Musical excellence comes in all forms – from classical to metal – and the State Government is investing in talented bands right across the spectrum through Arts SA’s Contemporary music grants program. LATEST NEWS: Funding Deadline and Info Session

Carclew Youth Arts has opened applications for young artists to apply for a share of $50,000 in Project and Development Grants. The funding is made available through Carclew for artists aged 26 and under to develop creative projects with a tangible outcome and to pursue career development opportunities (including in the field of music).

On 26 January beloved Adelaide station Three D Radio broadcast & streamed its annual countdown of the Top 100+1 for 2011. Full results, including the #1 spot can now be revealed in this feature article - congrats all!

Massive congratulations to South Australia's Kelly Menhennett, who last night won the Songwriter category of The Telstra Road to Discovery Competition 2012!

Youth Arts Queensland have announced the participants of the 2012 JUMP National Mentoring Program. Seventy-five young and emerging artists - the largest ever intake into an Australian artist mentoring program - have made their artistic match and, over the next ten months, will work with respected arts professionals to advance their careers and make their mark on the Australian arts industry. See who's on SA's list...

MMF Australia is holding a series of OnLine Net Forums, and you're invited to attend, enjoying the action from your own computer screen!

Courtesy of the good folks at Derringers Music & Taylor Guitars, The 2012 Taylor Road Show is coming to town! Get set for an evening of guitar talk & demos with the Taylor factory staff & guitar makers, straight From El Cajon, California.

The Fringe Benefits Spin DJ Competition is back again to uncover Adelaide’s best DJs, giving one lucky winner the chance to play their own set at the exclusive Fringe Club where artists, VIPs and industry big-wigs hang out during Adelaide Fringe!

Prospect Council is hosting a weekly music event for young people each Saturday afternoon at Prospect Town Hall from 3pm. With mostly Indie sounds being provided by a local bands whose members are all aged under 19 , this is a great chance to check out some local music talent and help to kick along an Indie scene in Prospect.

The St Jerome's Laneways Festival has announced an exciting new partnership to assist emerging artists. In an Australian First, the St Jerome's Laneway Festival will donate a portion of every ticket sold at the Adelaide leg of the festival to not for profit organisation Music SA to support grass roots music industry and artist development. They have also announced the 'Alleyway' band competition where they will provide the opportunity for a South Australian artist to perform at Laneway. The WINNER have just been revealed...

The Hilltop Hoods Initiative is giving a career changing $10,000, courtesy of Hilltop Hoods and APRA, to an emerging Australian Hip Hop artist or group. Apply now for the 2012 round.

Music SA has partnered with the SA Motor Sport Board, to present Bands On Track - a feast of South Australian live music over 4 days and nights as part of the Adelaide Casino Live Large Concert Series at the Clipsal 500 Adelaide in March 2012. The 15 finalists bands have just been announced, who will compete for 3 spots at the concert series.

Since it began in a small laneway in inner-city Melbourne in 2004, the St Jerome's Laneway Festival has grown to be a highlight event for music lovers around the country. And the winner of the spot on Adelaide's bill has been announced.

The Duke of York (Currie St., Adelaide) is spreading its wings into original music on acoustic Wednesdays, and just announced - live music Friday nights as well!

Music SA is pleased to be working with state and territory organisations via AMIN on a new project to boost creative enterprises, called ‘GENERATE.’

Rising country singer-songwriter Melody Feder has taken out the 11th Anniversary Emily Burrows award in a presentation held this week.

Come and join DAISY’s Band of Debonairs and be an important part of the next Debonair's Luncheon - which is also the Xmas party and 60th Birthday celebration of host, David 'Daisy' Day on Sunday 18 December.

On 23rd February 2010, the SLAM rally saw 20,000 people march through Melbourne to the tune of AC/DC’s definitive ‘Long Way to the Top’, in protest against the Victorian Government’s misguided policy link between live music and violence. Out on the streets of the Melbourne, support and love was shown for a truly great live music community. The SLAM rally was the largest cultural protest in Australia’s history. Now all of Australia has the opportunity to participate in a national event that celebrates local musicians in our nation's small venues.

Announced at Big Sound in September, the extra baggage allowance for touring musicians using Virgin Airlines has now officially been implemented...

Media Resource Centre and Music SA are pleased to announce the 8pm launch of Clip It! on Friday 9 December. Clip It! is a ground breaking production initiative that has partnered eight of South Australia’s rising music artists with eight of our brightest local filmmaking teams. With valuable support from major sponsor Canon Australia, the initiative has seen filmmakers produce outstanding music video clips that demonstrate the high calibre of Adelaide’s up-and-coming talent.

“Rockin’ Rocks!” A new monthly rock club will launch January 6th in Bar 3 at Enigma bar. The night will showcase local and interstate talent and feature members of local bands spinning their favourite rock tunes.

The International Songwriting Competition (ISC), one of the world's largest songwriting competitions, has launched Unsigned Only, a new, unique international music competition.

From 6-21 January in 2012, Sessions will deliver an assortment of live music from across the globe and Australia showcasing 18 acts over 11 nights in the Space Theatre. With international acts on their first Australian tours and others returning with brand new shows, Sessions offers a fresh take on music for a diverse range of tastes.

The Jam Room has organised a new, informal industry 'catch up' night, which aims to help foster relationships within the local music industry, put faces to names, and generally discuss issues facing our work within the SA scene.

The Elder Conservatorium of Music is proud to offer South Australia’s first degree-level course in contemporary popular music: the Bachelor of Music (Popular Music and Creative Technologies). This program, which is unique to Elder Conservatorium, responds to the current demands of the contemporary music industry and arms students with the knowledge and skills to excel as music professionals.

The popular 'In Conversation' series at the Adelaide Festival Centre is proud to announce that its next session will delve into the realm of the music industry, with the topic "Trends, Venues, Habits: The evolution of the music experience."

The Media Resource Centre are thrilled to announce the winning entries for Silent ReMasters, a contemporary tribute to the art of silent film accompaniment. The four winning South Australian composers and musicians will each re-score a famous silent film and play their original soundtrack live on stage as the film flickers behind them on the big screen at The Mercury. The results will screen at the cinema from Monday, 21 November.

Calling all South Australians who are looking to boost their career skills in creative events! Register your interest in being part of a "creative event training intensive" to be held in Adelaide, Friday 6 January - Friday 27 January 2012.

Entries are now open for the 2012 Golden Fiddle Awards. The Awards are designed for players of country, classical, folk, rock, jazz, punk, Celtic, bluegrass and alternate violin, and is reputed to be the first awards system embracing all musical styles, and focuses on nurturing, supporting and rewarding the wealth of violin playing, performance and composing talent in Australia and New Zealand.

Music Victoria is currently working with music industry bodies and musicians to better understand some of the issues currently facing Australian musicians and is conducting national research on musicians’ access to Centrelink. This data will be used to help formulate a submission to the Federal Government‘s National Cultural Policy.

Want to really know how the music business works? Want to learn from industry professionals who are actually doing it? Then Music SA's Music Business courses are for you. LATEST NEWS: Music SA Courses featured on ABC TV

Music SA's Annual Music Industry Quiz sold out again this year, and here's photo proof of some of the happy punters who helped make it another fun event!

Music SA thought it might be handy to have a bunch of South Australian music videos in one collection.... so we've started a channel on YouTube!

The 2011 Eco Arts Awards is now accepting entries in six categories: Songwriting, Short Videos, Photography, Poetry, Fine Art, and Functional Art. There is $1000 cash to each first place winner!

A great opportunity has arrived for the right individual to be part of the innovative youth music centre, Northern Sound System (NSS). This position will be responsible for the entire space at the Northern Sound System which will include licensed bar and technical equipment.

South Australian singer songwriter, Danny Hooper, has won Coopers Country: The Australian Song Competition. In a clean sweep, Coopers Animal Health is pleased to announce that Danny has won both the major prize of $15,000 for his song You’re in good hands, and the People’s Choice award of $5000 for Dreamland.

A new report launched today (19 September 2011) shows the immense value of venue-based live music to the Australian economy, with the contribution (in terms of gross output, value add and employment) for '09/'10 in excess of a billion dollars.

Musicians from every metro, regional and rural high school across Australia are being given an opportunity like never before, the chance of scoring a recording deal with Sony Music Entertainment to the value of $50,000 as well as being included in the lineup at Australia’s biggest touring music festival the Big Day Out 2012 all thanks to MySchoolAct, powered by Motorola.

National Campus Band Comp (NCBC) is the largest live band competition in the southern hemisphere. NCBC has been running on Australian university and TAFE campuses across the country for 21 years providing audiences with some truly memorable moments and memorable bands. Each year up to 400 bands from over 40 institutions compete live, looking to be crowned national winners of this prestigious and highly respected competition.

A year ago, two South Australian musicians began a weekly muso jam (open mic) night at the Exchange Hotel in Gawler, with the intention of providing an opportunity for musicians from beginner to professional to perform in front of an audience with all equipment supplied. Presented by Human Jukebox, "Live Music Exchange" is now one year old with a consistent Wednesday night following, but there’s a new twist. On the first Wednesday of every month the jam will have a theme!

Show your passion for musical diversity – Subscribe during Three D’s Radiothon 2011: Friday 19 August - Sunday 28 August. Your support makes Three D Radio unique. As a truly independent community radio station, they rely on the support of dedicated listeners to keep the station on air.

BIGSOUND approaches its 10th Anniversary in 2011 with a reputation as the best and most relevant music event in Australia. Every year BIGSOUND hand picks the hottest new acts to showcase their talent to these industry visonaries in one of the many venues throughout the Valley. The full conference program, speaker list and showcasing acts have now been announced.

National Campus Band Comp (NCBC) is the largest live band competition in the southern hemisphere. NCBC has been running on Australian university and TAFE campuses across the country for 21 years providing audiences with some truly memorable moments and memorable bands. Each year up to 400 bands from over 40 institutions compete live, looking to be crowned national winners of this prestigious and highly respected competition. Hurry! Uni SA campuses are still looking for acts!

Do you sing, dance, play an instrument or are you in a band? Why not audition for the 2011 Youth Talent Night! Entries are open until 5pm on Friday 19 August for people aged 12-25 in vocal, dance, instrumental and band categories.

Register by Friday 5 August if you want to get the special Earlybird rate for Delegates to the Australasian World Music Expo 2011. Over the last three years the Australasian World Music Expo (AWME) has established itself as a major international music industry event pioneering new networks and creating opportunities for musicians world wide by engaging with industry representatives from around the globe.

The Mind Share website is a project of the Mental Health Coalition of SA, and will contain digital stories, short documentaries, a blog site, creative writing, poetry, art images and music. It is being developed by the Media Resource Centre and is funded by Arts SA. The MHC is also seeking Musicians to fill an hour’s set at the Grace Emily once a month on Tuesday night working with On the Fly Improv Troupe.

The folks at The Seed wanted to let you know about an exciting new fundraising venture. Their pals at Tunes For Change are kindly donating 100% of profits from the sale of a hot Aussie compilation album to "The Seed Fund: an art's grant council".

Prepared in conjunction with Austrade's Education Unit, this series of videos explores the key issues facing Australian music exporters today. Candid interviews with several artist managers and industry personnel reveal the highs and lows of the business of music exports.

Over the past nine years, the British Council Realise Your Dream programme has gained a reputation as one of Australia’s leading creative industry prizes. In 2011 winners could receive $8K cash, return flight to London and a tailored professional development programme. They're open to applications from emerging practitioners working or studying across the spectrum of creative fields including music, visual arts, design, architecture, digital media and performing arts.

As part of Mental Health Week 2011 (9-15 October), the Big Circle Arts Collective are organising an Art Exhibition and Cabaret Opening Event at The Bakehouse Theatre. The event will be held on Monday October 10th from 6.00 – 9.00pm, and they are currently calling for possible participants to help create a fun and vibrant opening event for the exhibition.

Applications are now open for ACCELERATE, a unique professional development initiative designed to boost and further the careers of Indigenous Australians working in the arts. Apply by 22 July 2011.

The Southern Stars - aka The Australian Independent Country Music Awards - are closing soon for nominations. You have until next Thursday 30th June to get your entries in. There are 9 categories, and winners will be announced during the upcoming Mildura Country Music Festival 2011.

Rising Stars is Adelaide’s biggest and most exciting new live music experience. Season one launches Friday the 8th of July at Heaven and continues weekly each Friday night for ten weeks. The purpose of Rising Stars is to nurture up and coming singers and singer / instrumentalists by providing them an opportunity to perform live in an in-concert music event; an Australian first concept.

SCALA (Songwriters, Composers And Lyricists Association) is now accepting entries in its annual Festival of Original Music Song Competition (FOOM). Entries are sought in Live Performance, Demo open, Demo instrumental, Studio open, Studio instrumental and Lyrics Only. Winning songs from all except the Lyrics section are recorded for release on a SCALA compilation album whilst the winning lyric wins a cash prize.

SA Roots and Blues in association with 'The Juke Joint' and through the generous sponsorship of Derringers Music is proud to present The 2011 Derringers Music Adelaide Blues Awards. Nominations are being sought for 'Service To Blues' now.

Coopers' Sounds After Dark promotion gives you the chance to win double passes to an exclusive gig featuring My Disco & Tumbleweed on 31 July at the Gov - and if you're in a band, you can enter to win a spot on the lineup!

Get your vocal chords ready for some inspiration with the GreenRoom and centrED are proud to announce the exclusive ‘Soweto Song and Dance Workshop’ with two-time Grammy Award winning Soweto Gospel Choir. Hurry! Register by 31 May. This workshop is exclusive to Adelaide Festival Centre’s GreenRoom members.

Alliance Française d'Adelaïde is pleased to announce that Adelaide will again take part in Fête de la Musique, an international day of musical celebration and community participation. This is the fourth year in which the worldwide festival will be held in Adelaide, and you can apply to participate if you want to be part of th fun!

Have you worked as a musician or technician at venues offering live music in the past 12 months? Want the chance to win a $250 gift voucher to Billy Hyde Music Retailers? Innovation & Business Skills Australia (IBSA) is a government body researching the economic benefit that casual, informally contracted musicians and technicians (such as sound and lighting engineers) offer to venues that play live music. They also want to identify your training and skills needs.

The search is on again for new and emerging Australian independent artists with entries open now for the New Artists 2 Radio (NA2R) competition, which is celebrating its tenth year. NA2R is a commercial radio initiative which aims to discover the next big independent music artist to be played on radio throughout the country. The event is open to unsigned independent artists who have not charted in the top 100 Australian national airplay chart.

Here’s your chance to have an original composition workshopped, performed and recorded by the Australian String Quartet. The ASQ’s inaugural National Composers’ Forum was held last year at the University of Adelaide with Carl Vine as composer-in-residence. This year the event will run from 12-14 August 2011 with Matthew Hindson and James Ledger as joint composers-in-residence.

There's a new venture in town and it could be your ticket to getting more gigs! Duncan Oliver is a live entertainment booking agency run by business partners Christian Oliver and Dave Duncan, who have over 10 years experience in the music industry both as performers and booking agents.

Is your band ready for radio? I Am With The Band is back for 2011 and this year Nova has teamed up with the National Drugs Campaign to look for Australia’s hottest new acts.

The Australia Council is inviting Australian dancers, choreographers, musicians and composers to apply for a new creative development grant.

To celebrate the announcement of Tokyo 2011, the Red Bull Music Academy bandwagon will be rolling into the city of churches for two days of gigs and workshops on April the 2nd and 3rd, to encourage the talented musical community of Adelaide to apply to the academy by offering them a taste of what the 2011 Tokyo edition has to offer.

The Queensland Music Network (Q Music) recently launched an online Rock 'n' Roll Auction to raise money for The Premier’s Disaster Relief Appeal – an online event featuring items and experiences generously donated from artists around the globe. ‘Money-can’t-buy’ experience auctions include the chance to meet Katy Perry at her Brisbane concert and a VIP trip to the massive Coachella Festival in the USA flying courtesy of V Australia.

At OzSong International you CHOOSE the prize! Choose between recording a song in Nashville at the prestigious Funhouse Studios with world class Australian Producer Mark Moffat or record in Sydney at Studios 301 with renowned producer Michael Morgan.

“Australia’s Got Talent”, Network Seven’s hit entertainment program, is back on the road searching for anyone of any age with any special skill or talent. Adelaide auditions are coming up soon on 18th November 2010.

Sounds Like Café distributes quality Australian music to over 1200 cafes and coffee shops throughout Australia. Each Sounds Like Café CD features some of Australia's most highly regarded musicians and composers as well as International Bonus Tracks.

If you are an Australian recording artist whose music is being broadcast or you hold the copyright in recordings that are receiving airplay, then you may be able to share in licence fees collected by PPCA. The deadline to register is 15 September 2010.

Louder Than Words is a touring all-ages live music event presented by Music SA with support from Arts SA and Carclew Youth Arts. The project is designed to assist local musicians, music producers, self managed artists, band managers, aspiring band managers, music teachers, and people interested in the music business.

The 2011 South By Southwest Music Festival & Conference is now calling for artist submissions and delegate registration.

Jack Daniels' "JD Set" program gives you the opportunity to stamp your mark on music history forever. Enter as a band for the chance to support Wolfmother, and/or vote for your favourite acts as a punter.

Registrations of interest are now open for musicians who want to perform in Radio Adelaide’s 5th Live Music Fest.

You may have noticed a bit of a change to the Music SA website... We are proud to unveil our new look & logo, thanks to the keen graphic art and technical skills of Simon Perrin Design and JABA Multimedia Design. Scout around to find some all new sections, lots of featured spots, and information galore!

This just in from Fat Trax studio: South Australian band Cosmic Storm, hailing from Gawler, have been working hard crafting thirteen soulful yet punchy rock tracks at Fat Trax Studio during 2009 for their debut album "Nobody's Fool".

Celebrating the best independent music from across the country, the Musicoz Awards are now in their 9th year with 2010 looking to be the best show yet. SA has been well represented, with plenty of local acts in the "top independent artists of their genre", and the top 5 have just been announced....

Hey young Adelaide musical act, looking for the perfect way to launch yourself into the big time? The University of South Australia's Campus Concerts Programme may be just what you're looking for.