CoLAB, Omega Ensemble’s Composer Accelerator Program for emerging composers was created so that the next generation of Australian musical talent can test ideas, refine them, challenge them and hear them come to life by Omega’s exceptional ensemble of musicians.

This commissioning and mentorship program is the beating heart of what Omega Ensemble does: nurturing new Australian music. This is why CoLAB was created: to future proof this vital sector of our creative industry. And this is why, too, CoLAB is the most sought-after composer development program in Australia.

Now in its sixth year, CoLAB exists to support the next generation of Australian composers by giving them what emerging artists so rarely receive: time, space, mentorship, the finest professional musicians and a public platform for their work.

As Prof. Matthew Hindson AM, Deputy Dean of the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, recently said of CoLAB - that for an emerging composer, having their music performed by outstanding musicians is where they “learn the most.” 

Another of Australia’s most celebrated composers and CoLAB mentor, Holly Harrison, has described the program as vital because it grants composers the chance to hear and reshape ideas in direct collaboration with performers. It is the kind of experience that can transform not only a single work, but an artist’s confidence and entire creative future.

Australian music is sustained through generosity: the generosity of artists, mentors, musicians, audiences and patrons who believe in the power of new work.

But, alas, CoLAB cannot happen without support.

Such giving as what you, our community, may be disposed to make - to helps fund the commissioning of new Australian works. Your support provides emerging composers with mentorship and guidance from leading national and international composers; it funds workshops, rehearsals and performances; it makes possible composer residencies such as that which Omega Ensemble has recently established with Bundanon; and, crucially, it helps create sustainable, long-term careers for Australian music to reach audiences across the nation and globally.

Giving to CoLAB is a way of standing behind Australian Music and our homegrown composers whose work may one day define this country’s cultural voice.

A gift to the Omega Ensemble opens pathways for all Australian artists. To support us is to participate in the creation of art itself.

Thank you for being part of this journey, and for helping us champion the future of Australian music.

Michael Napthali
Chief Executive Officer
Omega Ensemble