Peterborough, ON (December 8th, 2021) – Today, Orchestras Canada held a ceremony at the closing of its dynamic online Festival of Learning, celebrating the $112,800 Resilient Communities Fund grant it received from the Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF) in late 2020 to help with its Resilient Ontario Orchestras project. Local MPP Dave Smith sent greetings and congratulations to the participating orchestras. The Resilient Communities Fund grant program was created by OTF to help Ontario’s non-profit sector rebuild and recover from the impacts of COVID-19.
The Resilient Ontario Orchestras project was designed to help Ontario’s smaller budget orchestras and youth orchestras (groups with annual, pre-pandemic revenues under $500,000) by enabling access to customized consulting help and resources at a critical time. Twenty-three orchestras were matched with expert consultants, who undertook short-term work with them, focusing on their areas of need, including: artistic planning, audience development, marketing, governance, strategic planning, volunteer management, financial management, human resources, revenue generation, risk management, health and safety and pandemic protocols, digital technology adoption, digital content capture and distribution.
“We are so grateful to the Ontario Trillium Foundation for its leadership and vision,” said Katherine Carleton, Executive Director of Orchestras Canada. “This grant has enabled us to respond to the unprecedented challenges faced by Ontario’s orchestras with both precision and generosity. Thank you, OTF!”
Orchestras Canada has curated and hosted an online “Festival of Learning” throughout November and December to share what’s been learned during the Resilient Ontario Orchestras project with the broader orchestral community.
Orchestras Canada is the national association for Canadian orchestras, with a mission to support, connect, and challenge Canadian orchestras, helping them accomplish together what they cannot do alone. Orchestras Canada proudly serves and represents orchestras in every Canadian province, including youth and training orchestras, volunteer-driven and community-based smaller budget orchestras, as well as regional and major professional orchestras.
The Ontario Trillium Foundation is an agency of the Government of Ontario, and one of Canada’s leading granting foundations. Last year, nearly $112M was invested into 1,384 community projects and partnerships to build healthy and vibrant communities and strengthen the impact of Ontario’s non-profit sector. In 2020/21,OTF supported Ontario’s economic recovery by helping non-profit organizations rebuild and recover from the impacts of COVID-19. Visit otf.ca to learn more.
