The Oram Awards have returned for 2026 to celebrate the unusual, unique and unfiltered creative worlds of women and gender-diverse artists experimenting with sound, music and technology. This year, the organisation seek to award five artists with bursaries of £1500 each, along with mentorship and ongoing support from the Orams team and wider community.
Following on from the energy of their late-2025 grassroots tour — which was held in celebration of Daphne Oram’s centenary — the Oram team say that they hope to reach artists in previously unreached regional areas and encourage applicants from far and wide across the UK. They will be awarding two artists based in England, plus an artist from Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, and have made a commitment to ensure at least two of the selected artists identify as disabled.
The organisation have also announced that they will be partnering with Drake Music to help support disabled artists through their application process and beyond. They say that they acknowledge that improving access and inclusivity is a continuous learning journey, and are welcoming of any potential feedback from applicants.
Applications
In the spirit of Daphne Oram, if you have a unique approach to sound making, if you experiment in an unusual way, if you are bravely unfiltered — Oram are looking for you!
The organisation are welcoming artists from all kinds of backgrounds, pathways, experiences and existences to apply:
- You don’t have to be a performer, you could be an engineer or producer.
- You don’t have to be from academia.
- You don’t need to have had any particular level of ‘success’ — whatever that means!
- We select purely on artistic merit and a clear drive to create more.
To apply you must:
- Identify as woman/trans/non-binary or gender diverse
- Be aged 18 or over.
- Be based in England, Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland.
Applications are open from 09:00 on 15 June until 23:59 on 19 2026 July (five weeks) — access support is available to those who require it. Applicants will be notified on Thursday 13 August 2026.
You can apply via this form, and more information can be found on the Oram Awards website.
About The Oram Awards
If you’re not familiar with the Oram Awards and their work, here’s the organisation’s description of what they’re all about.
"Daphne Oram was a radical pioneer of electronics and sound, working in a male-dominated world that often undermined and overshadowed her success. She played a vital role in establishing women at the forefront of sound innovation not only in the UK, but around the world.
The Oram Awards builds on Daphne Oram's legacy as a composer, engineer and founding director of the original BBC Radiophonic Workshop. We elevate the work and voices of women and gender diverse artists innovating in sound, music and related technology. We champion the unusual, the unique, the unfiltered. We support regional communities across the UK facing discriminatory barriers in the music & sound sector. We aim to contribute to long-term change in redressing the gender imbalance in this field, both nationally and internationally.
Since 2017, the annual awards celebrates a new cohort of women and gender diverse artists bringing unique and inquisitive practices to electronic sound and music. From live coding and expressive sound design to tape loop manipulation and electro-acoustic exploration, the artists recognised by the Orams embody the uncompromising, adventurous spirit of the awards' namesake.
Alongside the receipt of a £1500 bursary grant to develop their creative practice, we have expanded to include a six-month mentorship programme for award winners, as well as artist retreats, new commissioned work, live events and sound workshops in partnership with leading festivals and venues across the UK.
We remain committed to supporting artists beyond the initial awards and keep an open-door policy always."
The Orams programme includes:
- Awards Programme: Winners are selected for their innovative approach to music creation, receiving a £1500 bursary to develop their creative practice.
- Mentorship 1:1 Programme: Matching each individual winner with professionals related to their artistic field and interests, offering specific support in sound production, developing their public profile and maintaining sustainable working practices. Offering space for active listening, problem solving, goal setting and responding directly to the areas of support of our mentees.
- Live Events: Giving artists a platform on which to perform their work in partnership with leading contemporary music festivals across the UK. Previous partnerships include Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival; Kings Place, London, Blue Dot Festival; Supersonic Festival, Birmingham; Turner Contemporary, Margate; Iklectik, London; No Bounds Festival, Sheffield.
- Q&A / Panel Talks: As part of our live events, artists with diverse creative practices discuss topics around their use of technology, how technology provides a safe space to explore identity and their own experiences and journeys in the music industry
- Workshops: As part of our live events we run sound and music technology workshops that are open to the public, diversifying access to music technology and sector representation.
- Community Network: We are very proud that our platform is becoming renowned within our field, fostering communities reaching well over 500 participants and transforming the careers of over 50 of the most exciting artists, composers, DJs and instrument designers working across the UK, and Indonesia, Egypt, Palestine and Malaysia.
- New work commissions and collaboration opportunities.
- The Oram Awards is based in the East Midlands. We are dedicated to supporting urban, rural and regional artists from across the UK.
