Event Details
The annual ASME Queensland Young Composers’ Competition provides the opportunity for young composers from across the state to submit their own works for critique and assessment by our adjudicators who work as professional composers in Australia and vie for a prize at our awards ceremony. Previous entrants and winners of the Young Composers’ Competition have gone on to study composition at a tertiary level or work in the music industry as professional composers.
We are excited to announce that the annual ASME Queensland Young Composers’ Competition for 2024 is now open for submissions.
To submit entries – please visit Trybooking
This year we have three great adjudicators: John Rotar (Vocal/Instrumental), Madeleine Cocolas (Electronic) and Francesca de Valence (Song writing). They come with a wealth of knowledge and experience in the field of music composition. Read their biographies below.
We thank our sponsors for their contributions to YCC 2024. We thank our sponsors Topology, Hazzardsound.com, Other Music and I Heart Songwriting Club for their generous support of prizes.
Key Details:
- Categories: Instrumental/Vocal, Electronic and Songwriting
- Age Groups: Primary (years 4 – 6), Middle (years 7 – 9), Senior (Years 10 – 12) and Tertiary (Current QLD University Students)
- Entry Fees: Primary: $25, Middle $30, Senior $30 and Tertiary $30
- Awards Ceremony: November 10, 2024, at St Joseph’s Nudgee College
Prizes:
Song Writing: “I Heart Song Writing” Tertiary: Original Online Songwriting Club (10 week subscription) “I Heart Song Writing” Senior: Hazzardsound.com recording session plus a Mentorship songwriting session with “I Heart Song Writing”; Middle: the Original Online Songwriting Club “I Heart Song Writing” (10 week subscription).
Electronic: All prizes are sponsored by Other Music. Tertiary: $130 prize money Senior: $130 prize money as well as the Matthew Sorensen Memorial Prize; Middle: $80 prize money; Junior: $50 prize money.
Vocal/Instrumental: Tertiary: $130 prize money; Senior: The Elizabeth Pratt memorial Prize plus $130. Topology Launchpad Mentorship Program – valued at $5000. 12 Month mentorship program. Topology entry to Brisbane Bootcamp 2025. Middle: $80 prize money Junior $50 prize money.
Adjudicator Bios:
Madeleine Cocolas is an Australian composer and producer who creates post classical and ambient instrumental music. Her work moves between lush soundscapes to experimental electronics, field recordings and solo piano. Madeleine has released music through Room40/Someone Good (Australia), Bigo & Twigetti (UK), Self Center Records (US), 1631 Recordings (UK) and Futuresequence (UK).
Francesca de Valence is an Australian artist, award-winning songwriter, international (and virtual) speaker and mentor, and founder of I Heart Songwriting Club; helping emerging singer-songwriters inspire their way to success in a music career they love. Acknowledged by the Los Angeles Music Awards with an International Songwriter of the Year Award, Francesca also holds an Australian Songwriting Award. Francesca has supported artists including Jimmy Webb, her music can be heard on ABC radio around Australia, and she performs regularly in Australia and Paris. Francesca writes for Songwriting Magazine UK, has a fortnightly ABC Radio songwriting segment and facilitates songwriting workshops nationally and internationally for PROs including APRA AMCOS (AUS/NZ), IMRO (IRE), UBC (BR). When she’s not on the road running workshops, making music and speaking, Francesca can be found in her hometown of Brisbane (self-isolating!) or in her creative hub in Paris. Francesca has a Masters in Music and has taught at the Queensland Conservatorium of Music, Griffith University. She is an in-demand speaker in areas of songwriting and creative and personal development (BIGSOUND, Going Global, Indie Con, WAMCon) facilitates songwriting workshops nationally and internationally for songwriters of all levels (APRA AMCOS, IMRO, QUT, WAAPA, QMusic) and has delivered successful long-term creative and songwriting development programs (Ipswich City Council, MusicACT, Big Sky Girls).
John Rotar (b. 1995), described by Limelight magazine as a ‘young, talented and innovative composer‘, is a Brisbane based composer and conductor. Growing up in a musical family, John’s passion for music started at an early age, after starting piano at age six John turned his hand to composition at eight and had his first orchestral work performed at twelve. Since then John has had over 130 works commissioned, recorded or performed by various leading musicians and ensembles across Australia as well in Europe and North America. John’s work has garnered him numerous compositional residencies, scholarships and awards, both nationally and internationally. John is also an active performer and has a particular love for choirs and choral music and is the current Artistic Director and Conductor of The Australian Voices as well as the organist at the historic All Saints Church in the CBD of Brisbane.
Competition Rules:
- Compositions must adhere to the prescribed minimum length: Primary: 30 seconds, Middle: 2 minutes, Senior: 3 minutes, Tertiary: 3 minutes.
- A composition that has already won an award in any previous competition is not eligible for entry.
- All audio based compositions are to be submitted online as an MP3 file.
- Written scores for the Vocal/Instrumental Section are also to be submitted online in PDF format.
- A statement of compositional intent must be included and submitted online in PDF format.
- ASME Qld reserves the right not to award a prize if a suitable standard is not reached, or divide the prize equally between joint winners.
- Adjudicators are chosen by ASME Qld. All adjudicator decisions are final. No correspondence will be entered into.
- 1st place winners will have compositions played at the Awards Ceremony. Students are also encouraged to perform their composition live if possible at the event.
- All entrants must be attending a Queensland school or Tertiary Institution.
- It is expected that Composers are to attend the Awards Ceremony and workshop in person to receive their prize if possible.
To submit entries – please visit Trybooking
We encourage all young composers to participate and look forward to your inspiring compositions!
If you have any questions, please free free to email us at ycc@asmeqld.org.au
Belinda Dolan and Sam Smith
YCC Coordinators
