SVBF Awarded NEA Grant for 2025-26 Season!
We are thrilled to announce that we have been awarded a $12,000 grant by the National Endowment for the Arts!
The Grants for Arts Projects (GAP) award will support general operations of the 34th annual Shenandoah Valley Bach Festival, which will be held in June 2026.
Les Helmuth, interim manager of the SVBF, said this marks the first time the festival has received an NEA grant. “It’s amazing to be recognized by the NEA for the quality of the artists and other key individuals involved in creating great music for the Shenandoah Valley,” he said. “It’s truly an honor to be the recipient of an NEA grant.”
Bach Festival Artistic Director and EMU Music Program Director David Berry noted that receiving support from the NEA has long been a prestigious mark of distinction for any arts organization. “We’re grateful the NEA has chosen to support the Shenandoah Valley Bach Festival as we celebrate our 34th year next June,” he said. “This honor speaks to how special the festival truly is and its great legacy of beautiful music-making.”
Amanda Gookin, previous executive director of the SVBF, wrote and applied for the GAP grant. It is one of more than 1,100 GAP awards nationwide, totaling more than $31.8 million, announced by the NEA on Tuesday.
“The NEA is proud to continue our nearly 60 years of supporting the efforts of organizations and artists that help to shape our country’s vibrant arts sector and communities of all types across our nation,” said NEA Chair Maria Rosario Jackson, PhD. “It is inspiring to see the wide range of creative projects taking place, including EMU’s Shenandoah Valley Bach Festival.”
View the full NEA announcement here.