Announcing our 2024-25 winning composition: Heart of the Lake by Kamil Kosecki of Poland
Kamil Kosecki graduated from the Frederic Chopin University of Music in Warsaw, where he studied composition and bassoon. In 2012, he completed postgraduate studies in Film and Computer Music Composition at the Grażyna and Kiejstut Bacewicz University of Music in Łódź. Before participating in the NCVS Composer Competition, Kosecki had already composed several works for viola, one of the most important being Andromeda for viola and piano, written for the prominent Polish violist Katarzyna Budnik and pianist Piotr Kopczyński. His works have been performed across Europe, the USA, China, Japan, Brazil, and Mexico. He is the author of the official bugle call for the Wilanów district in Warsaw and composed music for a new adaptation of the musical Akademia Pana Kleksa at the
Gorzów Philharmonic. Kosecki has written music for several short films, including Introduction à la Métaphysique and Ofiarowanie directed by Bartosz Markowski, About Love directed by Piotr Szatyłowicz, and With Long Hair You Are More Beautiful directed by Carlotta Kittel. He has participated in masterclasses with
notable figures such as Marek Chołoniewski, Andrei Smirnov, Krzesimir Dębski,
Krzysztof Zanussi, Zygmunt Krauze, and Krzysztof Knittel. His compositions have
been recognized in over 20 prestigious competitions, including the 1st Prize at the
Tadeusz Baird Competition, Honorable Mentions at the Szymanowski and Komeda
International Composers Competitions, and the Grand Prize at the Rodrigo
Landa-Romero Competition. He has also received awards from Musica Sacra, PWM,
and A. Didur competitions, alongside multiple scholarships from ZAiKS and the
Polish Ministry of Culture.
NORTHERN CALIFORNIA VIOLA SOCIETY’S 2024-25 International Viola Composition Contest (IVCC) The Northern California Viola Society announces its 2024-25 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 9, 2025. 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
Deadline for submission: Oct 28, 2024
Winner and Runners-up announced: new date Dec 9, 2024
To Submit: Email your score PDF that includes date of composition and title but pseudonym for composer’s name to dmitri.yevstifeev@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.
NCVS presented a session on the 6 most recent compositions in June 2024 at the Colburn School in Los Angeles, CA for the American Viola Society Festival, with (from left-right) Katrina Wreede, Jennifer Hwang, Rebekah Sung, Colin Breshears, Michelle Koo, Pearl de la Motte, Sydney Whipple and Daria D'Andrea. YVC past prize winners performed the works below by Alischer Ikramutdinov, Dr. Andersen Viana, Dario Duarte, Andrew Wilson and Denise Ondishko.
Past Composition Contest News and Links to works:
2023-24 Prize-winner: Baby Elephant Wandering Deep in Thought by Alischer Ikramutdinov of Vienna, Austria.
Written after an outing to the zoo with his young son, Baby Elephant is our winner this year. Mr Ikramutdinov is originally from Tashkent but makes his home in Vienna. He studied violin, flute, piano and guitar as well as composition and orchestral conducting. He currently is taking on international composition projects for theater, soloists and musical groups. Alischer has been writing music for symphony and wind orchestra, chamber groups, choir and solo instruments, including in pop and rock styles. Baby Elephant was composed in 2023 for the competition and we enjoyed hearing our young finalists take on this fun and imaginative piece for solo viola.
Many thanks to our composition panelists: Jodi Levitz, Ethan Filner, Tom Tatton, Ben Simon, Katrina Wreede and Daria D'Andrea
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.
Many
thanks to our panel of judges: Jodi Levitz, Hank
Dutt, Kevin Jim, Ethan Filner, Tom Tatton, Daria D’Andrea and Katrina
Wreede.
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.
2020-21 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.
