Site Search


Other Resources
News Archive






BREAKING MUSIC COMPOSITION COMPETITION

 BREAKING MUSIC COMPOSITION COMPETITION
Summary:Chamber call (at least 6 musicians)
Deadline: 30 June 2018
Date Posted: 05 April 2018
Details: The cultural and musical organization Syntax Ensemble is proud to announce a composition competition seeking submissions of new scores to be included in its repertoire. Syntax Ensemble will be awarding prizes for compositions most successfully conveying aesthetic clarity in addition to demonstrating command of instrumental writing and electronic programming skills highlighting the performers’ technical and expressive skills.

BREAKING MUSIC COMPOSITION COMPETITION
Art. 1. Eligibility
The competition is open to male and female composers of all nationalities, not yet 40 years old by November 30th 2018. It is also open to people belonging to no country: these will be asked to include a declaration of residence.

Art. 2. Submissions
The competition involves three steps.

Step 1
Participants are required to submit two scores for any instrumental group along with a recording of the piece (.wav, .aiff, .mp3, or aac les). Acousmatic pieces and videos will not be taken into consideration. Scores and recording les can only be identi ed by a pseudonym with no reference to performance location, institutions potentially commissioning these works or musicians involved in the recording. Scores submitted with CDs and commercial DVDs are also accepted and no speci c aesthetic orientation is privileged to the detriment of any other. Scores and recordings must be submitted with the documents outlined in art.10.
By the end of a plenary session, the Syntax Ensemble will have selected up to 30 scores for the following step in the contest.

Step 2
Selected scores will be handed over to a contest international committee including:
• composer Ivan Fedele;
• composer Gabriele Manca;
• composer Alessandro Solbiati;
• music promoter Gabriele Bonomo;
• musicologist Gianluigi Mattietti;
• art patron Ralph Fassey.
Submitted scores can only be identi ed by their pseudonym. The committee will be selecting up to ve candidates who will then proceed to the following step in the selection process. The nalist composers’ identity will not be disclosed to members of the committee.

Step 3
The ve composers admitted to phase 3 are the competition’s nalists. They will be asked to write a new piece following the rules outlined in art. 3 and 4. They are strictly forbidden to contact members of the committee for competition- related matters.
The Committee will notify Syntax Ensemble members of any interference: candidates involved in such interferences will no longer be considered for the competition. Committee members will clearly state whether they have any educational ties with the nalists. In addition, they will be required not to express any judgment about the compositions.
New pieces will be performed in a public concert which members of the Committee will be attending throughout the Syntax Ensemble music season. The candidates’ names will be displayed in public no earlier than the beginning of the concert evening.
After the concert, the committee will be withdrawing and proceed with deliberation before selecting the competition’s Winner.
Art. 3 Instrumental set-up for the final phase
The five nalists will be expected to write a new piece lasting between ten and fifteen minutes for an ensemble made up of at least six musicians, freely selected among the following:

• Female voice (extended from A3 up to Bb5);
• Flute (Piccolo, C Flute, Alto Flute, Bass Flute, Sliding Whistle);
• Clarinet (Clarinet in Eb, Clarinet in Bb, Clarinet in A, Bass Clarinet);
• Violin (acoustic and electric);
• Cello (acoustic and electric);
• Grand Piano (no upright piano);
• Percussion: Vibraphone, 1 tam tam, 1 triangle, 2 suspended cymbals, 2 temple blocks, 5 wooden blocks,
1 snare drum, 2 tom toms;
• Electronics (audio les and/or live electronics).

Electronics receive as much attention as musicians. Through performance of the same score, any one musician may be playing more than one instrument within the limits set in the above list.

Composers must clearly indicate whether or not a conductor is needed. Scores must be digitally typed with music notation software.

Contingent preparation for instruments is allowed within limits. In such circumstances, composers are required to provide a video demonstrating, within a 2-minute time frame, how to prepare each and every instrument with easily available material (amateur quality videos in .mov, .mp4, and .avi formats are accepted).

Musicians can also use such accessory tools as rattles, toys, triangles, small electro-acoustic devices. Candidates will then be asked to provide them if the ensemble runs into dif culties acquiring such material.

Art. 4. Electronics format
Electronics are allowed for pieces presented in the step 1 le as well as for the new pieces composed for the nal evening. With respect to the speci c use of electronics to be included in scores presented in step 1, composers simply make sure that recordings are included with the score. There is no need to send digital les. Further details on rules for programming electronics will be discussed and agreed upon with nalists by the end of phase 2 of the competition. “Low- ” electronics are also allowed. The ensemble ensures that all material prescribed within the score is made available; composers make sure it is delivered by post. While the bid is open, further explanations regarding capturing
and broadcasting devices may be requested.

Art. 5. Administrative contribution
Participants are required to pay for a 70€ administrative fee prior to the bid’s deadline. Payment can be made to the following bank account:

IBAN: IT45 F033 5901 6001 0000 0157 244

BIC: BCITITMX
Composers from China, Russia and other countries with limited internet access or subject to restrictions in terms of payments abroad, can pay for their fees, tax included, via the PayPal account associated with the syntaxensemble@ gmail.com email address. Contribution fees must be sent in euros.
Bitcoin or other crypto-currency payment is strictly forbidden.
Participants are asked to attach copies of bank transfer receipts.
Participation fees are non-refundable.

Art. 6 Attendance of selected nalists at the nal concert
Finalist composers are not required to attend the nal concert.
Participants must pay for travel and hotel expenses. The ensemble administration provides support for candidates requesting of cial invitation documents needed to help funding their trip.

Art. 7 Application submissions and announcement deadline
The participants’ les for Step 1 of the competition, along with the signed and completed application, must be submitted via web (dropbox link, wetransfer, google drive, ftp space, etc.) by June 30th 2018 at 11.59 pm to the coordinazione@ syntaxensemble.com email address.
Files not complying with the rules will not be considered for the competition.
Composers must provide all digital, audio and video material needed for proper broadcasting within the time limits set by this bid. Selection results will be communicated by e-mail once the selection phase has reached its conclusion.

Art. 8 Competition calendar
Composer candidates will be asked to take note of the following deadlines:
• • •

Art. 9 Awards
Once the Committee has selected the ve pieces, these will be performed at a Syntax Ensemble concert in Milan’s Teatro Dal Verme.
The Committee will be assessing the ve nalist scores once the pieces are auditioned. At the end of the concert, the Committee will be announcing the competition’s Winner who will be entitled to a 2500€ reimbursement covering costs for a new composition for the Syntax Ensemble (though electronics are welcome, they are far from being compulsory). New scores must be submitted no later than December 2019. The piece will be performed sometime during the 2019/2020 Syntax Ensemble season. The Winner will be invited to attend the commissioned piece’s premiere performance.

Art. 10 Annexes and disclaimers
Files and completed application must also include:
• A copy of a valid Identity card (pdf);
• A copy of payment of the participation fee;
• A CV in .doc, .pages or .txt format (no more than 100 words);
• 1 portrait photo free of rights.
Art. 11 Further information
For any additional information, please write to: ensemble@syntaxensemble.com.

June 30th 2018: application submission;

July 31st 2018: communication of participants selected for step 3;

January 31st 2019: submission of new compositions scores (electronic components included). The nal concert is scheduled for the 2018/2019 Syntax Ensemble Season no later than April 2019.

Art. 12 Final provisions
For any dispute, the present announcement would prevail in its original, Italian-language version and, according to Italian law, the issue will be submitted to the Court of Treviso’s exclusive jurisdiction.
As for other unforeseeable circumstances in this competition, provisions of the Italian Civil Code, as well as special laws of the eld in question, will be applied.
The Syntax Ensemble administration, in charge of this Composition Competition, reserves the possibility to bring changes to this bid.
The Syntax Ensemble Cultural Music Organization guarantees equality and equal opportunities between men and women in terms of access to the competition announcement pursuant to Legislative Decree n. 198/2006.

In compliance with the Italian Legislative Decree n. 196/2003, the processing of personal data provided by the participants is based on principles of correctness, lawfulness, transparency, and privacy protection - especially regarding the participants themselves.

All processing is done once les are received for the purpose of the young composers’ participation. All data is stored on computer and paper archives. Personal data will be available to holders of rights of access, according to the rules of law or regulation, whenever needed for performance purposes or institutional functions of public interest. Participants are acknowledged for rights such as they are referred to art. 7 of the Italian Legislative Decree n. 196/2003 as well as for rights to access personal data, to request recti cations, update and cancel data - especially if incomplete, inaccurate or collected with disregard for the law - and ultimately to refuse all processing for legitimate reasons.

The Syntax Ensemble cultural and musical organization is the holder and person responsible for processing. Competition rules and application forms are downloadable from www.syntaxensemble.com.
Web Site:www.syntaxensemble.com/breaking-music/