FOUR months after axeing grants to several traditional Scottish music and dance organisations, the Scottish Arts Council has found £300,000 of funding for "strategic issues" in the sector.
Supporters of the groups said the arts council had recognised the outcry over the cuts, which were a "mismatch" with the cultural priorities of the SNP Government.
An SAC spokeswoman denied a policy shift, but admitted that the funding announcemen
t was brought forward after demonstrators converged on the Scottish Parliament this week.
In April, the SAC announced controversial decisions on "flexible funding" for arts organisations, with 43 out of 106 grant applications rejected.
Several groups that promote traditional, voluntary Scottish arts saw their former funding levels cut to zero. A key SAC criteria was for arts projects to be "new and innovative".
The Traditional Music and Song Association (TMSA), Scots Music Group, and the Scottish Traditions of Dance Trust, the Scottish Language Dictionaries and the Scots Language Resource Centre lost £326,000 in total.
Alison Mackinnon, national convener of the TMSA, said: "That £300,000 appeared this week. It had not been mentioned to any one of us previously."
The TMSA previously received £33,000 funding a year to run its national office, produce an events calendar, and support 11 volunteer offices.
Dancers, and musicians gathered outside the Scottish Parliament this week, with placards saying: "If the government takes no action our traditions will die."
Rob Gibson, the SNP MSP said: "What's happened with the outcry is that the arts council has been forced to re-think what's going on."
Mr Gibson, who ran a traditional arts festival for 20 years, said: "My SNP colleagues are tackling this for the first time. It's been ignored for eight years. National companies have been set up for European arts but there's no arrangement for indigenous music."
Fiona Campbell, who performed at traditional Scottish step dance at the demonstration, said: "Under an SNP government you would think it would not be so hard, but unfortunately there seems to be a mismatch between what government policy is saying and what a government agency is using as its criteria for funding."
Linda Fabiani, the culture minister, met the demonstrators. She said: "I am absolutely committed to the promotion and support of our traditional culture."
