Iguana Music Fund

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The Iguana Music Fund is an annual grant program predominantly funded by generous anonymous donors, plus the help of Passim, sponsorships, and community donations. Each year the Iguana Music Fund gives approximately $40,000 in grants to individual artists in amounts from $500 to $2,000 each. Grants are used for projects and expenses to aid in artists' career growth, and range from recording projects to community programs to specialized equipment or instruments. The Iguana Music Fund was established in 2008 after a generous anonymous donation was given with the intention of helping artists pursue their musical goals. Artists often have the talent and ideas to create incredible music, but they do not always have the financial capacity to do so. To help musicians overcome financial limitations, the Iguana Music Fund awards annual grants to artists with a residential or tour-based affiliation to New England. Since 2008, $473,000 in grants has funded more than 285 projects.

2020 RecipientsRead the Press Release

Diana Alvarez
producing the BridgeSong Series, a virtual convening for artists of color
Alisa Amador
recording debut full-length album
Billy Wylder
releasing a series of singles leading up a new EP
Isa Burke
recording debut solo album
Màiri Chaimbeul
recording debut solo album
DJ WhySham
producing Finally LIVE: A Social Justice Trap Story, a showcase presenting women and non-binary artists in Boston
Mercedes Escobar
audio & video recording equipment
Sadie Gustafson-Zook
audio recording & streaming equipment
Home Despot
recording debut EP
Juventas New Music Ensemble
recording a show of chamber music by composers from every continent
Lake Saint Daniel
recording debut solo album
Little Roots Music
hiring guest musicians, dancers, storytellers, and puppeteers to collaborate in online music classes for young children
Miles of Music Camp
funding scholarships for an annual music and songwriting camp
Casey Murray & Molly Tucker
recording debut full-length album
Halley Neal
recording debut full-length studio album
Nate Nics
recording a concept hip-hop album
Noah y Maurizio
recording sophomore album
Hayley Reardon
audio recording equipment
Abigale Reisman
recording a series of videos honoring the Jewish violin
Dave Richardson
mastering a new album
Rockabye Beats
producing a bilingual video series teaching children about music, dancing, food, and Spanish
Ethan Setiawan
recording album of original tunes
Gabriella Simpkins
upgrading home recording and streaming equipment
Maddie Witler
recording debut solo album

2019 RecipientsRead the Press Release

Arc Iris
in-ear monitor system
Louise Bichan
applying for a work visa to stay and work as an artist in the US
Aurora Birch
recording sophomore album
Boston States Fiddle Camp
a new week-long Scottish & Cape Breton fiddle camp
Jeff Butcher
recording an album of his father's songs
Volkan Efe
The Makam Healing Project: performances of Turkish modal music in hospitals
Yann Falquet
recording first solo ep
Allison de Groot
recording an album of duets from many folk traditions arranged for clawhammer banjo
Jim Haggerty
professional upright bass
Kaiti Jones
recording sophomore album
Molly Pinto Madigan
marketing Tam Lin: A Folk-Rock Opera
Albino Mbie
recording debut album
Miles of Music camp
annual music and songwriting camp
Alastair Moock
giving away an album about activism to underserved schools
Prateek
recording a live album
Rakish
recording debut album
Rosemere Road
recording debut album
Chris Sartori
bass flight case
Tory Silver
recording sophomore album
The Sub Rosa Songwriting Retreat
annual collaborative songwriting retreat
Abigail Vail
recording debut album
Naomi Westwater
recording an ep
The Wolff Sisters
a tour van

2018 RecipientsRead the Press Release

Age
recording album inspired by traditional Hebrew texts
Anadama
recording first full-length album
Arc Iris
purchasing tour van
Stace Brandt
recording first ep
Bring Us Your Women
multimedia performance highlighting women religious figures
Kate Callahan
writing songs with women inmates
Julia Anne Cohen
Hear Us! concert and lecture series feat. women composers
The Great Molasses Flood
recording live album on the anniversary of the Great Molasses Flood
Hawthorn
travel expenses for album release tour
Izzy Heltai
recording ep with a new stripped-back sound
Jim Henry
book of practical advice in the music business
Zachariah Hickman
mixing and mastering Songs & Strings live show
Corey Laitman
album recording
The Late Risers
recording first full-length album
Miles of Music camp
annual music and songwriting camp
Oompa
recording album exploring race, identities, and mental health
Forrest Pettengill
purchasing an upright bass
Abrielle Scharff
recording first full-length album
Sing Explore Create
adapting the songwriting process to include students with physical & cognitive disabilities
Strangers by Accident
recording first full-length album
The Sub Rosa Songwriting Retreat
annual collaborative songwriting retreat
Tunefoolery
musicians in mental health recovery bring open mics to mental health centers
Ceren Turkmenoglu
recording album of music transcribed from traditional Ottoman manuscripts
Winter Walk
local musicians raise money to end homelessness