The Nina Simone Charitable Trust concentrates its giving on music education for children, with a clear geographic emphasis on South Africa. Its grants overwhelmingly support community-based music training programs and performance ensembles, directing large, multi-year gifts to a small number of specialized organizations. The pattern of repeated, substantial awards suggests a desire to build sustained program capacity rather than distribute many small grants.
Concentrated, high-value support: a few large, repeat grants to the same South African music education organizations rather than many small or one-off awards.
The Nina Simone Charitable Trust’s largest recent awards go to Field Band Foundation, including a $650,342 grant in 2025, following $583,883 in 2024 and $562,267 in 2023 for music education of children in South Africa. That repeated pattern shows a funder that backs the same programs over multiple years rather than moving among many unrelated causes. The trust’s giving centers on youth music education, especially programs that combine instruction with ensemble performance and build pathways for children to learn in community settings. A second major thread is support for Kronendal Music Academy of Hout Bay, which received $195,000 in 2025 after $180,000 in 2024 and $183,000 in 2023 for musical education of children. Smaller awards extend the same theme to other organizations working with children through music training and performance. Across the recent grants list, the trust favors organizations with direct program delivery in specific communities and appears to concentrate its support in a small set of specialized grantees.
Music education is the clearest throughline in the trust’s recent giving. Field Band Foundation received $650,342 in 2025 for music education of children in South Africa, building on earlier grants for the same purpose. In community-based instruction, Kronendal Music Academy of Hout Bay received $195,000 in 2025 for musical education of children. The trust also supported Music Works with $31,481 in 2025 for musical education of children in South Africa, alongside similar grants in earlier years. Outside South Africa, Playing for Change Foundation received $65,309 in 2025 for musical education for children in Ghana. The named grants point to a consistent emphasis on children’s access to structured music learning, often through organizations that pair teaching with performance opportunities.
Typical grant sizes are substantial: the 25th percentile is $48,395, the median is $180,000, and the 75th percentile is $378,634. The recent record also shows repeated awards to the same organizations across 2023, 2024, and 2025, indicating multi-year support rather than one-off gifts. Grants are made to nonprofit organizations rather than individuals, and no program-related investments are listed. The pattern is narrow and concentrated, with a small number of grantees receiving recurring support at meaningful levels.
$961K
$16.4M
$2.1M
$1.3M
Most grants fall between $48K and $379K, with a median of $180K.
25th Percentile
$48K
Median
$180K
75th Percentile
$379K
Top 2 recipient countries by grant volume for Nina Simone Charitable Trust.
| Rank | Country | Grants | Total | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | South Africa | 12 | $3.4M | 85.7% |
| 2 | United StatesDomestic |
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Notable grantees: Field Band Foundation, Kronendal Music Academy of Hout Bay
Grantmaking is geographically concentrated. The recent grants list shows 9 grants in South Africa and 2 in the United States, with the trust giving most often in California by recipient count. Named recipient locations include Edenburg, Hout Bay, Claremont, and Santa Monica, CA. The California recipient in the recent list is Playing for Change Foundation in Santa Monica, while the South African awards reach field-based music programs and academies in multiple communities.
Its recent grants focus on music education for children, especially programs that combine instruction with ensemble or performance opportunities. The largest awards go to Field Band Foundation for music education of children in South Africa, and Kronendal Music Academy of Hout Bay receives repeated support for musical education of children.
Yes. Field Band Foundation appears in 2023, 2024, and 2025, and Kronendal Music Academy of Hout Bay appears in those same three years. Music Works also receives grants in 2023, 2024, and 2025, showing a recurring rather than one-time pattern.
The grant-size distribution is relatively high: the 25th percentile is $48,395, the median is $180,000, and the 75th percentile is $378,634. Recent awards include both six-figure grants and smaller support in the tens of thousands.
The recent grants are concentrated in South Africa and the United States. By recipient country, 9 grants go to South Africa and 2 to the United States. By recipient state, California receives all grants in the state-level distribution provided.
2026
Source: IRS Form 990-PF, fiscal year 2026.
| 2 |
| $131K |
14.3% |
Recipient country reflects the grantee's headquarters per IRS 990-PF and Schedule F filings, not the program's implementation country.
Most recent grants reported to the IRS.
| Recipient | Location | Amount | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FIELD BAND FOUNDATION | EDENBURG, RI | $808,318 | 2026 | MUSIC EDUCATION OF CHILDREN IN SOUTH AFRICA |
| KRONENDAL MUSIC ACADEMY OF HOUT BAY | HOUT BAY, CA | $114,560 | 2026 | MUSICAL EDUCATION OF CHILDREN |
| MUSIC WORKS | CLAREMONT | $38,147 | 2026 | MUSICAL EDUCATION FOR CHILDREN IN SOUTH AFRICA |
| FIELD BAND FOUNDATION | EDENBURG, RI | $650,342 | 2025 | MUSIC EDUCATION OF CHILDREN IN SOUTH AFRICA |
| KRONENDAL MUSIC ACADEMY OF HOUT BAY | HOUT BAY, CA | $195,000 | 2025 | MUSICAL EDUCATION OF CHILDREN |
| PLAYING FOR CHANGE FOUNDATION | SANTA MONICA, CA | $65,309 | 2025 | MUSICAL EDUCATION FOR CHILDREN IN GHANA |
| MUSIC WORKS | CLAREMONT | $31,481 | 2025 | MUSICAL EDUCATION FOR CHILDREN IN SOUTH AFRICA |
| FIELD BAND FOUNDATION | EDENBURG, RI | $583,883 | 2024 | MUSIC EDUCATION OF CHILDREN IN SOUTH AFRICA |
| KRONENDAL MUSIC ACADEMY OF HOUT BAY | HOUT BAY, CA | $180,000 | 2024 | MUSICAL EDUCATION OF CHILDREN |
| PLAYING FOR CHANGE FOUNDATION | SANTA MONICA, CA | $65,309 | 2024 | MUSICAL EDUCATION FOR CHILDREN IN GHANA |
| MUSIC WORKS | CLAREMONT | $29,261 | 2024 | MUSICAL EDUCATION FOR CHILDREN IN SOUTH AFRICA |
| FIELD BAND FOUNDATION | EDENBURG, RI | $562,267 | 2023 | MUSIC EDUCATION OF CHILDREN IN SOUTH AFRICA |
| KRONENDAL MUSIC ACADEMY OF HOUT BAY | HOUT BAY, CA | $183,000 | 2023 | MUSICAL EDUCATION OF CHILDREN |
| MUSIC WORKS | CLAREMONT | $26,760 | 2023 | MUSICAL EDUCATION FOR CHILDREN IN SOUTH AFRICA |
FIELD BAND FOUNDATION
$808,318MUSIC EDUCATION OF CHILDREN IN SOUTH AFRICA
KRONENDAL MUSIC ACADEMY OF HOUT BAY
$114,560MUSICAL EDUCATION OF CHILDREN
MUSIC WORKS
$38,147MUSICAL EDUCATION FOR CHILDREN IN SOUTH AFRICA
FIELD BAND FOUNDATION
$650,342MUSIC EDUCATION OF CHILDREN IN SOUTH AFRICA
KRONENDAL MUSIC ACADEMY OF HOUT BAY
$195,000MUSICAL EDUCATION OF CHILDREN
MUSICAL EDUCATION FOR CHILDREN IN GHANA
MUSIC WORKS
$31,481MUSICAL EDUCATION FOR CHILDREN IN SOUTH AFRICA
FIELD BAND FOUNDATION
$583,883MUSIC EDUCATION OF CHILDREN IN SOUTH AFRICA
KRONENDAL MUSIC ACADEMY OF HOUT BAY
$180,000MUSICAL EDUCATION OF CHILDREN
MUSIC WORKS
$29,261MUSICAL EDUCATION FOR CHILDREN IN SOUTH AFRICA
FIELD BAND FOUNDATION
$562,267MUSIC EDUCATION OF CHILDREN IN SOUTH AFRICA
KRONENDAL MUSIC ACADEMY OF HOUT BAY
$183,000MUSICAL EDUCATION OF CHILDREN
MUSIC WORKS
$26,760MUSICAL EDUCATION FOR CHILDREN IN SOUTH AFRICA