Music as Medicine Neuroscience Research Initiative

Note: This is not a limited submission and is being announced as a courtesy only.

At the vital intersection of music and neuroscience, the FNIH Music as Medicine Neuroscience Research Initiative supports talented researchers who can advance discoveries that underpin music’s therapeutic benefits, paving the way for treatments that reach patients more effectively and personally.

Eligible individuals are independent investigators holding a faculty, or research scientist appointment at a U.S.-based academic, medical, or research institution. Nominees must have earned their MD, PhD or equivalent doctoral degree at least five years prior to the application deadline and demonstrate a strong track record of innovative research related to music, health, and well-being.

The proposed initiatives should be innovative and have the potential to advance understanding, development, and application of music-based approaches to improve health and well-being. Areas of interest include:

Basic and translational research aimed at uncovering neural, biological, and behavioral mechanisms through which music engagement and music-based interventions influence human health and well-being.

Innovative clinical research that seeks to develop, test, optimize, or personalize music-based interventions to improve health, cognitive function, mental health, and quality of life across the lifespan.

Translational and implementation research designed to accelerate the integration, scalability, and accessibility of evidence-based music interventions within healthcare and community settings, with the potential to improve patient outcomes and models of care.

Awards will be presented to 3 individual recipients or individual teams for $100,000 for one year, with the potential for an additional year of support. Continued funding for a second year, at the same funding level, may be available contingent upon the successful completion of predefined milestones and satisfactory progress. Submissions are judged by a jury of science and music experts convened by the FNIH. Awardees are celebrated annually at an event in Washington, DC.

Eligibility Requirements

Candidates must hold an MD, PhD or equivalent doctoral degree from an accredited academic, medical, or research institution.

Candidates must hold a current position or intend to complete their research through a U.S.-based academic, medical, or research institution. 

Candidates nominated in the previous year may be nominated again if they still meet the award criteria.

Nominations will not be accepted for anyone whose current location or permanent residence is in countries sanctioned by the U.S. Department of the Treasury, Office of Foreign Asset Control.

If the nominee is a U.S. federal government employee or anyone else whose receipt of personal cash awards may be restricted, the nominator should confirm with the candidate that they are eligible to receive this award. We welcome the nomination of NIH scientists (who may direct any questions to the NIH Ethics Office).

Application Instructions

Individuals can nominate themselves or others. Institutions may also nominate one or more candidates. Candidates may only be nominated by one individual per nomination cycle. No institutional approval is required.

Application Requirements
A brief summary proposal explaining why the candidate should receive the Award (up to 50 words) 

A longer description outlining the candidate's research contributions and how the candidate’s research fits has impacted therapeutics in music. (up to 250 words) 

A brief research plan proposal to support future research funding milestones. (maximum 2 pages)

Proposals should present an integrated framework that advances scientific understanding, development, implementation, and dissemination of evidence-based music and music-based interventions, with the potential to improve health, well-being, and quality of life.

The candidate’s CV – containing up to 10 publications. This file must not exceed 10 pages or 20 MB. An NIH biosketch can be submitted in lieu of a CV. Any submission listing more than 10 publications will be rejected.

A checkbox to indicate consent from the candidate if they reside in Europe (in compliance with privacy regulations)

There is no limitation on the number of nominations that a single nominator or institution may make. No institutional approval is required.  

Start the Process
Nominations may be submitted through the Evalato platform linked on the program web page.