The St. Paul Chamber Orchestra has snared a $1 million grant from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to be used for “artistic and digital media initiatives.”

That means it can use it to pay for major commissions, an annual composer in residence and collaborations with artists and institutions outside the realm of classical music.

And they’ll have funding for artists and producers who’ll come up with companion projects such as humanities activities, multimedia activities, and other new programming elements.

Ara Guzelimian, provost and dean of The Juilliard School and former senior director and artistic adviser at Carnegie Hall, will be senior adviser to the SPCO for the projects.

The money will come in over four years.