2013 NCEM Composers Award

This prestigious national award for young composers is presented by the National Centre for Early Music and BBC Radio 3. For 2013, composers will get the chance for their piece to be played by the acclaimed baroque period ensemble, 'Florilegium'.

In the spirit of the baroque dance suite, young composers are invited to write a new three to four minute instrumental ‘dance’ for the four core players of Florilegium to play, and they are encouraged to base it on any dance style that they wish – old or new, from the reel to the rumba.

The award is open to young composers resident in the UK and there are two age categories: 19-25 and 18 years and under. 

The two winning compositions will be performed in a concert given by Florilegium as part of the Bath International Music Festival in June 2013 and recorded for broadcast on the Early Music Show.

Applicants must register their interest in the competition by emailing the National Centre for Early Music by Friday 8 February 2013. Completed scores should be delivered by Friday 8 March 2013. The award will be judged in York on Saturday 27 April 2013, when a shortlist of entries will be presented by Florilegium in a workshop setting throughout the day in the presence of the young composers and composer Christopher Fox. That evening, Florilegium will perform each of the pieces in front of a panel of judges in a public concert, after which the two winners will be announced, one for each of the two age categories.

For full details, Terms and Conditions and Application Forms, visit the NCEM website at www.ncem.co.uk/composersaward2013