Hosted by APRA AMCOS and the Australian Music Centre, the awards recognise excellence in new Australian music.

At a gala ceremony yesterday evening at the City Recital Hall, Angel Place in Sydney, the winners of the 2015 Art Music Awards, hosted by APRA AMCOS and the Australian Music Centre were revealed. The awards are the most prestigious in Australia recognising the achievements of artists and organisations presenting and creating new works of Australian music. In total 11 national and six state category winners were announced across the genres of contemporary art music, jazz and experimental music, although notably only a single woman was recognised with an award this year.

Hosted by Fenella Kernebone, with performances curated by recorder virtuoso Genevieve Lacey, the awards began with an address from the CEO of APRA AMCOS, Brett Cottle, who announced the establishment of a major new funding programme to “sure up Australian composition”. Pledging an initial investment of $100,000 annually, the APRA Art Music Commissioning Fund will support the creation of new music to abate the “greatly troubling decline of Australian composition.”

Following Cottle’s announcement, CEO of the Australian Music Centre, John Davis, delivered an address warning of the wider impact on...