CoDI Weave: Voice and Strings

Calling music-creators of any genre to compose for voice and string quartet.

This creative development pathway offers 5 Wales-based music-creators the opportunity to explore and develop new approaches to writing for voice and string quartet alongside vocalist and poet Bethany Celyn, and Quartet Draig, with mentorship from composer Supriya Nagarajan.

Through studio workshops, mentoring and collaboration with the performers, selected artists will experiment with the relationship between text, voice and strings, creating ambitious new work that reflects and expands their own musical language and creative practice.

We welcome applications from artists working in Welsh or English, and from every musical genre. This pathway involves creating performance materials for the performers, and applications are welcomed from music-creators who use standard notation, as well as those whose practice involves graphic, visual, experimental or other non-classical approaches to communicating musical ideas, including work rooted in oral traditions and improvisation.

If you feel your music and creative practice would benefit from this opportunity to develop new work within a supportive cohort of artists, we'd love to hear from you.

ABOUT THE PATHWAY

Participants will develop a single new work throughout the programme, exploring and refining ideas at each in-person workshop with Quartet Draig, Bethany Celyn, and lead composer Supriya Nagarajan.

The workshops are designed as collaborative studio sessions where artists can experiment, test ideas and receive feedback directly from performers, mentors and fellow participants. Each music-creator will have dedicated time to work with the quartet and vocalist on their own piece, while also learning through observing and discussing the development of everyone else's work.

Across all CoDI pathways, we aim to create welcoming spaces where artists feel able to take creative risks: to experiment, challenge themselves and expand their music in new (and sometimes unfamiliar!) directions.

Between workshops, participants will continue developing their work independently, supported through one-to-one mentoring sessions with the lead mentor and members of the Tŷ Cerdd team. Support may include creative guidance, technical advice and notation support where appropriate.

Applicants should consider the time commitment involved between workshops. Materials will need to be submitted in advance of each session to allow performers sufficient preparation time. Where appropriate, this may include conventional scores, graphic notation, recordings, lead sheets, performance notes or other materials suitable for communicating your ideas to the performers.

OPEN TO ALL GENRES

The CoDI pathways are open to artists working in any musical genre. Whether your practice is rooted in folk, classical, jazz, pop, electronic, hip hop, experimental, or something in between, we welcome applications from musicians who are ready to develop their creative practice and learn alongside others.

DATES

All at Tŷ Cerdd Studio, Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff

Sunday 13 September – Workshop #1 (Introduction)

Sunday October 25 – Workshop #2

Friday 11 December – Workshop #3

Monday 18 January – Workshop #4

Monday 15 March – Final sharing

One-to-one mentoring sessions will take place between workshops and will be arranged at mutually convenient times.

The work created will be recorded to share with the participants. There may be an opportunity to further release the works, but this will be subject to a separate agreement to take place at a later date.

Please ensure you are available for the dates in the Tŷ Cerdd studio before applying, and that you can commit time between sessions to developing your work.

FEES AND EXPENSES

Each participating music-creator will receive a fee of £1000 together with travel expenses for journeys within Wales.

Please note that, due to funding stipulations, only travel within Wales can be reimbursed. Accommodation will be provided where necessary, in line with Tŷ Cerdd's travel and expenses policy.

WHO ARE WE?

Tŷ Cerdd | Music Wales is committed to supporting and developing new music from Wales of all genres. Artists taking part in our pathways come from every genre and musical background, with or without formal training. Our CoDI 2026-27 programme celebrates experimentation, encouraging the creation of ambitious, original music made in Wales.

Supriya Nagarajan is a British-Indian vocalist, composer, producer and interdisciplinary artist whose work reimagines South Indian classical (Carnatic) music through collaborations with contemporary music, jazz, sound art, environmental practice and immersive performance. As founder and Artistic Director of the Yorkshire-based arts organisation Manasamitra, she has spent over two decades creating cross-genre projects that bring together musicians, scientists, visual artists, writers and communities to explore themes including climate change, wellbeing, migration and cultural identity.

Her acclaimed works include Lullaby – Sonic Cradle, Meltwater, Ultimate Breath, Other Voices, Sound of Tea and Slumber Stories, all of which combine live performance, installation, participation and innovative sound design. Her work has been presented nationally and internationally at venues and festivals including the Royal Albert Hall, Southbank Centre, Royal Opera House, Wigmore Hall, Harpa Concert Hall (Iceland), Casa da Música (Portugal), Riverside Theatres Sydney, WOMAD, Ultima Oslo and the Jaipur Literature Festival.

Alongside her artistic practice, Supriya is an experienced mentor, producer and creative leader. She has supported emerging artists through workshops, residencies, one-to-one mentoring, community music programmes and collaborative research projects, championing intercultural dialogue and artistic innovation. Her participatory approach places communities at the centre of the creative process, fostering collaboration across generations and cultures.

Her work continues to demonstrate how traditional musical practices can inspire bold contemporary performance while creating meaningful connections between people, place and the environment.

Bethany Celyn (Beth Celyn) is a singer-songwriter, composer and poet from the Vale of Clwyd, based in Ceredigion. Known for her warm, soaring vocals and love of the piano, she has collaborated with the likes of Sinfonia Cymru, chamber folk trio Vrï and artist Manon Awst. She also branches beyond Wales and has collaborated with musicians from other minoritised language cultures such as Breton artist Perynn Bleunven (of Emezi).

Bethany often interweaves her music and poetry in creative projects, and is a former member of the all-female poetry group Cywion Cranogwen and multidisciplinary collective TAIR. She is also no stranger to TV & radio and the numerous stages of Wales and beyond, and is passionate about creating opportunities and sharing her craft. She often hosts workshops and has taught folk singing to children, young people and adults on the Trac Cymru courses Gwerin Iau, Gwerin Gwallgo and Ambell i Gân.

Quartet Draig is a Welsh string quartet formed in 2020 at the Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama, where they won the Albion String Quartet and Bridgewood & Neitzert chamber prizes. They have appeared at Wigmore Hall, served as Junior Quartet in Residence at the ESTA Conference in 2021, and were Young Artists at the Cowbridge Music Festival in 2023 and 2024. Praised by critic Richard Bratby for their “energy” and “buoyancy of tutti sound”, the quartet are committed to championing music by Welsh composers.

ELIGIBILITY

You are eligible to apply if you:

are creating original music
have been based in Wales for at least one year, or were born in Wales and now live elsewhere
are aged 18 or over
can commit to attending all workshop dates in person.

This pathway welcomes applications from artists working with standard notation as well as those whose creative practice uses oral, improvised, graphic or alternative approaches to creating and communicating music.

When applying, please also consider the time commitment involved in developing your work between workshops. Score deadlines will fall in advance of each session to allow performers adequate preparation time.

Travel bursaries are available for journeys within Wales only.

We particularly encourage applications from artists who:

have faced socio-economic and/or systemic barriers to opportunities to develop their practice or music in the past
identify as disabled and/or neurodivergent
are Black, Asian or from the global majority
identify as LGBTQIA+
are working-class.

If you’re interested, but you have some questions…

…we can chat with you directly by phone or Zoom. Email jordan.pricewilliams@tycerdd.org or call to arrange a chat.

HOW TO APPLY

Upload the following information to our online PORTAL

1. Personal details: your name, preferred pronouns, email address, mobile number, address, plus confirmation that you are over 18.

2. Tell us about your practice (Max. 200 words) : Tell us what you love to do as an artist/music-creator and what you’ve been most proud of. As part of your answer, please tell us whether you use musical notation, and how you make your work.

3. Why would you like to be part of this pathway? (Max. 400 words) Please tell us about:

The nature of what you’d like to learn through this pathway, and how you hope it might impact your work.

Your interest in composing for string quartet.

Your interest in and approach to the voice.

How working in a cohort of artists will benefit you.

4. Examples of your work: please include links to two pieces of your music (NB: please send links rather than sound or video files; if you need help creating links, contact enquiries@tycerdd.org.) Please choose examples that best reflect your music now and/or are relevant to your approach to this opportunity.

5. Do you have any access requirements or other information that you would like to share with us?

At Tŷ Cerdd, we follow the social model of disability – recognising that barriers exist in environments, and societal structures, not in people themselves. We invite you to share details of any support you may need to enable you to participate in this pathway, but this is entirely optional at this stage of your application. You will also be invited to share and discuss your access riders and requirements with us at any point in the project should you be offered a place on the programme.

Any access information provided to us at this stage will not be shared with the panel unless you request for it to be included it as part of your application (please note this below).

ALTERNATIVE APPLICATION FORMATS

Applications are also welcomed in audio or video format.

Please record your responses to Questions 2 and 3 (up to 4 minutes in total) and upload a link to your recording, alongside the information requested in Questions 1, 4 and 5.

If you need help creating or sharing a recording, please contact jordan.pricewilliams@tycerdd.org or enquiries@tycerdd.org.

CRITERIA

The panel will assess applications based on the following criteria:

The extent to which the applicant shows a strong and relevant creative approach to the pathway.
NB This does not mean you need to apply with a fixed project idea; rather that you show the panel how this opportunity is relevant to your creative approach and the direction of your work.

The extent to which the applicant shows they/their music will benefit from this pathway at this time.

The extent to which the applicant demonstrates how they will benefit from the mentoring and cohort aspects of this pathway.

The originality, quality and potential shown in the music examples you submit.

TIMELINE & PROCESS

Deadline for applications: Monday 17 August, 10am

Decision communicated to applicants: on or before Friday 28 August.

The panel will consist of Deborah Keyser and Jordan Price Williams (both of Tŷ Cerdd) and Supriya Nagarajan (composer-mentor).

Feedback will be available on request.

QUESTIONS

If you'd like to discuss the opportunity before applying, we'd be happy to arrange a phone or Zoom conversation.

Please contact jordan.pricewilliams@tycerdd.org or enquiries@tycerdd.org.

We want to remove as many barriers to applying as possible, so if there's anything you'd like to discuss, please get in touch and we'll do our best to help.