Music funding The federal government supported over a thousand young musical talents in 2024
Almost 1,200 talented musicians under the age of 25 received federal funding in 2024. The "Young Talents in Music" program of the Federal Office of Culture (BAK) is thus ending its pilot phase and will continue.
09.01.2025, 12:48
SDA
Among the talents supported in 2024, 672 are male, 517 are female and one is diverse, as announced by the BAK on Thursday. The ages range from 4 to 25 years. The vast majority, 972, are active in the field of classical music. Around 200 of the young talents come from the genres of jazz, pop, rock and contemporary music. The minority of those supported make folk music. This concerns eleven children and young people.
The first step in the program is the early identification of talent in the school or extracurricular environment, according to the federal government. This is followed by an assessment of musical talent by specialist commissions in the respective canton. If the decision is positive, the talented youngsters receive a lump sum from the federal government, which is paid out by the cantonal coordination office.
The support program aims to provide long-term support for children and young people "with above-average musical potential". The programme was developed in 2021 in collaboration with the cantons, municipalities, cities and music organizations. 16 cantons took part in the program in 2024; the project is still being developed in ten cantons. It is based on a constitutional article that aims to strengthen music education, particularly for children and young people.
The BAK is responsible for the overall management of the program and supports the cantonal talent promotion programs with a total of four million francs per year. Half of the federal funds will go directly to the talented musicians. The remaining funds will be used to set up and implement the program in the cantons.
