Ontwikkelbeurs Muziekauteur

A grant for a stretch of time to develop as a writer of music, rather than for a specific product. Fonds Podiumkunsten funds a development trajectory in which you do musical research that leads to new work, deepening or broadening your own practice — and, they expect, meaning something for the wider Dutch music field and the range of work on Dutch stages.

It is open to music authors in every genre who have been demonstrably professionally active in the Dutch performing arts for at least two years, evidenced by recent work and activity in your CV. A conservatoire training is not required. Anyone currently enrolled in an MBO, bachelor's or master's arts programme is excluded, as is anyone who finished a master's less than two years ago.

The grant is a flat €9,500. Because it is not tied to specific costs you submit no budget at all and spend it as you see fit. The trajectory cannot start until at least thirteen weeks after the deadline, can run up to two years, and you may apply once per calendar year and receive the grant once every two.

Assessors weigh what the plan does for your artistic practice, what the result means for the performing arts, and its contribution to the plurality of work on offer in the Netherlands. In 2025, 30% of the 222 applications assessed were funded. First-time applicants can have a draft read up to three weeks before the deadline. The scheme and forms are in Dutch.