The University of Aberdeen is today launching a global search for aspiring new composers for its new competition with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and BBC Radio 3.
The University of Aberdeen Music Prize, the only one of its kind, is dedicated to finding the composers of the future and encouraging creativity and involvement with the arts. The unique competition is set to put Aberdeen on the map as a centre of creative vision and excellence.
The official launch will be held today (Friday, October 1), at 3.30pm, at the Aberdeen Music Hall.
The inaugural award for String Quartet will be presented in April 2005 at the end of a weekend of workshops featuring the short-listed composers and members of the BBC SSO. The winning composer will receive a prize of £5,000 and a commission for a full-scale work to be premiered by the BBC SSO and broadcast on BBC Radio 3. There will also be a fascinating weekend of hands-on events, concerts, and workshops, which will involve schools and the wider public.
The University of Aberdeen Music Prize has secured the support of one of the world's most celebrated musicians and University of Aberdeen Honorary Graduate, Evelyn Glennie, OBE, who has come on board as Patron.
The competition also welcomes two distinguished musicians, Jonathan Harvey and Robert Saxton, who will judge the first award for the best composition for string quartet.
Music Prize organisers have already been inundated with enquiries from budding composers from around the world, which is testament to the global significance of the event.
Professor C Duncan Rice, Principal of the University of Aberdeen, said: "I warmly congratulate and celebrate the enthusiasm and commitment of the BBC, and in particular the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, who are joining forces with us to make this event possible.
"The University of Aberdeen Music Prize has something for everyone, and we hope this unique event will attract attention from across the globe, putting Aberdeen on the map as a home for creative music making."
Dr Paul Mealor, Director of the University of Aberdeen Music Prize, has played a key role in the organisation of the Music Prize. He said: "The University of Aberdeen Music Prize is a world first! Many young composers from across the world will be flocking to Aberdeen to join in this celebration of creativity. This is sure to be an important event in the musical world, the cultural landscape of Aberdeen, of Scotland and far beyond."
* The BBC SSO will also celebrate the launch of its Aberdeen Concert Season 04 - 05 tonight (Friday 1 October), with Debussy's Images, a superb musical evocation of the sights and sounds of southern Europe, with an unforgettable portrait of Spain. Also in the opening concert, one of the rising stars of the keyboard, Frederic-Francois Guy, makes his BBC SSO debut with the most lyrical of Beethoven's piano concerts. The concert will be held in the Music Hall, at 7.30pm, part of Listen Up! Festival of Orchestras 2004.