Today Sound and Music, in partnership with the LGBTQ+ Music Study Group is launching two new opportunities on the British Music Collection to mark LGBTQ+ History Month 2022 – a month long celebration of lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, nonbinary and queer lives, culture, history and activism.

These opportunities follow on from last year’s inaugural campaign which sought to highlight the significant impact that LGBTQ+ individuals have had in shaping the history of new music and, to amplify and celebrate living LGBTQ+ composers, music-creators and sound artists working in the UK today, across a range of backgrounds, styles and genres.

As a key national resource and platform of British music history, addressing the underrepresentation of LGBTQ+ voices across the British Music Collection is a priority for us and we are thrilled to be working again with the LGBTQ+ Music Study Group to co-curate this second series celebrating queer histories, stories and sounds.  

Find out more below about the opportunities and how to apply below.

Paid opportunity for LGBTQ+ Composers

After last year’s hugely successful nationwide call for new sonic works celebrating queer histories, stories and sounds we are delighted to announce a 2^nd round of the LGBTQ+ Composers Open Call.

One of the ways we hope to amplify and celebrate LGBTQ+ composers, music-creators and sound artists is through a paid opportunity for   LGBTQ+ composers to create new digital works and present them on the British Music Collection online platform. 

Through this opportunity, our aim is to increase the number of LGBTQ+ identifying creators represented in the collection and to make the British Music Collection a   space which is  safe, more diverse and relevant  to discover new music.

The brief for this opportunity is intentionally open and is not tied to any specific themes, as we want to support LGBTQ+ composers to create the works they wish and feel need to be heard by audiences visitingthe British Music Collection.

Find out more about the paid opportunity for LGBTQ+ Composers here

Read more about the 2021 winners here, and listen to the new works created by Ellie Showering, Lunatraktors, Precious Oni, and Ruari Paterson-Achenbach & Sophie-Marie Niang.

Paid opportunity for editorial content

This year wee are also looking to provide UK-based writers, researchers and thinkers with a place  to platform their unique ideas, voices and views on queer music, sound and the people who make it, as part of an editorial series to be published later in 2022.

For this opportunity we are looking for pitches that speak broadly to emerging and/or historical issues related to sexuality, gender and queerness in new music in various formats including explorations, essays and deep dives, as well as more experimental forms of creative writing.

Find out more here about the paid opportunity for editorial content here

Update your composer profile

As part of last year’s campaign, we implemented some longer-term structural changes to the British Music Collection platform which enabled composers to self-identify as LGBTQ+.

With the collection used extensively by programmers, curators and researchers, as well as new music fans alike, the British Music Collection is a useful resource for anyone looking to discover LGBTQ+ composers and their works, whether that be for a concert programme, research, or just for pleasure!  

This function is entirely optional, but through it we aim to improve the space for all users, whilst challenging the limitations of the collection’s inherited and existing structure.   

We want the British Music Collection to be an inclusive digital space which is open to all, and allows for greater representation, celebration and recognition of LGBTQ+ composers in the UK.

Why not create or update you profile now?   

About the LGBTQ+ Music Study Group

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The LGBTQ+ Music Study Group said: "We are thrilled to continue our work with the British Music Collection, celebrating LGBTQ+ composers and musicians both past and present. Last year’s collaboration showcased the breadth of queer creativity in the UK, and we are delighted to build on that momentum in this year’s celebration of LGBTQ+ music”.

The LGBTQ+ Music Study Group is an active researcher network. Aspiring toward a queer politics informed by feminist and decolonizing efforts, the Study Group provides a space for cultivating and developing cutting edge academic, political and social work.  

We seek to advance academic and public understanding of music in relation to gender, sexuality, queer theory and feminism, and nurture queer scholarship in music studies addressing a broad range of concerns in dialogue with feminist, postcolonial and critical race studies.  

You can get in touch with the LGBTQ+ Music Study Group via their social channels: 

Twitter: @LGBTQMusicSG 

Facebook: @lgbtqmusicsg