Continuo Foundation launches digital platform

Florence Lockheart
Tuesday, March 21, 2023

Continuo Connect will promote access to period-instrument music for UK audiences through concert listings and resources

Dunedin Consort have received a Continuo grant for their project which will see them present the first ever staged UK performances of Elisabeth Jacquet de la Guerre’s ‘Cantatas Bibliques’ in collaboration with HERA and Mahogany Opera
Dunedin Consort have received a Continuo grant for their project which will see them present the first ever staged UK performances of Elisabeth Jacquet de la Guerre’s ‘Cantatas Bibliques’ in collaboration with HERA and Mahogany Opera

Arts charity Continuo Foundation has today announced the launch of its digital hub, Continuo Connect, promoting access to period-instrument music for UK audiences. The platform will operate alongside the foundation’s grant-giving activities with a further round of grants announced today.

Continuo Connect includes a comprehensive event listing, searchable by location, designed the let audiences know about concerts across the UK, especially those which have received less publicity. The platform currently features more than 90 upcoming events, listed by the 87 ensembles signed up to the site so far.

Ben Vanderspar, who is a partner at consulting company McKinsey & Co and was part of the advisory group on the digital project, said: ‘We are thrilled with the feedback from early users. Ensembles and audiences have been very reliant on word of mouth and printed flyers – the Connect site changes that and is by far the most comprehensive place to find out what’s happening in UK early music. The hub aims to more than double audiences within a year.’

The foundation aims to help musicians gain larger and more diverse audiences by marketing Connect on behalf of all the ensembles present on the platform. The hub will also be home to digital resources for musicians, augmenting the impact of Continuo's grants on recipients.

Continuo will also support to the UK Early Music sector through a further £100,000 in grants, with recipients announced today. This recent round brings the total invested by Continuo since its inception in September 2020 to £560,000.

This latest round of awards will support over 80 projects including performances and recordings across the UK over the next six months. With a total of 27 ensembles benefitting, this fifth round of grants will offer funds to 12 groups that have not previously received Continuo grants, and eight recently formed ensembles. You can find out more about this round’s grant recipients here.

Tina Vadaneaux, Continuo’s Founder and CEO said: ‘Once again, we have been overwhelmed by the quality and variety of the projects proposed. It is a joy to enable this talent and creativity to be shared with thousands of people in communities all over the country, brought together through the experience of live music.’