By Anne Levin

Princeton-based arts and humanities initiatives are among the recipients of grants in the most recent round of funding from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH).

Princeton University Concerts (PUC) has received $20,000 from the NEA for its Healing with Music series, while Morven Museum and Garden was granted $25,000 for a project addressing the history of slavery. In addition, Divya Cherian, associate professor of history at Princeton University, has been awarded $60,000 from the NEH for a book project titled Conjured States: Witchcraft and Politics in Western India, 1750-1900.

The grant to Princeton University Concerts is the first in its history. The Healing with Music project, which was launched in 2022, invites audiences to hear from musicians who share their relationship to music during difficult times in their lives, delivered through live performance, live conversation, and filmed interviews.

“This grant award is a historic moment for Princeton University Concerts,” said PUC Director Marna Seltzer, in a press release. “For 131 years, our programming has been mostly made possible by the generosity of our patrons. To have the support of the National Endowment for the Arts for the very first time is not just vital financial reinforcement but also important recognition for the work that we do to expand the impact and accessibility of classical chamber music.”

The funding will support the appearance of Iranian kamancheh player Kayhan Kalhor on Wednesday, February 12 at Richardson Auditorium. Kalhor’s focus is on his dedication to Iranian music through profound loss, anti-Muslim sentiment, and political unrest. He will also participate in a free Live Music Meditation on February 13 at 12:30 p.m., and in concert with the Doos Trio at 6 and 9 p.m.

Dasha Koltunyuk, PUC’s outreach manager and the person who conceived the Healing with Music Series, welcomed the national recognition that the grant brings. “These events, which delve into music’s deep power through a unique and collective concert experience, tap into something essential in today’s world,” she said. “Kayhan Kalhor is a phenomenal artist and human, who has approached his life and art with such an inspiring depth of sensitivity and spirit of hope. We thank the NEA for acknowledging the power of our Healing with Music series and of this artist with their support.”

Like PUC, Morven has never received federal funding before.

“It’s the first time we applied. We felt it was a long shot, but we got it and we are thrilled,” said Elizabeth Allan, the museum’s deputy director and curator.

The grant supports the creation of an inclusive history gallery in a previously empty space. The rotating gallery will showcase new research uncovered in recent years about the people who were enslaved by the Stockton family, original owners of the home that houses the museum. In addition to research consultant Sharece Blakney, the project includes input from Witherspoon-Jackson historic district resident and historian Shirley Satterfield.

During President Donald Trump’s first term in office, he tried unsuccessfully to get rid of both the NEA and NEH. Now that his second term has begun, the future of both agencies is uncertain. Rhonda DiMascio, Morven’s executive director, will be attending Museum Advocacy Day in Washington, D.C., next month.

“This is a tenuous time for folks in the museum field,” said Allan. “Funding like this is essential for places like Morven. None of this would be possible without that support.”