The Arts Council, which is set to invest more than £1.6bn of Government and lottery money between 2008 and 2011, has been asked by UK Music to embrace musical genres that fall outside of its typical remit of opera, classical and jazz, after the Council opened a consultation asking stakeholders to explore its future funding earlier this year.

Music is one of the Council's priority areas, alongside dance, literature, theatre, visual arts and the performing arts, but the organisation acknowledges ...