The National Endowment for the Arts is offering a grant for American Masterpieces: Chamber Music

• Meet the Arts Endowment’s "Legal Requirements," including nonprofit, tax-exempt status, as detailed in the FY 2010 Grants for Arts Projects guidelines, at the time of application.
• Have a three-year history of programming that includes the production or presentation of chamber music performances and educational activities prior to the application deadline.
• Have submitted acceptable Final Report packages by the due date(s) for all Arts Endowment award(s) previously received.

For projects that involve multiple organizations, one organization that meets the eligibility requirements above must act as the official applicant, submit the application, and assume full responsibility for the grant.

Organizations are limited to one American Masterpieces: Chamber Music application per year.

An application in response to this announcement does not preclude an organization from applying under other Arts Endowment funding opportunities including Grants for Arts Projects. In each case, the request must be for a distinctly different project. There also should be no overlapping project costs with other federally sponsored projects such as NEA Jazz Masters Live.

The designated fifty state and six jurisdictional arts agencies (SAAs) and their regional arts organizations (RAOs) are not eligible to apply under the American Masterpieces: Chamber Music guidelines.

American Masterpieces: Three Centuries of Artistic Genius is a major initiative to acquaint Americans with the best of their cultural and artistic legacy. Through American Masterpieces, the National Endowment for the Arts will sponsor performances, exhibitions, tours, and educational programs across all art forms that will reach large and small communities in all 50 states.

This component of American Masterpieces will celebrate the extraordinary and rich evolution of chamber music in the United States. Through performances and related educational activities, American chamber music of the highest quality will be experienced by Americans in communities across the nation.

Grants are available for chamber music performances in conjunction with educational activities that will highlight specific repertoire by American composers, and enable ensembles to engage with communities in a variety of settings. The Arts Endowment is particularly interested in projects that have at least one performance and two educational activities.

The Arts Endowment plans to support a range of projects that reflect the breadth of chamber music. For the purposes of this initiative, chamber music generally is defined as one player to a part, performed without a conductor, with between two and ten players; duos must perform as an ensemble of equal partners. Chamber music encompasses music for traditional ensembles such as string quartets and trios, as well as compositions for mixed ensembles, traditional and indigenous instruments, and jazz. Projects may include recordings and broadcasts. Commissions and premiere performances are not eligible.

Projects must be accompanied by related educational, interpretive, or contextual components. These may include discussions, master classes, seminars, exhibitions, program material, or cooperative learning projects with educational or community institutions. Curriculum-based educational components for children and youth must ensure the application of national or state arts education standards.

Projects may be initiated by eligible organizations of all sizes, genres, and aesthetics such as:

• Ensembles.
• Presenters.
• Festivals.
• Colleges and universities.