top of page
GRANT ROUND ELEVEN AWARDS
Continuo Foundation is delighted to announce the 30 projects selected to receive a total of £106,000 in funding in this eleventh grant round. We are incredibly grateful for the generosity of all the donors who made this possible.
We are also looking forward to our partnership with the Purcell Society, marking its 150th anniversary with a £6,000 grant in this round. Continuo is co-funding two projects focused on the music of Henry Purcell.
Competition for funding was very strong, and the quality of the applications received was the highest we have seen so far. Of the 30 projects selected in this funding round, nine are being carried out by emerging ensembles, with nearly 35% of total funds allocated to these up-and-coming groups.
Grant Round Eleven is supporting 112 performances and 2 recording projects taking place between May 2026 and the end of November 2026. Live concerts will travel to 61 different locations across the UK. This will bring the total number of communities benefiting from our support to 265.
Since Continuo was founded in 2020, the total support provided for UK early music projects amounts to over £1.1 million awarded to 123 ensembles of which 41 are emerging ensembles formed since 2019.
Full details of the latest grant-supported projects can be viewed by clicking the button below.
Grant Round Twelve will open in July 2026.
GRANT PARAMETERS
Applicants were invited to request amounts ranging from £2,000 to £6,000 to support UK projects scheduled to take place from 1 May 2026 to 30 November 2026. For recently formed ensembles (formed ca. June 2020 - December 2025), we prefer to support live concerts or tours but will consider a recording if this would make a material difference to the ensemble's career prospects.
For example, grant proceeds could be used by a period-instrument ensemble to:
-
enable a concert with a larger number of musicians at risk of being downsized
-
fund an ambitious new project where there is uncertainty about audience take-up
-
support a tour of a new or existing programme to new UK locations
-
fund the recording of repertoire not previously recorded
-
fund a chamber recital series
-
create filmed video content to be used to generate further touring opportunities
Grant requests may be for up to a maximum of 90% of the Project Cost. Applicants were asked to provide a credible plan for the balance of the funding required for the project.
Additional Grant offered in partnership with The Purcell Society
In celebration of The Purcell Society’s 150th anniversary in 2026, The Purcell Society Trust chose to partner with Continuo Foundation, offering £6,000 toward projects exclusively or predominantly featuring the music of Henry Purcell. The selected projects will take place in 2026, and will make use of the Society’s editions for any music published by the Society (for more information about these, see the Society’s website). Any hire and performance costs for the use of the Society’s editions of Purcell’s work will be met by the Society in addition to the grant amount.
The Purcell Society was founded in 1876 with the twin aims of publishing Purcell’s complete works in score and encouraging performance of his music. The Purcell Society Edition is today published by Stainer & Bell, having been published previously by Novello & Co. from its foundation to 2007. The Revised Edition is nearing completion; it presents the complete musical works of Purcell in modern, authoritative printed editions designed with performers, researchers, librarians and music lovers in mind, stretched across what will be 33 volumes on its completion.
Applications for the Purcell Society Grant needed to meet Continuo's eligibility criteria in addition to the stipulations above. Applications were assessed through Continuo's two-stage evaluation process, and final decisions were made in consultation with The Purcell Society. There are also opportunities for collaboration between performers involved in the selected projects and the leading Purcell scholars who make up the Society’s Committee.
SELECTION CRITERIA
ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
Eligible ensembles were UK-based professional groups of at least three musicians playing period instruments, or faithful replicas, with a consistent membership of instrumentalists, year-round activity and an identity as a period-instrument ensemble.
Proposed projects may include vocalists, or be collaborations with vocal ensembles, as long as the grant applicant is an instrumental ensemble meeting the description above. Projects may also include new works commissioned for period instruments or combine early and contemporary repertoires in their programmes.
NB Previous Continuo Foundation grantees were eligible to apply provided they complied with the terms of their grant(s), including acknowledging Continuo Foundation's support on all publicity related to the project, helping to spread the word about Continuo Connect to their audiences, and submitting their post-project reports.
EVALUATION CRITERIA
The main objective of our grants is to mobilise projects of outstanding artistic merit which create meaningful work for freelance period musicians, and which bring period-instrument music to audiences across the UK, engaging and inspiring people and enriching communities. The key criteria for assessing applications are:
-
the artistic quality, creativity and originality of the proposed project;
-
the number of instrumentalists engaged and the proportion of the grant funds dedicated to artists’ fees;
-
the extent to which new live or virtual audiences will be engaged; and
-
for recently formed ensembles, the extent to which the project proposed is realistic and will contribute to establishing the group's credentials and visibility, and support their future success.
In choosing which projects to support, in addition to the considerations above, the Advisory Panel and Trustees consider other factors in their decision-making. For the avoidance of doubt, ensembles do not need to meet all of the criteria below, the list is intended to give a sense of areas of interest. These include:
-
public performances since 2022
-
critically acclaimed recordings (including CDs, broadcasts, videos, etc.) since 2022
-
support of early-career instrumentalists and vocalists
-
innovative programming, including works by diverse composers
-
diversity of performers and administrators
-
involvement in outreach and education projects
-
whether the ensemble is a UK registered charity
The Trustees also consider the quality of the application itself, as we believe this is a reflection of the ensemble's ability to carry out the project to a high standard.
RECENTLY FORMED ENSEMBLES - EVALUATION CRITERIA
For ensembles formed between ca. June 2020 and March 2025, assessors considered the areas set out below:
-
evidence of high calibre public performances
-
background information on the musicians comprising the ensemble
-
the rationale for the formation of the group
-
repertoire being explored, aspirations, etc.
The applicants in this category were asked to submit a 10-minute, unedited video of the ensemble performing together. This could be an extract from a live-streamed concert, or part of a performance filmed on a smart phone. If there is no film footage from performances, we would consider a video from a rehearsal. The video does not need to be professionally filmed - we look for the quality of the playing, not the video.
NB - In order to be eligible, an ensemble must have had at least one public performance before 31 December 2025. Ensembles need to demonstrate the intention to have a lasting presence, rather than gathering for a one-off project.
CRITERIA
bottom of page