2012
Three scores selected for the finals!
The jury is thrilled by the inventions of the 21 young composers who have sent in their scores. Hans Woudenberg, Micha Hamel and Leo Samama have been selecting the scores based on musical invention, technical demands, orthography and practical issues (what would work and what wouldn’t).
Even then it was a difficult task to select from these three scores which stand out, which made the jury curious to hear them in concert and experience the difference between the symbols of a score and the reality of sound. Generally speaking the level was very high. The inventions of the composers were quite diverse, from straight forward quartet writing to sound experiments, which were not yet ready to leave the kitchen.
Three scores were selected for the finals to be performed by the Dudok Quartet on September 20, 2012. These are: Nystagmus by Paco Jordi (Spain), Marinela de Predare Plange by Emma-Ruth Richards (Great Britain) and Muove by Lauri Mäntysaari (Finland). Each of these scores proves that whatever techniques a composer uses, at the end most important is the ‘story’ one wants to tell. Each of the chosen scores shows a consistent blending of technique and expression.
The jury and the festivalorganisation are looking forward very much to hearing these scores being performed on September 20th!
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The Hague Young Masters XXI 2012 composition contest: application now closed - a warm welcome to all 41 contestants from all corners of the EU, we're looking forward to receiving your string quartets!
The International Chamber Music Festival The Hague aims to stimulate contemporary chamber music and offer young composers living in the EU a chance to develop their skills and display their talents. In celebration of the 10th edition in September 2012, the festival is opening its The Hague Young Masters XXI contest to all young composers living in the EU.
Composers aged 30 and younger who are currently living in the EU are invited to compose a new work for classic string quartet. A jury of expert professionals will select three works for the concert final (part of the festival's programme) during which these works will be premiered.
Jury members: Leo Samama, Micha Hamel, Hans Woudenberg
For more information, contest regulations and prizes, please click here
Competition final: Thursday, September 20th 2012 at the Dr Anton Philipszaal, The Hague
Deadline for submitting new compositions: June 1st 2012
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2011
Winners of Masters XXI
Op woensdag 21 september was de concertfinale van de compositiewedstrijd YOUNG MASTERS XXI 2011.
Elizabeth Kelly (United States) won de JURYPRIJS en Kaveh Vares (Iran) won de PUBLIEKSPRIJS.
Juryrapport Young Masters XXI:
Bij het juryberaad viel op dat de drie stukken om geheel andere redenen gewaardeerd werden.
Zo dwong Ezequiel Menalled met zijn verstilde begin onmiddellijk tot luisteren. Zijn klankkleuren waren op sommige momenten adembenemend.
Elizabeth Kelly maakte in haar stuk heldere keuzes in het muzikale materiaal en wist een poëtische sfeer tot het einde van haar stuk vol te houden. Een verhaal uit één stuk dus. Haar werk getuigde van een doordacht idiomatisch gebruik van het medium strijkkwartet. Het vakmanschap waarmee zij het spaarzame muzikale materiaal tot een overtuigend poëtisch verhaal wist te vormen gaf de doorslag voor de jury om haar stuk te bekronen.
Kaveh Vares wist met verrassende vondsten en eclectische keuzes de luisteraar voortdurend op het verkeerde been te zetten, hetgeen leidde tot een spannend en gevarieerd stuk waarin verschillende verhaallijnen de ruimte werd gegeven.
Na lang beraad besloot de jury de prijs toe te kennen aan Elizabeth Kelly. Nadrukkelijk werd ook het Ragazze Kwartet geprezen voor hun zeer overtuigende uitvoering van alle stukken.
Namens de jury, Bas Wiegers
The report of the jury: Young Masters XXI (ENGLISH):
In deliberating over the prize, the jury found themselves with difficult choices to make, as all three pieces needed to be valued on very different criteria.
Ezequiel Menalled’s quartet immediately forced the listener to open their ears; his sound world was breathtaking at times, also the flawless use of click track was a convincing solution in making the complexity of the piece playable.
In her work, Elizabeth Kelly made crystal clear choices regarding the musical material and managed to sustain a poetic atmosphere until the very end; a single narrative throughout, and with a thoughtful and idiomatic use of the medium of the string quartet.
Kaveh Vares’s quartet playfully deployed eclectic material which managed to constantly wrong-foot the listener. By choosing to utilize many different harmonic, melodic and performative techniques, his piece displayed an exciting, and varying nature, creating space for differing narrative voices, worked out in a sophisticated structure. After much deliberation the jury decided to award the prize to Elizabeth Kelly for the craftsmanship and sensitivity in which she created a singular poetic and perplexing form.
Ragazze Quartet was also highly praised for their utterly convincing performance of all three new pieces.
On behalf of the jury, Bas Wiegers
Composition Contest 'Young Masters XXI' 2011
2nd Edition of Composition Contest ‘Young Masters XXI' for young composers
Composers of 30 years and younger living in the Netherlands have been invited to compose a work for classic string quartet. A jury of expert professionals has select three works for the concert final (part of the festival's programme) during which these works will be premiered.
Competition final: Wednesday, September 21, 2011 - Dr Anton Philipszaal ('Philips Salon' - a chamber music setting created on the podium), Den Haag. A concert final with world premiere as part of the festival. Works selected for the final will be performed by the young up and coming Ragazze Kwartet.
Jury members:
Tino Haenen
Joël Bons
Yannis Kyriakides
Davo van Peursen
Bas Wiegers
The finalists for the Composition Contest 'Young Masters XXI 2011’ are:
· Elizabeth Kelly
· Ezequiel Menalled
· Kaveh Vares
Congratulations to the composers! Their string quartets will be performed on Wednesday September 21th 2011 in the festival by the Ragazze Kwartet. For tickets look here.
Info and contest regulations: youngmastersxxi-regulations2011.pdf
Click here for a photo-impression of the Young Masters XXI contest in 2010.
Publieksprijs
Kom luisteren en laat uw ook uw eigen stem gelden voor de publieksprijs!
Prijs voor finalisten: uitgave Donemus
De werken van de drie finalisten zullen worden uitgegeven door MCN/Donemus.
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2010
About the contest 'Young Masters XXI'
International Chamber Music Festival The Hague aims to stimulate contemporary chamber music and offers young composition talent in The Netherlands a chance to develop and expose their talents. In 2010 the festival organized the first composition contest 'Young Masters XXI' - the only composition contest for string quartet in The Netherlands.
International Chamber Music Festival The Hague offers young composition talent in The Netherlands a chance to develop, in order to stimulate contemporary chamber music. In 2010 the festival announced a new composition contest for classic string quartet. A jury of expert professionals will select three finalists for a world premiere performance during the festival.
Compositiewedstrijd 'Young Masters XXI' 2010
Op 23 juni 2010 vond het juryberaad plaats in het Muziek Centrum Nederland te Amsterdam.
Juryleden Martijn Padding, Guus Janssen en Heleen Hulst selecteerden van de tien ingezonden composities de volgende drie werken die tijdens de concertfinale op 26 september 2010 in de Nieuwe Kerk hun wereldpremière hebben beleefd, uitgevoerd door het Ragazze Kwartet, het Allegra Kwartet en het Grazia Kwartet:
- Gijs van der Heijden - Tees and Treeth voor strijkkwartet en toypiano
- Nikos Ioakeim - Ist Musik sich bewegende Architektur? voor strijkkwartet en slagwerk
- Andrzej Kwiecinski - Mural voor strijkkwartet en contrabas
Andrzej Kwiecinski werd door de jury uitgeroepen tot winnaar. Gijs van der Heijden won de Publieksprijs.