funding, or Partnership Funding may participate as partners, but they cannot apply directly.
How the Award Works
Applicants should apply under the strand that best fits their project scale.
The proposed project must be once-off, artistically strong, and led by traditional arts.
Applications should clearly explain the artistic idea, traditional arts focus, professional track record, project plan, collaborators, budget, and expected benefit to the traditional arts community.
How to Apply
Applicants should prepare a proposal that demonstrates artistic quality, professional practice, project feasibility, and benefit to traditional arts.
Suggested Application Steps
- Confirm that the applicant is based in the Republic of Ireland.
- Confirm that the project is led by traditional arts.
- Confirm that the applicant has a professional track record in traditional arts.
- Choose the correct funding strand.
- Define the project idea, objectives, and artistic vision.
- Identify collaborators or partners where relevant.
- Explain how the project will benefit the traditional arts community.
- Prepare a realistic budget within the relevant strand limit.
- Provide evidence of professional practice and peer recognition.
- Check that the applicant is not excluded under the ineligible categories.
- Submit the application according to the official award requirements.
Assessment Considerations
Applications should show artistic quality, creativity, and practical delivery capacity.
Assessment may consider:
- Quality of the artistic idea
- Strength of traditional arts focus
- Creativity and ambition
- Professional track record
- Benefit to the traditional arts community
- Suitability of the chosen strand
- Project feasibility
- Strength of collaborators or partners
- Budget clarity
- Capacity to deliver the project successfully
Expected Results
Funded projects should contribute to traditional arts practice and communities in Ireland.
Expected results may include:
- High-quality once-off artistic projects
- New creative work rooted in traditional arts
- Stronger visibility for traditional artists
- Opportunities for collaboration
- Development of professional practice
- Engagement with traditional arts communities
- Creative exploration of music, song, dance, storytelling, or oral forms
- Larger-scale artistic outcomes where relevant
Why It Matters
Traditional arts are an important part of cultural expression, community identity, and artistic life in Ireland.
The Traditional Arts Project Award Grant helps professional artists and organisations develop meaningful creative work that honours, extends, and reimagines traditional practices.
By supporting projects of different scales, the award enables both focused artistic initiatives and larger ambitious productions that benefit the wider traditional arts community.
Tips for Strong Applications
A strong application should clearly show the artistic value and traditional arts significance of the project.
Applicants should focus on:
- Clear traditional arts leadership
- Strong professional track record
- High artistic quality
- Creative and well-developed project idea
- Clear benefit to the traditional arts community
- Realistic timeline and budget
- Appropriate funding strand
- Strong collaborators where relevant
- Evidence of feasibility
- Clear once-off project structure
Applicants should avoid presenting general arts projects that do not clearly place traditional arts at the centre.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Applicants should carefully check eligibility, exclusions, and strand limits before applying.
Common mistakes include:
- Applying without a professional traditional arts track record
- Choosing the wrong funding strand
- Submitting a project not clearly led by traditional arts
- Applying while receiving Arts Grant Funding 2027
- Applying as an organisation currently funded under excluded schemes
- Not showing clear benefit to the traditional arts community
- Providing a weak artistic rationale
- Submitting an unclear project plan
- Requesting funding above the strand limit
- Not identifying a lead applicant for collaborative group applications
FAQ
What is the Traditional Arts Project Award Grant?
It is a grant that supports high-quality once-off artistic projects led by traditional arts in the Republic of Ireland.
Who can apply?
Individuals, groups of individuals working collaboratively, and organisations based in the Republic of Ireland may apply if they meet the professional practice requirements.
What does Strand 1 support?
Strand 1 supports small and medium-scale traditional arts projects, with funding available up to €20,000.
What does Strand 2 support?
Strand 2 supports larger-scale traditional arts projects, with funding available up to €80,000.
What artforms are included?
Supported traditional arts include music, singing, dancing, storytelling, and oral artforms such as agallamh beirte and lúibíní.
Can projects collaborate with other artforms?
Yes. Collaboration with other artforms is possible, provided the project is led by traditional arts.
Who is not eligible to apply?
Ineligible applicants include organisations currently funded under Strategic Funding, Arts Centre Partnership Funding, or Partnership Funding, individuals or organisations receiving Arts Grant Funding 2027, applicants without a professional track record, and members of the Council of National Cultural Institutions directly funded by the Department of Culture, Communications and Sport.
Conclusion
The Traditional Arts Project Award Grant supports professional artists, groups, and organisations in developing and delivering high-quality once-off projects rooted in traditional arts. With funding of up to €20,000 under Strand 1 and up to €80,000 under Strand 2, the award supports creative work in music, singing, dancing, storytelling, and oral artforms.
Strong applications will demonstrate a clear traditional arts focus, professional practice, artistic quality, creativity, realistic planning, and meaningful benefit to the traditional arts community.
For more information, visit The Arts Council.