On 1 January 2023, Kultur | lx sealed its partnership with Impuls neue Musik, making Luxembourg a new member country of this fund promoting exchanges between the French- and German-speaking areas in the field of contemporary music. This new cooperation within a fund that fosters collaboration between Germany, France, Switzerland and now Luxembourg, gives Luxembourg artists the opportunity to apply to the call for projects, details of which can be found below.
In 2023, three projects with a Luxembourgish component were supported by Impuls neue Musik.
The name Impuls, with German origin, puts light on the most important goal of the fund: giving an impulse to French, German, Luxembourgish and Swiss contemporary music by favouring exchanges on the long-term between French-speaking and German-speaking linguistic and cultural spaces.
It is through the diversity of their languages, dialects, landscapes, traditions, their similarities and political, economic, and cultural contrasts, that these two spaces build the European continent on their own. Impuls neue Musik supports actors of the contemporary music sector who wish to work in a multifaceted environment and venture in an atypical field. The fund seeks to establish dialogues in which composers, musicians, interpreters and organizers transcribe the richness of these cultures through transborder projects. The notion of “border” is not just to be understood by its geographical sense. It is also about the boundaries between genres and formats. It is therefore not just a matter of performing contemporary works from one country or the other, but also about in-depth exchange. The funding granted by Impuls neue Musik for commissioned works has got a real influence on the creative work in all four countries.
Impuls neue Musik promotes music projects that shape the exchange between the German-speaking and French-speaking linguistic and cultural areas with new ideas and connect the contemporary music scenes in Germany, France, Switzerland and Luxembourg. Funding is being sought for composers, musicians, sound artists, performers and event organisers who contribute to enriching artistic exchange between the four countries.
Funding is available for concerts and music theatre productions, series or festivals, education projects, artist-in-residence programmes, academies and sound art. Hybrid projects consisting of live and digital events are also eligible for funding. The projects must be developed and realised in Germany, France, Switzerland or Luxembourg, whereby the idea of exchange between the German-speaking and French-speaking cultural areas must be at the heart of the project. Projects that are developed and/or presented in at least two of the four countries are particularly eligible for funding. Special consideration will be given to residencies and environmentally conscious, resource-conserving projects that offer solutions in terms of sustainability.
The application deadline is 1 May 2024 and applications can be submitted online now. Funded projects may not begin before 1 August 2024 and must be completed by 30 June 2026. The exact funding criteria can be found below.
The projects supported by Impuls neue Musik must include contemporary works by German, French, Swiss or Luxembourgish composers and/or composer-performers and/or sound artists.
The programme supports contemporary music in all its diversity. Funding is also available for unusual formats and innovative projects that artistically explore different music-cultural styles and aesthetics, reflecting the geographical and historical context as well as the specific production conditions.
Impuls neue Musik also promotes the development of such cross-border projects in the spirit of artistic research.
The projects must be developed and realised in Germany, France, Switzerland or Luxembourg, whereby the idea of exchange between the German-speaking and French-speaking cultural areas must be at the heart of the project. Projects that are developed and/or presented in at least two of the four countries are particularly eligible for funding. The intensity and quality of the internal artistic exchange is the focus of the funding; in terms of the external impact of a project, it is of particular interest which artistic strategies are intended to contribute to a socially relevant discourse.
Funding can therefore be applied for projects that involve collaborations between musicians and/or composers from the German and French-speaking music scenes of the four participating countries Germany, France, Switzerland and Luxembourg.
German, French, Swiss or Luxembourgish artists are defined as those who have their long-term centre of work and life in the respective country.
The following projects are eligible for funding from Impuls neue Musik:
Applicants must be based in Germany, France, Switzerland or Luxembourg.
Hybrid projects integrating live and remote performances or events are eligible for funding. CD recordings are not eligible. Applicants may submit only one application at a time. Impuls neue Musik’s support may cover up to 50% of the project’s total budget. The support awarded is intended exclusively for the realisation of the project.
Impuls neue Musik is committed to using its funds ecologically. The applicants must take this goal into account in the planning, implementation and monitoring of their project within the framework of the applicable legal provisions (no isolated performances, climate protection through voluntary CO2 offsetting, use of environmentally friendly means of transport, use of sustainable materials, etc.). Air travel should be avoided, especially for distances of less than 1000 km.