Music Organizations: Operating Grants Program

Deadline: 09-Mar-23

The Ontario Arts Council (OAC) is seeking applications for the Operating Grants Program to support the Music Organizations.

Purpose

The program supports the ongoing operations of not-for-profit, opera companies, orchestras, choral organizations and other music-mandated producers and presenters in Ontario. They include:
- opera companies
- orchestras (also includes semi-professional, nationally designated youth training)
- choral organizations (also includes semi-professional, community choirs, training organizations)
- music-mandated producers and presenters (e.g. series, festivals, contemporary music organizations)
Note: For project support for live music development and presentation (including projects for choirs, orchestras, presenters of single concerts and concert series, festivals, opera producers and individual musicians), see the Music Production and Presentation Projects program.

Priorities

activities that engage Ontario and Canadian professional musicians and support the work of Ontario and Canadian composers and songwriters, unless restricted by genre (e.g. early music ensemble)
activities that support public access to a broad range of music forms and the development of audiences
activities that, in addition to the above, may contribute to arts education, public participation and community involvement in the arts in Ontario
activities that advance the development of music in Ontario

Funding Information

The type of financial statement we require depends on the amount of your grant, as follows:

Grants over $50,000: audited financial statements required
Grants over $25,000: review engagement (or, if available, audited financial statements)
Grants of $25,000 and under: unaudited financial statements (or, if available, audited financial statements or review engagement)

Eligibility Criteria

To apply for operating support your organization must:
- be an Ontario not-for-profit corporation or a federal not-for-profit corporation with the head office in Ontario
- be led by professional personnel
- have completed at least two years of sustained, regular, ongoing programming in its community as of the application date.
- have a range of revenue sources such as private and government
- be governed by a board of directors or an advisory body solely responsible for the organization
- have community support and involvement demonstrated through one or more of the following: membership, fundraising and volunteer involvement
- have proof of sound financial management
- be registered through the Canadian Arts Database / Données sur les arts au Canada (CADAC)
- submit verification of financial results of the last completed fiscal year.
Organizations must have:
- at least $75,000 in total revenue for the last fiscal year, and in projected revenue for the current and requested years (for applicants not currently receiving funding from this program), with the following exception:
  - opera companies must have at least $100,000 in total revenue for the last fiscal year, and in projected revenues for the current and requested years
  - orchestras must have at least $200,000 in total revenues for the last fiscal year, and in projected revenue for the current and requested years
- at least two years of sustained, regular, ongoing programming, as of the application date. If your organization does not meet this requirement, consider applying for project funding
- a range of revenue sources
- an active board of directors/governing body
Music organizations must:
- actively support Canadian music by hiring professional Ontarian and Canadian performers, and by performing the music of professional Canadian composers/songwriters (unless restricted by mandate: e.g., Baroque orchestra)
- produce and/or present curated music programming that reflects a defined artistic mandate
Orchestras must:
- be professional, semi-professional or a nationally designated orchestral training organization
- have completed at least two full seasons by the application date, with a minimum of two self-presented concerts with a different repertoire in each season
- provide evidence of professional artistic leadership (conductors, core players, etc.) in the case of semi-professional orchestras
Choral organizations must:
- provide evidence of professional artistic leadership (conductors, rehearsal pianists section leads, etc.) in the case of choral organizations that include some amateur singers
Opera companies must:
- have production of professional opera as the core mandate
- produce a minimum of two operas per season in the case of companies that produce standard repertoire
- undertake workshops each season of operas being developed for future productions in the case companies dedicated to the development and production of new work
Music festivals must:
- have core programming that occurs within a concentrated time period
If you do not provide the type of financial statement required, OAC will reduce your grant request or awarded grant amount to an eligible level.
Applicants must meet all eligibility criteria at the time they submit the application.
Annual and multi-year funding
- OAC operating grant programs provide annual and multi-year funding. Applicants to both funding types streams are assessed by an advisory panel in year one of a three-year funding cycle. In years 2 and 3, applications for multi-year funding are reviewed by the program officer. Applications for annual operating grants are assessed each year by an advisory panel.
- Organizations in any of the following situations will be invited to apply for annual funding:
  - they are new applicants
  - they have not received OAC operating funding for the past two consecutive years
  - they were assessed in group D during their last peer assessment
  - they have received serious assessment concerns within the last three years
  - they are in a period of substantial flux
- Organizations that do not fall into any of the above situations will be invited to apply for multi-year funding, provided they also:
  - have a long-term plan
  - have a balanced budget
Program Transfers
- OAC may decide that an organization should be transferred to a different operating program.
- OAC will consider any developments or changes to an organization’s mandate and programming to determine if a transfer is appropriate.
- Organizations may request a transfer to a different operating program. Such transfer requests should be made more than two months before the deadline of both your current and proposed programs.
- Generally, OAC will transfer an organization to a different program when that program is in year 1 of the funding cycle of the new program.
New applicants
- Organizations are considered “new applicants” if they are:
  - first-time applicants to an OAC operating program
  - returning arts organizations that did not receive an operating grant in the previous year
- Normally, new applicants may only apply in the first year of a program’s multi-year cycle. This year is an exception: all operating programs will be open to new applicants in 2022 (apart from the Major Organizations: Operating program). The next year in which new applicants can apply is also indicated on the program web page. New applicants are eligible to apply for an annual grant only.

Ineligible

non-arts organizations
municipalities, colleges and/or universities
presenting facilities
organizations or programming that are attached to, or operate directly as part of, religious institutions
organizations that do not have music programming as their primary mandate
entertainment/variety presenters, trade shows, and conferences
music competitions
youth orchestras
organizations that operate under the umbrella of a parent organization that is currently funded through another OAC operating program

For more information, visit OAC.