A commission for South Asian artists to explore collective memory through music.

Building on the success of the first Here to Remember, this commission is for South Asian and South Asian mixed heritage artists.

Curated by Daytimers, a collective championing the sounds, stories and voices of South Asian creative communities, as part of the commission you’ll take part in group workshops and archival research, with one-to-one mentoring to support your creative process.

If chosen you’ll spend the summer and early autumn exploring collective memory and heritage through your own experiences of history, memory and lineage.

This is for you if you’re interested in:

• Exploring the South Asian experience in your work through archiving, ancestry, memory and speculative art
• Storytelling
• Experimentation

What’s involved

• Work individually to create new music inspired by the archives at the Ahmed Iqbal Ullah RACE Centre which focuses on the history of Global Majority communities in Greater Manchester and beyond
• Visit the Beacon Valley in Birmingham, an ecological oasis with intertwined colonial histories where you’ll gain inspiration from nature and explore concepts of rewilding and re-indigenising with the land
• Take part in music making sessions and workshops with guest artists to explore archiving and storytelling as a creative practice
• Showcase your work as part of a live show curated by Daytimers in Manchester in October 2024
• Receive a fee of £1500

We understand this commission will be deeply personal for artists. The content of the creative output will be led solely by the commissioned artists, with the Brighter Sound team providing practical and pastoral support.

Who it’s for

Here to Remember is open to musicians:

• Aged 18+
• Who identify as South Asian and South Asian mixed heritage
• From or based in the North of England (North East, North West and Yorkshire regions)

We want to hear from artists from a range of genres, backgrounds and musical disciplines.

So if you think “maybe my style isn’t right for this” – nope, absolutely apply!

Costs

Alongside your fee of £1500, we’ll also cover:

• Travel, accommodation and expenses
• Access costs for things like disability support, translation or childcare

When and where

• Monday 1 July, 6-7.30pm – online
  Online introductory meeting
• Wednesday 10 July, 12-4pm – Manchester 
  Visit to the Ahmed Iqbal Ullah RACE Centre at Manchester Central Library to explore archives
• Thursday 11 July, all day – Birmingham
  Visit to the Beacon Valley with an afternoon of music making facilitated by musician, DJ and facilitator Balraj Samrai
• Monday 22 July, 2-3.30pm – Manchester
  Workshop with sound artist and musician Raheel Khan exploring histories, archives and heritage
• Thursday 8 August, 4-5.30pm – Manchester 
  A masterclass with DJ, Broadcaster and producer DJ Ritu in conversation with DJs Chandé and Darama (Daytimers) exploring South Asian Underground culture through ‘past, present and future’
• September – online
  One-to-one mentoring with Balraj Samrai – dates based on your availability
• October – Manchester
  Performance in Manchester as part of a live show curated by Daytimers

How to apply

In the application form we’ll ask you some basic details, along with the following questions.

• Please tell us a bit about yourself, your career-to-date, and what kind of music you make.
• What interests you about the themes of this commission?
• How would you like to approach the themes of the commission in this new work?
• How would this commission help you to develop creatively and professionally?

You can either answer these questions in writing, or you can record yourself. If you do this, you’ll just need to include links to your video or audio recordings. Have a read of our Top Tips for Applicants for more information on how to answer these questions.

The application deadline is 11pm on Sunday 16 June.

We encourage you to submit your application before the deadline but if you need a bit more time please let us know by Wednesday 12 June.

You’re welcome to apply with support from a personal assistant or carer. If there is anything we can do to help you to apply, please let us know.

Head over to our Google Form to apply.

Nominate someone

If you know someone who you think would be interested in taking part, why not nominate them?

Send the person’s name and email address/social media profile to kinaya@brightersound.com and we’ll send them the application details.

Safer Spaces and Safeguarding

We aim to create spaces that are welcoming, engaging and supportive. Spaces where everyone is able to be themselves, and where abuse and discrimination are not tolerated.

Read our Safer Spaces Policy for more information.

Our approach to Safeguarding is the foundation of our Safer Spaces approach. By Safeguarding we mean the wellbeing, and protection from harm, abuse and mistreatment of anyone who benefits from our work, team members and others we come into contact with. Anyone who is part of our team has appropriate safeguarding knowledge and an understanding of how to deal with safeguarding issues should they arise.

Read our Safeguarding Policy for more information.

Got questions?

Get in touch with our Project Manager Kinaya by emailing kinaya@brightersound.com.

Or you can give us a call on 0161 546 5334. Please leave a message and we’ll get back to you.