The Washington International Competition for Composition is held every three years. The winner of the 2015 Competition for Composition will be performed by professional musicians of the Washington, DC area at the finals for the Washington International String Competition on June 7, 2015, at 2:00 pm in the Terrace Theater of the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. The accepted application link will be open as of October 1, 2014 and will close on February 15, 2015. Winners will be announced by April 1, 2015. Entrants must be under age 35 as of February 15, 2015. An entrance fee of $45 US must be submitted. Composition must be a chamber work for string trio, string quartet, piano trio, piano quartet or piano quintet, and must be a maximum of 8 minutes long. For more details see the Washington International Competition’s website.

For additional information about the Composition Competition and the application process, please contact Mark Simon at diegobueno1@mac.com.

Cash Awards

  • First Prize—$5,000
  • Second Prize—$2,500
  • Performance Award

Requirements

  • Entrance fee of $45 US; check payable to Friday Morning Music Club Foundation.
  • Composition must be a chamber work for 3 to 5 players for string trio, string quartet, piano trio, piano quartet or piano quintet. No electronics.
  • Composition must be a maximum of 8 minutes long.
  • Composition must not have been commercially published or publicly performed.
  • Composer must be between 18 to 35 years old.
  • Scores must be accompanied by a cover letter including composer’s name, contact information and curriculum vitae.
  • Three copies of the score must be submitted.
  • The composer’s name must not appear anywhere on the score.
  • The winning compositions will be announced by April 1, 2015.
  • Winning composers must be prepared to supply a set of performance materials upon notification of their award.

Those who are unable to submit their scores electronically may submit them in paper form. In this case, the contest administrator will convert the documents into .pdf format. Send all paper scores, entrance fee and materials postmarked by January 17, 2015, to the following address:

Washington International Competition for Composition
310 Carl Street
Rockville, MD 20851