A non-partisan advocacy group of arts organizations and associations from across the country is sounding the alarm over potential spending cuts on the federal level aimed at the arts, culture and heritage sector. The Canadian Arts Coalition is responding to reports that cabinet ministers were asked to find 15% in spending cuts ahead of the first budget presented by Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government later this fall. This includes the Department of Canadian Heritage, which oversees, among other things, the funding of the Canada Council for the Arts. .embed-container { position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0; overflow: hidden; max-width: 100%; } .embed-container iframe, .embed-container object, .embed-container embed { position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; } According to August Murphy-King, the general manager of the Canadian League of Composers (a member of the Canadian Arts Coalition), cuts like these would have a dramatic effect on the ability to create new works in Canada. “About 45% of composers in Canada have received funding from the Canada Council over the course of the past five years,” he said in an interview on Morning Light where he also highlighted funding to ensembles including the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra, which receives just over a million dollars a year in federal funding. Murphy-King notes that funding cuts to arts organizations also have a direct impact on composers, who rely on funding for larger-scale commissions in addition to their own works. “As you move up the ranks of being a composer... you’re really looking at the bulk of a composer’s commissioning fee coming from the Canada Council. Suffice it to say that if that funding doesn’t come through, one of two things will happen: either the composer has to take a pay cut – and composers already don’t exactly make a lot of money – or the piece just simply doesn’t get created.” These potential cuts come at a time where the Canadian League of Composers is noticing earnings of less than $30,000 a year for the average composer due to fewer live music opportunities in a sector still dealing with the aftereffects of the COVID-19 public health lockdowns. “I’ve seen many of my friends and colleagues... they have left the business. They’re doing other things. And I can only imagine that the less money there is in the ecosystem, more people will simply go, and maybe they’ll go to law school, maybe they’ll become and accountant – who knows – but there will be fewer and fewer composers.” Artists responding to potential funding shortfall The Canadian Arts Coalition is responding to these potential cuts by creating a letter-writing campaign that has been signed onto by over 8,000 Canadians. The letter speaks to the concerns that Murphy-King outlines and calls for an additional $330 million investment, $140 million of which to be allocated to the Canada Council for the Arts. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Canadian Arts Coalition (@artscoalitionca) “We have surveys that show over 80% of Canadians believe that the arts and culture sector contributes to our national identity, contributes to community,” says Murphy-King. “This campaign has provided folks a vehicle to let elected officials know that this matters.” “Once they’re gone, creative workers don’t return when times improve,” the letter reads in part. “As talent leaves, momentum dies, and the damage lasts for generations. We don’t have time to wait.” Classic 107 reached out to the Department of Canadian Heritage for comment on this story. They did not send a response ahead of press time. This story will be updated to reflect their position if a response is received.