The aim of this worldwide composition competition is to reinforce Armidale’s reputation as a centre for musical excellence, and to further cement the New England Conservatorium of Music’s own reputation as being one of Australia’s leading string education organisations. The intent of the terms and conditions is not to restrict the entrants’ creativity, but to ensure that the competition is run in an open, clear, fair, equitable and transparent manner.
1. The competition is presented in two categories:
1.1 Best Original Work for String Ensemble - three movement work comprising a combination of three or more of the following: violin, viola, cello, double bass. No movement to be more than 5 minutes in performance length.
1st Prize - $5,000 AUD
2nd Prize - $1,000 AUD
1.2 Best Original Work for String Instrument and Piano. This may be presented in the style of a three-movement Duo Sonata (where on instrument is Violin, Viola, Cello or Double Bass, and the other is Piano), or a set of three miniatures for this instrumentation. No movement or miniature to be more than 5 minutes in performance length.
1st Prize - $2,500 AUD
2nd Prize - $ 500 AUD
2. Composers should aim to write all string parts at a standard suitable for performance by Senior Secondary / High School students, eg AMEB / Trinity Grade 7. If composing for the 2nd category (“String Instrument and Piano”) the piano part may be aimed at a professional accompanist standard.
3. The competition is open to any composer worldwide for whom composition (teaching/commissions etc) is not their primary source of income.
4. NECOM staff members and their immediate family are excluded from entering.
5. There are no restrictions on the age, sex or nationality of the composer.
6. Entrants may submit a work in each of the two categories listed in Section 1 above.
7. Submissions must be the original work of the composer making the entry, and must not have been previously entered in competitions or have been publically performed. Arrangements of existing works are not permissible.
8. Each submitted work is to be accompanied by an entry fee of $25 AUD.
9. Works can be submitted as either:
9.1 Hand-written score and parts
9.2 Digital medium (such as Sibelius, Finale or similar notation programs)
9.3 PDF versions of same
10. As a condition of entry, submitted scores and parts cannot be returned.
11. The New England Conservatorium of Music (NECOM) will acknowledge (by email) receipt of entries.
12. Entries close by midnight Friday 30 August 2019 (Australian Eastern Standard Time)
13. The first round of judging will take place at the New England Conservatorium of Music in Armidale by Friday 27 September 2019, by a panel of the Conservatorium’s string teachers. This initial round is to produce a shortlist of five (5) finalists in each of the two categories.
14. The final judging of the shortlisted works will take place on Thursday 10 October 2019 during the Conservatorium’s Composition Conference, by a panel whose decision will be final. The judges will be six internationally published composers assembled from a diverse range of compositional styles.
15. Announcement of winners will take place live on the NECOM Facebook page on Friday 11 October at a time to be confirmed.
16. All works presented to both judging panels will only ever be identified as “ENTRANT A”, “ENTRANT B” and so forth. Any copies forwarded to judges will have the composers’ names removed or obscured to ensure fairness and transparency.
17. Copyright for all original works subsists with the composer; however, NECOM reserves the right to perform / record any of the submitted works, and will retain a non-exclusive, perpetual, royalty-free license to use copyrighted works. For the avoidance of doubt, copyright in any future performance of the work by NECOM vests in NECOM.
18. If nominated works are not considered to be of significant merit, the judges may determine that a particular prize not be awarded.