About
The Continuo Commissioning Circle is an annual initiative dedicated to the creation of new chamber music works and the musicians who bring them to life.
Continuo Community believes in the transformative power of chamber music; its life-affirming storytelling ignites an individual curiosity and imagination in performers and listeners alike. These shared experiences are the driving force behind Continuo’s mission to support the creation of new chamber music works.
The trouble is, commissioning a new chamber work can be a lengthy, daunting, and expensive process, which can prove challenging for the ensembles and composers you know and love to present new work. But there’s a good reason for this – writing great music takes time!
We invite you to join the Circle and be part of a unique and rewarding initiative to support the storytellers of today.
2022 Continuo Commission awarded to Kym Dillon and Croissants & Whiskey.
How does it work?
In 2023, Continuo is offering the opportunity to commission one new work from a Victorian-based composer.
Funds for each commission are raised by forming syndicates from Continuo members and supporters, using a similar model to the Silo Collective in Sydney.
To borrow a line from Silo, we aim to prove that “you don’t need to be wealthy or powerful to be involved in commissioning.”
Each member of a commissioning circle makes an equal tax deductible donation. All funds raised go directly to the composer.
Timeline
From March 1, we invite applications from Victorian-based composers. All applications will be assessed by a panel of leading musicians and arts-practitioners who will select the Continuo composer for 2023.
Following this, the composer will begin creating the new work in collaboration with their selected chamber ensemble. After many days, weeks, and months of pensively gazing into the night sky pondering the infinite creative possibilities, emptying vials of ink and discarding unwanted rolls of parchment etched with ideas that will never be, consuming an unethical amount of caffeine and falling asleep at the piano (elbow first of course) resounding a cluster chord that would have awaken even the heaviest sleeper, the creative process comes to an end. A new work of art sits perched atop the piano awaiting the musicians to work their magic. “But is it everything I wanted it to be?” the composer asks. Well, we think you’ll have to attend the premiere to find out.
Subscribe to our newsletter to stay up to date with our latest commissioning round. Experience the joy of supporting the creation of new chamber music and the anticipation that follows when hearing a new work for the first time.
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