Planning a music tour but unsure how to fund it? Apply to Concerts SA’s Music Mobility Fund which will select new projects to support in February
This tour support mechanism offers opportunities for professional South African musicians to undertake live music tours in South Africa as well as other Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries. The fund provides support to live music performances, collaborations and performance-based workshops across all music genres.
More than 700 musicians have successfully toured across the 9 South African provinces as well as 10 countries in southern Africa (Botswana, Malawi, Zimbabwe, Lesotho, Swaziland, Mozambique, Tanzania, Zambia, Namibia and Madagascar), playing more than 800 shows to over 50 000 people, spanning genres from folk to hip-hop, from gqom to punk-rock, from jazz to indigenous music, in formal and informal music venues and spaces. For a list of all venues that have hosted a CSA-supported show please visit our website for a comprehensive music map www.concertssa.co.za.
Following the success of the five previous rounds of funding, applications are now open for the first iteration of Music Mobility Fund disbursements this year. The deadline for submissions is Sunday 4th February, and tours should take place between early March and 22nd July 2018.
Since it was initiated in 2013, the Music Mobility Fund has received over 800 applications and supported more than 160 tours with artists like Freshlyground, Madala Kunene, Moonchild Sanelly, Samthing Soweto, DJ Lag, Bombshelter Beast, The Brother Moves On, Sibot, Taxi Violence, Sibusile Xaba, Msaki, Native Young or Make-Overs. A full list of recipients is available on our website www.concertssa.co.za
Designed to help musicians, music industry professionals and organisations build on already established domestic success and develop connections, markets and audiences for their work, the fund provides support towards travel and transportation, as well as per diems, material costs (hiring of backline and sound equipment), accommodation, artwork design, travel insurance and visas.
Among the projects that may be financed are tours and concerts, including regional, national or provincial tours, as well as performances at festivals and showcases. The Music Mobility Fund also funds artistic collaborations with merit among musicians based in different provinces of South Africa or SADC countries. Each project must be between four days and three months in duration.
Msaki says: “Having Concerts SA as a partner, collaborator and advisor through the Mobility Fund has been powerful and freeing. Every independent musician knows that hitting the road is a challenge but when you have a 10-piece band, challenge might not be the most accurate word. Being able to say ‘Don’t worry, Concerts SA will get us there’, has been the most freeing phrase and has helped us play at one of the best festivals in the world. Everyone knows that live music festivals are getting less and less money every year and when you have a band as big as mine you can seem like a luxury and a cost. Bushfire approached me as a solo act but I was able to suggest bringing my whole Golden Circle band because the support of Concerts SA gave me the power of logistical problem solving. ‘Nope, but I hear cellos and harps right now that is how I want to perform in this season.’ My creative integrity remained intact, and the result is that Bushfire has invited us back next year because they got the opportunity to experience all of us live. Other festivals have since booked after seeing us there. Another watershed, career changing opportunity, made possible by Concerts SA.”
Vocalist Spha Mdlalose says: “The Mobility Fund has given me the amazing opportunity of being able to play music in 3 different cities – what an experience! I have met some of the best musicians along the way, and have been so inspired by the ways in which the crowds were so receptive and encouraging. I am so grateful to Concerts SA for all their support, guidance and the way in which this experience has changed the course of my career and allowed me to reach and gain a bigger audience.”
Musician, composer and UCT researcher Cara Stacey, leader of the Afrikan Freedom Principle project, says: “The Concerts SA Mobility Fund allowed for a wild and creative idea to be realised. It helped myself, Mandla Mlangeni, and Matchume Zango (three musicians in three cities) to come together to create new music and then helped us to share this with transnational audiences. It is a priceless opportunity and so important in facilitating the development of creative work but also the creative minds of both musicians and audience members.”
Qhawekazi Giyose and Gugulethu Duma, who workshopped with legendary Madosini as part of their live performance project, comment: “The Mobility Fund helped us actualize a project we have been conceptualizing for four years. It opened up doors for collaborations with artists and spaces we have been wanting to work with, and also motivated us to keep momentum going in our musical endeavours.”
National Projects – South Africa
Artists from all provinces are invited to apply for national projects taking place in any South African province(s). The bulk of the activities must take place outside the province where the artist is based. The tour schedule must include one activity in either Gauteng, the Western Cape or KwaZulu-Natal. Applicants may request up to R30,000.
Regional Projects – Southern Africa
Regional projects must take place in one or more of the following SADC countries: Angola, Botswana, Democratic Republic of Congo, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe. While activities in South Africa may be included as part of regional projects, the bulk of the activities must take place outside of South Africa. Applicants will need to conduct their own research and have identified and communicated with a potential partner or host. The partner may be an individual or organisation and must be an established musician or music professional, and must be based in the SADC country (or countries) where the project will take place. Applicants may request up to R45,000.
Application process
Applicants should complete the application form in English, and submit it by Sunday 4th February 2018, including the following mandatory documents: legal documentation of the applicant (ID/passport copy for individuals and organisation representatives; company registration documents); track record (media coverage, website links, evidence of recognition awards, public appearances or residencies, CV, biography, etc.); budget of the project (including projected income and expenditure); and a calendar of activities with tour schedule. SADC regional projects must include a letter from the local host confirming their support and involvement.
Applicants are encouraged to use the Concerts SA Venue Map (www.concertssa.co.za/venues-map) and the Concerts SA Live Music Toolkit (www.concertssa.co.za/downloads/live-music-toolkit) in the preparation of your tour.
Enquiries and applications should be submitted by email to concertssa@samro.org.za, by fax to 086 500 7028 or by post to Concerts SA, c/o The SAMRO Foundation, 20 De Korte Street, 4th Floor SAMRO Place, Braamfontein, Johannesburg, 2001.
For more information, visit http://concertssa.co.za, follow @ConcertsSA on Twitter (www.twitter.com/ConcertsSA) or like Concerts SA on Facebook
(www.facebook.com/ConcertsSA).
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