Young Composers' Competition

Launched in 1996, the annual Young Composers' Competition encourages all Maine students, high school and below, to create new works, develop their composing and notation skills, and get valuable feedback from professional musicians.  For six lucky youngsters, it’s a chance for them to win some extra spending money, too.

Young Maine musicians are invited to submit their new works by mid-February for review by a jury of professional musicians.  Current judges are Robert Bahr, composer, music director and pianist who can be heard performing regularly at venues in Bar Harbor; Fred Goldrich, composer, arranger and conductor of The Bangor Band; and John Cooper, Professor of Music and Composer in Residence at the College of the Atlantic.

Cash awards and recognition are presented in two categories: Category I – Through Age 13; Category II – Age 14 through high school. All participants are recognized and invited to perform at the Young Composers’ Festival in Blue Hill in April.  Specific dates are announced in October and details are mailed to all Maine music teachers.

All submissions become part of the Music Library’s esteemed Maine Collection. This important archive contains over 2,750 works, including pieces by R.B. Hall, Frank Churchill (Who’s Afraid of the Big, Bad Wolf), Werner Torkanowsky, Walter Piston and Noel Paul Stookey.

For complete information and entry forms, young composers should contact the Music Library at 207-374-5454 or festival@bagaducemusic.org.

Below are the official rules for last year's competition (subject to change for 2011).