40th IAWM Search for New Music by Women Composers 2021 Competition Guidelines
Receipt deadline: June 8, 2021

The International Alliance for Women in Music (IAWM) announces its annual “Search for New Music by Women Composers” competition. Membership in IAWM is required, but applicants may join at the time of entry. This call is open to IAWM women-identified composer members.

Categories

Ruth Anderson Commission Prize ($1,000)

Commission for a new sound installation with electro-acoustic music.
To apply, submit a detailed proposal of the sound installation. The project should be an ongoing installation and not require a performance to be successful. The project must be completed within 12 months of notification of the award. The winner will receive the award money after submitting a report to IAWM following the public showing of the completed installation. Location of the installation may be, but is not restricted to, an IAWM annual concert or conference.

Christine Clark/Theodore Front Prize ($500)

Large chamber works (for 9+ instruments) and/or orchestral works; may include works featuring soloist (vocal or instrumental).
Sponsored by Christine Clark of Theodore Front Musical Literature, Inc.

Miriam Gideon Prize ($500)

(minimum age – fifty) Works for solo voice with 1-5 instruments.

Sponsored by Lucille Field Goodman.

Libby Larsen Prize ($300)

(must be currently enrolled in school) Works for any medium.

Sponsored by Dr. Larsen.

Portland Jazz Composers Ensemble Prize ($300)

Jazz compositions of any duration for small ensemble to big band (4-17 instruments)

Sponsored by the Portland Jazz Composers Ensemble

PatsyLu Prize ($500)

(for Black and Underrepresented women) New music works in any form or instrumentation.

Sponsored by Patsy Rogers and Lucille Field Goodman.

Pauline Oliveros New Genre Prize ($300)

Works incorporating innovative form or style, such as improvisation, multimedia, use of non-traditional notation, open instrumentation, or new performance practices. If no score is used, a description of the work and its inspiration should accompany the audio or video submission.
Sponsored by Claire Chase.

Alex Shapiro Prize ($500 and mentorship/consultation from Alex Shapiro)

Works of any duration for large ensemble wind band requiring a conductor, with or without soloist, acoustic or electroacoustic, published or as yet unpublished.
Sponsored by Alex Shapiro.

The International Alliance for Women in Music celenrates and fosters the achievements of women in music.Member of the Internaional Council of UNESCO

Christina Rusnak, President; Dana Reason, Vice President; Deb Saidel, Treasurer; Kelly Vaneman, Secretary; http://www.iawm.org/

Categories (continued)
Judith Lang Zaimont Prize ($400)
(minimum age – thirty) Extended instrumental compositions—large solo or chamber works—by a composer whose music has not yet been commercially recorded or published.
Sponsored by Professor Zaimont.

Choral/Vocal Ensemble Prize ($300)

Compositions of any duration for choral or vocal ensemble.

Requirements
ONE ENTRY: A composer or a composer collective may submit only one of their own pieces in any given

year in only one chosen category.

MEMBERSHIP: If your membership is not current at time of submission and through the award timeframe, the work will be disqualified. To join IAWM or renew your membership, please see the IAWM website here: https://iawm.org/join-iawm

ANONYMOUS SUBMISSIONS: Please upload an anonymous PDF file of the score and an anonymousMP3 sound file or a link to an anonymous video of the work. If a recording of a performance/reading is not available, MP3 files of MIDI realizations are acceptable. The score may not contain any identifying information. For the Ruth Anderson Prize, please upload your anonymous proposal as a PDF file in the PROPOSAL upload area. For all categories, please provide a short biography (maximum 200 words).

UNPUBLISHED WORKS: For all categories, except the Alex Shapiro Prize, the work submitted must be unpublished by a major publishing house and must have won no prior awards at the time of entry in the competition. Self-published works are allowed. For the Zaimont Prize, the work must also have no plans to be professionally recorded when it is submitted.

RESTRICTION FOR PREVIOUS WINNERS: Winners must wait two years after their last award to reapply for an SNM Award. For 2021, this includes winners of the 2019 and 2020 competitions. There is no restriction on submissions from those who received honorable mentions.

IAWM reserves the right to withhold an award, should the judging panel so recommend.

SUBMISSION CALENDAR

• –  The submission period begins April 13, 2021.
• –  Deadline for receipt of materials is 11:59 p.m. June 8, 2021. (As this is an international call for scores,the deadline for submission is in your computer’s local time zone. It is always better to submit well before the last day to avoid last minute issues that might cause you to miss the deadline. There are no exceptions to this deadline.)
• –  Winners will be announced no later than August 30, 2021
  The IAWM website will have a complete list of winners shortly after the announcement date. A pressrelease with biographical information on all the winners will be distributed.
  Submit online at: https://www.newmusicengine.org/categories/40th-IAWM-Search-for-New-Music-Competition/index.html
  Questions: Send questions to the chair of the SNM Competition, Michele Cheng, at [email protected].