New fund for youngsters in Scottish art forms

Youth engagement and participation in traditional Scottish art forms are being encouraged with a new fund.

The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo and Creative Scotland have announced the launch of The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo Youth Talent Development Fund to nurture young people’s interests.

Arts and cultural organisations will be eligible to apply for a slice of the £150,000 funding pot which has been donated by the charitable arm of The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo.

The donation aims to nurture the ambition and talent of young people (aged 5-26) engaged in traditional music and dance, specifically in piping, drumming, Highland dance and fiddle playing.

Applications for funding are now open and will close on Monday 10 December. Successful candidates will be informed in February 2019 and proposed work from selected projects should be carried out between April 2019 and April 2020. The funding is being administered by Creative Scotland.

Rucelle Soutar, charitable spokesperson at the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo, said: ‘We launched The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo Youth Talent Development Fund in partnership with Creative Scotland for the first time last year to help nurture excellence in traditional Scottish artforms and we were blown away by the incredible talent that exists around the country.

‘Supporting the future of the arts has been at the heart of the Tattoo since its inception almost 70 years ago, and we’re absolutely thrilled to offer this opportunity for a second year running to help young people from a variety of backgrounds develop their creative skills and enrich the Scottish arts industry.

‘The Tattoo aspires to evolve with the world around us whilst ensuring that traditional music and dance continues to bring incredible opportunities to those participating in them, as well as bringing enjoyment to audiences both in Scotland and beyond.

‘We’re very much looking forward to receiving applications for this year’s fund and helping arts groups around Scotland to develop exciting new work with the next generation of extraordinary talent.’

Colin Bradie, interim head of creative learning, Creative Scotland added: ‘We’re delighted to be working in partnership with the Tattoo to continue to provide this dynamic fund, which supports and celebrates the talents of Scotland’s young traditional artists.

‘For a second year running The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo Youth Talent Development Fund will provide children and young people from across the country with the fantastic opportunity to progress their skills and techniques, supporting their groups and organisations to create new and innovative work and increase accessibility across traditional Scottish arts.’

For more information on how to apply and eligibility click HERE.