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British Composer Awards 2009

Vocal: John Casken - The Dream of the Rood
The judges said: �This is an epic work setting a striking text. We were immediately gripped by its gravitas and beautiful harmonic language - a powerful and emotional piece.�

Instrumental Solo or Duo: Thomas Simaku - Soliloquy V, Flauto Acerbo
The judging panel unanimously agreed that the winning work redefines the instrument in a visionary and entirely original way. They praised it for its virtuosity, depth of expression, and powerful imagination.

Liturgical: John Tavener � Ex Maria Virgine
The judges were impressed with the scope of the winning work and felt it would have many applications in many settings for both amateur and professional chapel choirs. They described it as, �dramatic, atmospheric, at times joyous and attimes meditative.�

Community or Educational Project: Mira Calix - My Secret Heart
The judges describe the winning work as, �transformational, capturing raw humanity and giving voice to the disenfranchised in a sound-world which is original, absorbing and unsettling.�

Chamber: Alexander Goehr - Since Brass, Nor Stone�
The judges praised the winning work � �fresh lyricism, lightness of touch and joy in melodic and rhythmic invention.� The panel�s decision was unanimous for a work which they hailed as that of a master.

Sonic Art: Mark Peter Wright � A Quiet Reverie
The panel thought the winning work was a �skilled and subtle essay in the manipulation of environmental sounds. It is immersive and reflective and a powerful evocation of place and space.�

International: John Adams � Doctor Atomic
This is what the judges had to say about the winning work: �This music has an epic sweep. It demonstrates a formidable
technique in all departments and exudes an incredible poignancy. Simply, sensational.�

Orchestral: Simon Holt � a table of noises
The judges came to a unanimous decision and have provided a pithy verdict about the winning composition: �This work
shows an extraordinary sense of beguiling and haunting instrumental sonorities, defining a piece of breathtaking
originality, imagination, invention and wit.�

Stage Works: Graham Fitkin � Reel
The jury felt this was a very strong set of entries and while shortlisting these three significant works, they indicated there could easily have been more. The winning work they say, is by a composer with a �clear and original musical voice. It is inventive, elegant and witty, and demonstrates a perfect partnership between music and dance.�

Making Music: Elizabeth Winters - The Serious Side of Madness
The jury says that, from the outset, they were �intrigued and delighted by the sound world of the winning work.� In a large and diverse field, it stood out for the composer�s fine ear and excellent technique. Easily playable by amateurs, in the judges� view, it was nonetheless clearly a serious and effective concert work.

York H�ller wins 2010 Grawemeyer Award

Composer York H�ller has won the 2010 Grawemeyer Award for his orchestral work Sph�ren. More details on the Boosey's website:
http://www.boosey.com/cr/news/York-H-ller-wins-2010-Grawemeyer-Award-for-Sph-ren/11919

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British Composer Shortlists announced

The 2009 British Composer Shortlists have been announced, including 3 nominations for Sir Harrison Birtwistle:

http://www.basca.org.uk/public-events-news/british-composer-awards-2009

Ted Hearne wins the Gaudeamus

US composer Ted Hearne has won the 2009 Gaudeamus prize for his 'Katrina Ballads', performed on September 10, 2009 at the Conservatory of Amsterdam by `the ereprijs with Wim Boerman conducting. Hearne himself was vocal soloist in this piece.

This prize is � 4,550 and is meant for writing a new composition to be performed in the Gaudeamus Music Week 2010.

New York Phil gets $10Million for composers

The New York Philharmonic announced today it will receive a $10 million gift from Henry R. Kravis to endow its new composer-in-residence position. Finnish composer Magnus Lindberg will hold the position first.

The Kravis gift will also fund a $250,000 prize for new music, one of the largest awards of its kind. The grant will be given every two years, beginning with the 2011-12 season.

The announcement came as incoming Music Director Alan Gilbert starts his first week at the NY Phil.

Golijov signs to Boosey's

Boosey & Hawkes has signed Osvaldo Golijov to its roster of composers. By exclusive agreement, Boosey & Hawkes now represents Golijov's existing catalog as well as all future works.

http://www.newmusicbox.org/article.nmbx?id=6076

Maxwell Davies to write opera about MPs' expenses

Sir Peter Maxwell Davies has disclosed today that he is writing a comic opera about the MPs' expenses scandal, which may feature duck houses and moats.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/culturenews/5602200/MPs-expenses-Queens-composer-Sir-Peter-Maxwell-Davies-to-write-opera.html

Boulez wins $500,000 Kyoto prize

Boulez is one of the winners of this year's Kyoto Prize for �contributions to the scientific, cultural and spiritual betterment of mankind,� awarded annually by the Inamori Foundation in Japan. The foundation recognized Mr. Boulez for his contributions to the musical field of serialism, and for his �controlled chance� compositions and his work as director of IRCAM.

Huddersfield Festival details announced

Highlights of the 2009 Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival (HCMF), which takes place from Friday, November 21 � Sunday, November 29, 2009, have been announced by the Festival�s Artistic Director, Graham McKenzie.

They include in-depth explorations of the work of two leading voices in European music � the British composer Jonathan Harvey and Portugal�s most celebrated living composer, Emmanuel Nunes.

The festival�s opening concert (Friday, November 21) is to be given by the renowned Arditti Quartet with the Hilliard Ensemble, and includes the UK premiere of Et Lux, a new requiem by the German composer Wolfgang Rihm.

Maxwell Davies in the Guardian

My advice to a young musician? Take no notice of people like me says Peter Maxwell Davies in a question and answer session in today's guardian

http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2009/jun/16/peter-maxwell-davies-composer

Philip Glass discusses modern music with Nico Muhly

As he prepares for a London appearance this weekend, Philip Glass discusses the state of modern music with fellow composer Nico Muhly

http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2009/may/22/philip-glass-nico-muhly

Coco Chanel and Igor Stravinsky at Cannes

Stravinsky � the man and the music � takes centre screen at the Cannes Film Festival in May, with the premiere of Coco Chanel and Igor Stravinsky selected as the festival�s finale.

The new biopic explores the relationship between the haute couture icon and the Russian composer. Central to the film is The Rite of Spring: Chanel is mesmerised by the scandalous premiere in 1913, and seven years later is introduced by Diaghilev to Stravinsky, now a penniless �migr� living in Paris with his family. She invites them to stay at her new villa in Garches and, as the composer works on retouches of The Rite of Spring for a Paris revival, a mutual attraction gathers force.

Coco Chanel and Igor Stravinsky is based on the novel Coco & Igor by Chris Greenhalgh and directed by Jan Kounen. Mads Mikkelsen, whose credits include Le Chiffre in the Bond movie Casino Royale, stars as the composer and Coco Chanel is played by Anna Mouglalis, the actress and model associated with Karl Lagerfeld and the Chanel fashion house

More info on Booseys website

Pauline Oliveros Wins The William Schuman Award

Columbia University School of the Arts has announced it plans to honor composer Pauline Oliveros with the William Schuman Award in a ceremony and concert on Saturday, March 27, 2010. The award has been given periodically over the past twenty-eight years with previous winners including Schuman, David Diamond, Gunther Schuller, Milton Babbitt, Hugo Weisgall, Steve Reich, and, most recently in 2006, John Zorn.

The award is an unrestricted grant of $50,000 and is one of the largest to an American composer.

Nicholas Maw dies

Nicholas Maw, one of Britain's leading composers, whose works include Odyssey and the opera Sophie's Choice, has died in Washington DC, where he lived for the past 24 years, at the age of 73.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/arts_and_culture/8058194.stm

Gabriel Jackson appointed BBC Singers' Associate Composer

The BBC Singers has announced that Gabriel Jackson is to become its new Associate Composer starting from 2010. Jackson will be the third composer to take up the position, following in the footsteps of Judith Bingham, who has held the post since 2005, and Edward Cowie, who became the first BBC Singers Associate Composer in 2002.

A rising star on the choral music scene, Gabriel Jackson�s music is performed by choirs all over the world. He already has a strong relationship with the BBC Singers, who have been performing his music for over a decade. His first commission for the group was Cecilia Virgo which it premiered in Canterbury Cathedral in October 2000.

Abreu and Gabriel win Swedish Polar Music Prize

The rock musician Peter Gabriel and the conductor and composer Jose Antonio Abreu were both named winners of the Swedish Polar Music Prize. Gabriel was honored for his �outward-looking and boundary-busting artistry,� while Abreu was recognized for founding the Sistema music education program in Venezuela, which �has given hundreds of thousands the tools to leave poverty.� The winners were chosen by the Swedish Royal Academy of Music and will each receive about $128,000 when they formally accept the prize from King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden at a ceremony in Stockholm on Aug. 31

IMG Artists in Limbo as Owner Pleads Guilty To Fraud

IMG Artists, the artist management firm which represents the top musicians, composers and conductors, has an unsteady future as its owner has pleaded guilty to fraud. Composers with IMG include John Adams and Andre Previn.

Norman Lebrecht assesses the situation:

IMG Artists Adrift After Wissman Plea

2009 Bang On A Can Marathon Schedule

Twelve hours of new music. Check out the schedule here:

John Adams Honored with 2009 NEA Opera Award

Composer John Adams is one of five honorees selected for the 2009 National Endowment for the Arts Opera Awards. The awards will be officially conferred on November 14th and include a $25,000 grant.

Read on:
NEA Chooses Five for 2009 Opera Honors