ANOTEFROM OURPRESIDENT
The 2022-2023 season was one focused on equity, opportunity, and transparency.
An opportunity for reflection is a rare occasion. Like many arts organizations, we are always busy doing, trying to accomplish as much as we can with a small staff and a large mission; but we have come to see the value in taking a pause and taking stock
The recent global downshift offered us that opportunity, and also prompted us to ask ourselves how we could make our awards programs more equitable. In 2022, we made several changes to ensure a diverse pool of applicants with a range of experiences These included:
Removing the post-secondary enrollment requirement for our application-based awards Right now in the US, enrollment in a post-secondary institution is as much a marker of privilege as it is of ability or talent. Our awards are no longer scholarships; they are career grants, intended to make a recording, tour or tuition payment equally possible
Collecting demographics including race/ethnicity and gender from all applicants and awardees These optional demographic questions are used to ensure our progress toward the equitable distribution of resources.
As our Trustees stated in this resolution last fall, "the strength and credibility of our organization relies on fostering the art of music for all humanity with a commitment to diversity and inclusive support of all music makers without compromise We resolve to lead with inclusive thinking and language in all our undertakings, striving toward the equitable distribution of resources and the creation of a safe, equitable and inclusive environment for all."
MATA Festival, 2023 New Music Grant Recipient - Photo by Steven Pisano
Either/Or , 2023 New Music Grant Recipient
Amas Musical Theatre, 2023 New Music Grant Recipient
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New York Youth Symphony, 2023 New Music Grant Recipient
-BMIF TRUSTEES
Similarly, through our New Music Grants, we ensure equity through a trust-based approach. In 2023, BMI Foundation gave approximately $125,000 of unrestricted New Music Grants funding for music nonprofits across the country through a simple application process and we do not require any reporting on use of the funds We understand that for small music nonprofits across the country, there is not extensive time available for application writing or finding metrics to report on; funds are often required just to keep the lights on, pay a small staff, or even buy snacks for artists during a long day of rehearsals.
For musicians, artists, and organizations in the US, writing, creating, and performing music is only a small portion of their business There is so much time spent just trying to be heard While the funds in career grants offer a lifeboat to our awardees, it is often the other things we offer that are most impactful: mentorship, career advice, or even just recognition. I hope you will join us next year in recognizing these talented, determined, and irreplaceable artists Their forward striving is both inspiration and model to us all
Deirdre Chadwick President, Board
Foundation
"We resolve to lead with inclusive thinking and language in all our undertakings, striving toward the equitable distribution of resources and the creation of a safe, equitable and inclusive environment for all."
2023 BMI Composer Award Recipients
2023 Future Jazz Masters Award Recipient Christian X. M. McGhee
2023 Dolly Parton Songwriters Award Recipient Macy Dot Neal
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2023 Scholarship Recipients
of Trustees, BMI
Including... >500 Classical Composers >500 Country and Pop Songwriters >225 Film Composers >150 High School Musicians Gender of All Qualifying Applicants Race/Ethnicity of All Qualifying Applicants Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, .3% APPLICANTS our 2022-2023 IN THE 2022-2023 SEASON, BMI FOUNDATION RECEIVED OVER 1600 APPLICATIONS Applications Doubled in 2022-2023 3 HispanicorLatino/Latinx12.7% As i a n o r Asia n A m e r i nac 1 3 1. % roowTM erosecaR6 %8. American Indian or Alaska Native 0.3% rokcalBA nacirf naciremA %11 Prefer Notto Answer 6 9% W h i t e 4 9 % Female 41 9% elaM 05 %1 Prefer Not to Answer 2.8% Transgender Male 0.5% Transgender Female 0.3% Gender NonConforming 3.6%
Including... >$30,000 in Scholarships >$125,000 in Organizational Awards >$110,000 in Individual Awards and Commissions 45 Partner Organizations in 18 US States AWARDEES our 2022-2023 Located in 24 States Race/Ethnicity of 2023 Awardees Gender of All 2023 Awardeess Excludes demographic information from the Chuckii Booker Scholarship. IN THE 2022-2023 SEASON, BMI FOUNDATION GAVE OVER $250,000 IN AWARDS 4 White 24% rokcalBnacirfA naciremA%12 roowTM erosecaR %21 A s i na ro A s i a n Airemnac %81 PreferNotto Answer 21% Hispanic or Latino/Latinx, 6% Female 32% elaM %65 Gender NonConforming, 3% PfertoNre t o Arewsn %9
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WE THANK YOU OUR PROGRAMS FOR YOUR CONTINUED SUPPORT OF
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PHOTO CREDITS
PAGE 8, L-R - ROW 1
Andre McRae, 2023 Jerry Harrington Award
Harrison TC Le, 2023 Chris Trousdale Dream Award
Dareem M. Chandler, 2023 Evelyn Buckstein Scholarship
Zoe Shack, 2023 Theodora Zavin Scholarship
PAGE 8, L-R - ROW 2
Chance Emerson, 2023 John Lennon Award
Jose Ruiz-Zepeda, 2023 Chris Trousdale Dream Award
Călin Lupea, 2023 John Lennon Award
Davis Luengthada, 2023 Kavi Ohri Memorial Scholarship
PAGE 8, L-R - ROW 3
Macy Dot Neal, 2023 Dolly Parton Songwriters Award
Myles Williamson, 2023 Chris Trousdale Dream Award
NOT PICTURED
Dameun Strange, 2023 Carlos Surinach Commission
Noah Horowitz, 2022 Pete Carpenter Fellowship
Kat Vokes, 2022 Pete Carpenter Fellowship
Joseph Herbst, 2023 Charlie Parker Award
Jamond Brown, 2023 Curtis Mayfield Award
Santana Rojas, 2022 Chuckii Booker Scholarship
Jherrard Hardeman, 2023 Lionel Newman Fellowship
Armand Xavier Rufen-Blanchette, 2023 Chris Trousdale Dream Award
Christopher John Michael Enloe, 2023 BMI Composer Award
PAGE 8, L-R - ROW 4
Mario Mallard, 2023 Chris Trousdale Dream Award
Christian-Frédéric Bloquert, 2023 BMI Composer Award
Seare Ahmad Farhat, 2023 BMI Composer Award
Natasha Frank, 2023 BMI Composer Award
PAGE 8, L-R - ROW 5
Sofia Jen Ouyang, 2023 BMI Composer Award
Maxwell Lu, 2023 BMI Composer Award
Christian X. M. McGhee, 2023 BMI Future Jazz Master Award
Zaria Renee Doss, 2023 Curtis Mayfield Award
PAGE 9, L-R - ROW 6
Charlie Zhong, 2023 BMI Composer Award (Honorable Mention)
Zoe Ko, 2023 John Lennon Award
Lauren Gundrum, 2023 Ellen Schwartz Award
Alice Macedo, 2023 peermusic Latin Music Award
PAGE 8, L-R - ROW 7
Autumn Cedillo, 2023 Chris Trousdale Dream Award
Sebastian Rocco Leoni, 2023 Chris Trousdale Dream Award
Angelina Mack, 2023 Chris Trousdale Dream Award
Janine McGuire, 2023 Jerry Harrington Award
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PHOTO CREDITS
PAGE 9, L-R - ROW 1
Dither Quartet, photo by Preston Stahly
American Composers Forum, photo by Chris Lee
Amas Musical Theatre ("Hip Hop Cinderella")
Alarm Will Sound, photo by Wojciech Wandzel
PAGE 9, L-R - ROW 2
Either/Or Ensemble, photo by Julieta Cervantes
Ebb & Flow Arts ("Music of the Spheres")
Argento Chamber Ensemble
Alarm Will Sound ("Paper Pianos"), photo by Michael Valiquette (EMPAC)
PAGE 9, L-R - ROW 3
National Alliance for Musical Theatre, photo by Ric Kallaher
The Jazz Gallery
Experiments in Opera ("Everything for Dawn"), photo by Reuben Radding
Eighth Blackbird, photo by Freddie Collier
PAGE 9, L-R - ROW 4
The Little Orchestra Society ("Dancing to the Beat")
MATA Festival, photo by Paula Court
Musicambia
The Crossing, photo by John C. Hawthorne
PAGE 9, L-R - ROW 5
Reaching Youth through Music Opportunities
North South Consonance
New York Youth Symphony
NOT PICTURED American
Composers Orchestra
Boston Modern Orchestra Project
Bowdoin International Music Festival
Cabrilo Festival of Contemporary Music
Community MusicWorks
Connecticut Summerfest
Copland House
Dal Niente New Music
Elaine Kaufman Cultural Center
Education Through Music - LA Girls Write Nashville
International Contemporary Ensemble
JACK Quartet
Make Music NOLA
American Modern Ensemble
newEar Contemporary Chamber Ensemble
New Music on the Point
New Music USA
The American Opera Project
Third Coast Percussion
Wet Ink Ensemble
The Next Festival of Emerging Artists ("Composer-Choreographer Workshop")
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NOW Ensemble
The Walden School
Yarn/Wire
The Little Orchestra Society ("The Magic Flute"), photo by Deborah Grosmark
PAGE 9, L-R - ROW 7
The Esoterics, photo by Bruce Weber
National Alliance for Musical Theatre, photo by Ric Kallaher
MATA Festival, photo by Steven Pisano
Oregon Coast Youth Symphony Festival
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PLEASE CONTACT US! SPONSORING AN AWARD DONATING YOUR ROYALTIES PARTNERING WITH US CONSIDERING US IN YOUR ESTATE PLANNING IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN... INFO@BMIFOUNDATION.ORG 212-220-3175
LUCIANA SOUZA PAMELA WILLIAMS CLAY BRADLEY COREY FIELD
DEIRDRE CHADWICK SAMANTHA COX DAN COLEMAN WILL WELLS PRESIDENT VICE PRESIDENT TREASURER