The MusiCounts Band Aid Program allocates grants of up to $15,000 to schools to start or refurbish their music program. It supports any approach to music education and the purchase of any kind of musical instruments and equipment.

“We are so excited for the 2023 MusiCounts Band Aid Program Recipients! With these much-needed funds, educators will be able to help the kids who need it most get the benefit of music in their lives,” says Kristy Fletcher, President of MusiCounts. “While it’s a thrill to make this announcement, we must remember the overwhelming need of schools and communities across the country. We still have so much more to do, and I would encourage anyone who believes in the power of music to reach out and get involved.”

The MusiCounts Band Aid Program aims to support the most in-need young people and provide them access to the benefits of music education. Nearly half of the 2023 recipient schools are building new music programs with MusiCounts’ support.

The students at Runnymede Collegiate Institute in Toronto, ON come from all kinds of backgrounds and experiences, including a significant proportion of BIPOC students, Ukranians making Canada their new home, and students struggling with mental health. The educators at Runnymede know how powerful music can be in building community, resilience, and identity, and will be using their MusiCounts grant to purchase two full sets of steelpan drums, and additional instruments for a keyboard ensemble.

The rural community of Blacks Harbour, NB faces significant economic challenges, which means that any community fundraising supports food security, leaving Blacks Harbour Elementary without any funds to ensure kids benefit from music programming. The school will be using their MusiCounts grant to purchase a full set of ukuleles and barred instruments, which will likely be the only access to musical instruments kids in this community have.

Chase Secondary School in Chase, BC has turned students away from the concert band and jazz programming for years because their existing instrument inventory is over 20 years old and is not sufficient in numbers to meet the demand at the school. With the help of MusiCounts, the school will be able to replace their instruments and buy enough to make sure that every student who wants to learn and play, can.

Since 1997, the MusiCounts Band Aid Program has invested nearly $13 million to support 1363 school music programs to sustain existing programs or build entirely new ones, but there is still more work to be done. Critical underfunding has left school music programs across the country in a state of disrepair; music educators are not supported with the resources to keep up with the cost of running quality, consistent programming. Often, adapting and evolving music education to reflect student identities and interests, or to mirror the dynamic Canadian music landscape, is difficult or simply not possible for schools given the level of underfunding.

MusiCounts relies on individuals and corporate citizens to support its music education programs and grants, and the level of need continues to exceed the national charity’s ability to help. This year, the charity was only able to support one in every five schools that applied for funding.

MusiCounts is Canada’s music education charity associated with CARAS and the JUNO Awards. MusiCounts’ vision is to ensure that all youth in Canada have access to music education through their schools and communities. This vision is realized through grant programs that invest directly into schools and communities across Canada that put musical instruments into the hands of kids who need them the most.

MusiCounts is funded by many of Canada’s most dedicated individuals, events, and corporate citizens. Since 1997 MusiCounts has awarded over $16,000,000 in support of music education in Canada. These funds have benefitted over 1,500 schools and comSchools with most needy young people to receive $825,000 in musical instrumentsmunities, supported over 290 post-secondary music program graduates, and honoured 18 extraordinary music teachers and seven MusiCounts Inspired Mind Ambassadors.