NCVS Composer Competition

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA VIOLA SOCIETY’S  COMPOSER COMPETITION 2023-24  The Northern California Viola Society announces its 2023-24 Composition Contest for unperformed, unrecorded solo viola works, 3 minutes duration or under, composed in the last 5 years.  The winning composition will be premiered by pre-professional level finalists in the NCVS Young Violist Competition in San Francisco, California, on March 10, 2024.  There are typically 5-6 finalists, aged 19 and under with an advanced level of technical facility.  Works should reflect the ability level of the performers and offer contrasting sections with both technical and emotional challenges.  Preference given to compositions originally written for viola, not transcriptions.  No tape, amplification or other accompaniment. Composers can be any age or nationality.

Prize: $200 and feature article on NCVS website. 
Deadline for submission: Nov. 10, 2023
Winner and Runners-up announced: Dec. 22, 2023
To Submit: Email your score PDF that includes date of composition and title but pseudonym for composer’s name to katrinawreede@gmail.com.   In the email, include composer’s name, title of work and contact information.  Do not send mp3s, cover pages, bios, poems, images, stories or anything not directly related to performing the work.  All submissions will be deleted after the judging. 

 

Past Composition Contest News and Links to works:

Featuring our 2022-23 winner:  Cantilena for solo viola by Prof. Dr. Andersen Viana of Brazil

Click here for link to purchase Cantilena sheet music from Theodore Front Music 

Dr. Andersen Viana is a composer and professor at Clóvis Salgado Foundation in Belo Horizonte-Brazil. He began composing at the age of 13 and became a professor at the age of 19. He completed his PhD studies in composition at the Federal University of Bahia and furthered his studies at other institutions in Brazil, Italy and Sweden such as the Federal University of Minas Gerais in Belo Horizonte, Reale Accademia Filarmonica di Bologna, Arts Academy of Rome, Accademia Chigiana di Siena and the Royal College of Music in Stockholm. 

 Stream SUITE DE CANCOES INFANTIS BRASILEIRAS (St. Orch) by Andersen VIANA by Composer Andersen ...

Many thanks to our panel of judges:  Jodi Levitz, Hank Dutt, Kevin Jim, Ethan Filner, Tom Tatton, Daria D’Andrea and Katrina Wreede.

2021-22 Prize-winner: 

Micro Suite for Solo Viola, (link to purchase sheet music)

by Dario Duarte of Buenos Aires, Argentina

 
 
Dario Duarte graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Music from the Universidad Nacional de San Martin and studied piano at the Alberto Ginastera Conservatory in Buenos Aires. In 2019 he composed his first opera SOMA, which was awarded by the Williams Foundation of Buenos Aires. His compositions include works for chamber ensemble, solo instruments and orchestra.
Dario currently lives in Buenos Aires, Argentina and teaches at the School of Humanities of the Universidad Nacional de San Martin and at the Conservatorio Superior de Música Manuel de Falla.
 
 
 
 


 Andrew Ahn performing Micro Suite


Composition finalists this year were (in alphabetical order):

Dream for Viola by Dr. Patricio Molina
Fantasieta by Prof. Dr. Andersen Viana
Furious by Jenna Colombet
La lune s’attristait.  Des séraphins enpleurs rêvant by Andrew Haile Austin
Oak Branches by Blair Whittington
Teaser by Pablo Rubino
Transylvan by Mark Francis
 

 

 About the 2020-21 competition

The Northern California Viola Society 2020-21 Composition Contest winner was "Viola & Cesario" by Andrew M. Wilson of Devon, UK. The competition is for unperformed solo viola works, 3 minutes or under, composed in the last 5 years.  The winning composition was premiered by finalists in the NCVS Young Violist Competition on March 7, 2021, presented online.  

Over 70 pieces from all over the world were submitted in November to our assembled reviewing panel of violists. It was exciting to see the international offerings and the large number of submissions. The pieces we received demonstrated a huge range of creativity and musicality.   We are deeply grateful to all of the composers who took the time to share their efforts with us.  Please consider applying again next year.  


Winner, "Viola & Cesario" by Andrew M. Wilson
 2020-2021 Finalist compositions were:
"Fantasy for Viola Solo" by Jake Gesell
"Autumn Leaves Dancing in the Wind” by Masao Yokoyama
“Listen to Viola” by Frank den Bakker
"Shadow Child Prelude” by Lawrence Kramer 
“Lovely on the Water” by John Whittaker 
“FortEtude” by Eleanor Aversa
“Requiem, in memoriam K. Penderecki”  by Andreina Costantini  
NCVS wishes to thank all the composers who entered and we can't wait for next year! Many thanks to our panel of violists for reviewing the entries: Ellen Ruth Rose, Hank Dutt, Jodi Levitz, Patricia Heller, Thomas Tatton, Katrina Wreede & Daria D'Andrea,

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Our 2019-20 Composition Competition Winner was Denise Ondishko’s work, COGITATIO for Viola Solo, chosen by the 5-member panel of professional violists from 80-plus individual works submitted.  

The 86 works submitted in 2019 came from composers based in countries including: Indonesia, China, Russia, Iran, Argentina, Australia, Spain, Italy, UK, Ireland, France, Japan, Greece, Belgium, Israel, Germany, Austria, Brazil, Canada, Mexico and the US.


The 2019-2020 finalist compositions were (in alphabetical order):

A Viking Farewell - Sarah Cattley
Cogitatio - Denise Ondishko (winner)
Dance for Solo Viola - Laura Paleari
Dolorondo - Wendy Davis
Étude - Lautaro Figueroa
Fabula - Maximiliano Garcia de Veas Gimena
Grasshopper - Milana Milosovic
One Evening in the Forest - Reina Yoshioka
Rite of Fire - Indra Persons
Threnody for a Skinned Cat - Gu Wei
Upon the Path of the Infinite - Girard Kratz
Whirling Dervish (from Balkan Pictures) - C. J. Kachulis
The Northern California Viola Society annually holds a Composition Contest for unperformed solo viola works, 3 minutes or under, composed in the last 5 years.  The winning composition will be premiered by pre-professional level finalists in the NCVS Young Violist Competition.  There are typically 5-6 finalists, aged 19 and under with an advanced level of technical facility.  Works should reflect the ability level of the performers and offer contrasting sections with both technical and emotional challenges.  No tape, amplification or other accompaniment. Composer is encouraged to record the online performances.  

Prize: $100, performances by Young Viola Competition finalists and feature article on NCVS website. 
Deadline for submission: annually in Fall
Winner and Runners-up announced: tbd annually in December
To Submit: Email your score PDF that includes date of composition and title but pseudonym for composer’s name to katrinawreede@gmail.com.   In the email, include composer’s name, title of work and contact information.  Do not send mp3s, cover pages, bios, poems, images, stories or anything not directly related to performing the work.  All submissions will be deleted after the judging.
 

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