American Art Song Competition for Composers

The annual American Art Song Competition for Composers is a core program of the San Francisco Song Festival, and the principal manner in which the SFSF seeks to promote the creation of new work in the genre of art song. This year the American Art Song Competition for Composers is presented in conjunction with the Florestan Recital Project in Boston, MA, and Classical Vocal Reprints, America's leading publisher of art song. Additionally we are proud to present the Phyllis C. Wattis Prize for Song Composition, which includes a cash prize, travel expenses to San Francisco and Boston for performances of the winning work and related events, and publication of the winning song cycle. The competition is open to all composers who are citizens or residents of the North American continent.

Song cycles submitted will be adjudicated and judged on the basis of a variety of subjective and objective criteria, including the selection and appropriate treatment of text, substance of musical ideas, harmonic control, idiomatic and appropriate accompaniment, freshness/originality, notational clarity, and sensitive vocal writing. Submissions will be accepted from composers in three broad categories: Student Composers, Emerging Artists, and Established Professionals.

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		THE AMERICAN ART SONG COMPETITION FOR COMPOSERS The annual American Art Song Competition for Composers is a core program of the San Francisco Song Festival, and the principal manner in which the SFSF seeks to promote the creation of new work in the genre of art song. This year the American Art Song Competition for Composers is presented in conjunction with the Florestan Recital Project in Boston, MA, and Classical Vocal Reprints, America's leading publisher of art song. Additionally we are proud to present the Phyllis C. Wattis Prize for Song Composition, which includes a cash prize, travel expenses to San Francisco and Boston for performances of the winning work and related events, and publication of the winning song cycle. The competition is open to all composers who are citizens or residents of the North American continent. Song cycles submitted will be adjudicated and judged on the basis of a variety of subjective and objective criteria, including the selection and appropriate treatment of text, substance of musical ideas, harmonic control, idiomatic and appropriate accompaniment, freshness/originality, notational clarity, and sensitive vocal writing. Submissions will be accepted from composers in three broad categories: Student Composers, Emerging Artists, and Established Professionals.
		The deadline for submission for the 2006 competition is October 15, 2006. For more information and an application, please download the pdf package here.
		2005 WINNERS: ESTABLISHED PROFESSIONAL CATEGORY Winner (and Sweepstakes Winner): "Four Ben Jonson Songs," by Martin Hennessy of New York, NY published by Classical Vocal Reprints. Finalist: "The Secret of Your Heart " (Rabindranath Tagore), by Karim Al-Zand of Houston, TX, available here Finalist: "Late Summer " (Heyen, Dickinson, Kunitz) by Tom Cipullo of New York, NY EMERGING ARTIST CATEGORY Winner: "Songs of the Sea" (Longfellow, Melville, Sandburg) by Garrett Byrnes of Bloomington, IN Finalist: "Violi Songs" (Paul Violi) by Scott Gendel of Madison, WI STUDENT COMPOSER CATEGORY Best Song Cycle: "Songs of Fields and Prairies" (various) by Jocelyn Hagen of Minneapolis, MN Finalist: "Three Songs" (Elliot, cummings) by Ryan Charles Ramer of Cleveland, OH 2004 WINNERS: ESTABLISHED PROFESSIONAL CATEGORY Best Song Cycle: "Life is Fine," (Langston Hughes) by composer Edward Knight of Oklahoma City, OK, published by Subito Music Finalist: "Four Dickinson Songs" by Lori Laitman of Potomac, MD, published by Classical Vocal Reprints Best Song: "Men With Small Heads," (Thomas Lux), by Lori Laitman of Potomac, MD, published by Classical Vocal Reprints Finalist: "That Shadow My Likeness" by Kari Jousela of DeLand, FL EMERGING ARTIST CATEGORY Best Song Cycle: "Six Nocturnes and an Aubade," (Sara Teasdale) by Mark Buntag of Bloomington, IN Finalist: "Five Lorca Songs" by Ruth Huber of San Jose, CA Best Song: "Mis ojos sin tus ojos," (Miguel Hernandez) by Francisco Hinojosa of Morelia, Mexico Finalist: "The Marriage of the Frog and the Mouse," by Michael Rose of Brooklyn, NY STUDENT COMPOSER CATEGORY Best Song Cycle: "Two Longfellow Songs," (Henry Wadsworth Longfellow) by Daniel Levin of Alexandria, VA Finalist: "Prairie Songs" by Sojourner Hodges of Climax, GA Best Song: "Willow Poem," (William Carlos Williams) by Michael Ippolito of Cincinnati, OH Finalist: "When I have fears..." by William Harvey of Bloomington, IN