Mia Dyson Receives $15,000 Grant From PPCA & Australia Council

The 'Idyllwild' scribe was awarded the grant along with four other contemporaries

Celebrated Aussie singer-songwriter Mia Dyson is $15,000 richer after she was awarded one of five recording grants being offered jointly by the Phonographic Performance Company Of Australia (PPCA) and the Australia Council.

Along with Dyson — who will use the grant money to record and release three EPs over 12 months, with each being recorded in a different city with a different producer — grants also went to Alex Masso of Sydney jazz group The Vampires, who will use the cash to record their fifth album; Geneveive Campbell, set to create a body of new work based on traditional Tiwi songs featuring collaborator Teresita Puruntatameri; contemporary chamber musician Luke Howard, whose second album is in the pipeline now; and WA outfit The Growl, who will head to Los Angeles to record their third studio full-length.

From left: Australia Council CEO Tony Grybowski, PPCA CEO Dan rosen, Jeremy Rose of The Vampires, Sen. The Hon George Brandis QC. (Pic by Branco Gaica)

"We are extremely pleased to have been able to partner with the Australia Council for a second successive year to give local artists an opportunity to create and record their music," PPCA chief executive Dan Rosen said in a statement. "The range and number of applicants under the program has been extraordinary, and on behalf of PPCA I would like to congratulate all of the artists who were successful in securing grant funding.

"We wish all the recipients the very best with their recordings and we look forward to hearing the result as they emerge. I would like to thank the Australia Council for their ongoing assistance and look forward to our continuing partnership."

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Australia Council chief executive Tony Grybowski echoed Rosen's sentiments in a statement of his own: "These grants represent our shared ambition to support outstanding artists realise their creative potential, and I'm pleased to see musicians from a range of genres have been successful."

PPCA represents the interests of Aussie musicians when their tunes are played in public; last year alone, the organisation distributed almost $33 million to its registered artists and labels. Registration is free for Australian artists, so hit the PPCA website and take a look at your options.