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Ruzickova Competition

Inherently

Inherently

Active Member
Winning scores to receive a filmed concert performance by a Baroque instrument ensemble.
  • new music for period instruments
  • concerto for a solo baroque violin and chamber orchestra of between 8-12 minutes duration
  • we ask that you explore Vivaldi’s Four Seasons and celebrate the dialogue of solo violin with the orchestra
  • your concerto may be in as many, or as few movements as you wish
  • Period instruments offer an as yet untapped opportunity for contemporary composition
  • considering what works and what doesn’t on baroque instruments (with gut strings and baroque bows)
. Submit a 8-12 minute long composition for the following baroque instrumentation ONLY:
- solo violin
- tutti 1st violins, 2nd violins, violas, continuo (cellos/basses and harpsichord)
. The work should be performable at A=415Hz
. Scores and individual parts should be submitted in standard western notation and should not make use of graphical notation. Parts and scores must be legible. As the compositions will be judged anonymously, composer names and signatures must be kept off the score. Details about the composer’s identity (name, date of birth, email, short biography) should be included in a separate WORD document attached to the submission email.
. Compositions should be submitted as PDF files with sound files produced by your notation software
. There is NO registration fee
. There is NO age limit and the competition is open to all nationalities
. Deadline for submitting entries: 31st May 2023 (midnight BST)

Full details here: https://www.adawitczyk.com/competition2023
Click to read more...
 
Henu said:
"Copyright in the work(s) will remain with the composer(s) but Ada Witczyk will have a perpetual licence to use the work(s) herself for any purpose."

Uhmmm...what?
Click to expand...
I wouldn’t honestly worry about it too much. This is the third year they’ve done the competition and it looks like they’re just using the music to make music videos with them afterwards.

Tbh, not exactly a large market for the exploitation of new Baroque music, so not a ton of space for abuse of the material!

But yes, not the best line. Not good legalese.
 
Wonderful trove of details about Baroque instruments and traditions here:

Here is a floorplan (I Solisti Zagreb) which may prove useful for stereo imaging:

rjMGWGHoX5O65TLgNB1XjRbKU_kwZLVKnEyPwiz_SKUpxkiFnVJxSchKHtjulxpeH2kBbQaD3ZH677OXH1xWxUNVz_w5qOM4GqQw5EQaR_uSXX7lVHKymMAwTbKWGgIihP-MwK49DGSX8q8td2sNRg
 
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@Inherently, thank you for the information about this competition! Sounds as a great and inspiring opportunity for me, as I'm a violinist and I had some experience playing the baroque violin. I'll definitely give it a try!
 
Thought for the day: progress doesn't always go in a straight line. Straight lines don't always go in a straight line, either.

I'm looking forward to finishing the first draft of this, straightaway!

How's everybody doing so far?
 
This project got me listening to some work I might not have otherwise considered: Bach- St. Matthew Passion, Vivaldi- Four Seasons, Sibelius- Violin Concerto in d minor, and others by Beethoven, Mozart, etc. Unsok Chin's violin concerto No. 1 has got my head to the floor; I don't think I will be listening to anything else for a while. When I think 'I can do that,' I am not thinking about all the skills I don't have, and all of the solo violin writing I can't do. I am considering putting a plan in front of a group of musicians that they can follow. It only has to be that much.

Today is Sunday and many people, including me, will have an hour to work on music today, internationally!

Have a great day everybody!

 
Inherently said:
Unsok Chin's violin concerto No. 1 has got my head to the floor; I don't think I will be listening to anything else for a while.
Click to expand...

Wow, honestly I haven't heard of Unsok Chin before - thank you for sharing! It's especially inspiring for me to know, that this violin concerto was composed by a female-composer!

Ok, I got the main part of my fast movement (the solo part and the orchestra draft) and an idea draft for the slow movement - I consider them the 2nd and the 3rd movements. For now seems around 5 minutes of music (both movements not finished yet). So the 1st movement is anticipated, although I have no idea yet, how it might sound. Starting now putting my music from paper to a notation program. @Inherently , which notation program do you use?

Who else here is working on a piece for this competition?
 
Gedren said:
Ok, I got the main part of my fast movement (the solo part and the orchestra draft) and an idea draft for the slow movement - I consider them the 2nd and the 3rd movements. For now seems around 5 minutes of music (both movements not finished yet). So the 1st movement is anticipated, although I have no idea yet, how it might sound. Starting now putting my music from paper to a notation program.
Click to expand...

Gedren said:
@Inherently , which notation program do you use?
Click to expand...
I use MuseScore - what do you use?
 
Gedren said:
I use Sibelius.
I wonder if we should use A=415Hz in our audio... I'm trying to find how to do it in my program.
Click to expand...
Wow - re-tuning is supported in MuseScore! I was planning to use the DAW for that.

Seems like a good idea to tune the mockup to A415, but should not be a deal-breaker.

I received this update email today:

2023 Ruzickova Composition
One month to deadline day​

Time goes by fast and we can't wait so see all of your finished pieces in less than a month!

Not sure how to write for period instruments, need some tips, tricks and inspiration before the finish line? Don't worry, we've got you covered below!


There are new rules, new prizes and new information about our 2023 competition, so make sure to check the website for more details.
Happy composing!
Competition deadline: 31 May 2023 (midnight GMT)
​
Writing for Baroque Violin
Gut strings? Funny looking bows?
So many people ask 'so what is it that makes playing baroque violin so different to modern instruments'?
https://adawitczyk.us17.list-manage.com/track/click?u=2ee99aa39eaedc190859af07c&id=16b8e63370&e=78837c0e0b (Click to find out more)​
​
NEW BAROQUE US TOUR!

We're so proud to share that the winning pieces from the very first round of the competition will have their live premiere in the US!
Head to the website to check out all the dates
​
FAQs
There's no such thing as a stupid question.
We've put together some of your frequently asked questions about the competition, its rules, the prizes and how to write best for period instruments.
Click below and find out.
FAQs​
​
2022 pieces published!
The three 2022 winning compositions are now ready to buy!
All of our winners' music has been published by early music specialists Prima la musica! so head on over to their online store and explore our new music plus lots of brilliant works by the best baroque, renaissance and early classical composers .
​
The baroque violin inspiration playlist
Need some inspiration?
Check out our Spotify playlist curated by Ada and hear some of the awesome music that makes it unique.
​
Learn more about baroque violin and bow!
​
 
@Gedren - taking a closer look at the competition rules.

  • The work "should be performable at A=415Hz."
  • The mockup: "sound files produced by your notation software."
- Sibelius' tuning @ A=440 therefore can not be a problem.

---

On the instruments page, I plan to specify a baroque chamber ensemble with ten (10) instruments tuned to A=415 like this:

(1) solo violin
(2) violins-1
(2) violins-2
(2) viola
(1) cello
(1) contrabass
(1) harpsichord

---

I am so excited to hear what other folks come up with, and also looking forward to doing a VI mockup sometime after the deadline, which is Greenwich Mean Time, i.e. supper time in New York, not midnight, on the 31st.

---

Godspeed!
 
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The FAQs are quite helpful:

🎻DO WE HAVE TO WRITE IN A BAROQUE STYLE?
No, we give composers complete stylistic freedom.

🎻WHAT INSTRUMENTS CAN I USE IN MY ENSEMBLE?
Solo baroque violin, Tutti baroque violin 1&2, viola, cello/bass & harpsichord

🎻DO I NEED TO USE ALL THE INSTRUMENTS GIVEN?
Yes.

🎻CAN I WRITE DIVISI STRING PARTS?
No. We want to make sure your music can be performed by as many different-size ensembles as possible, some of which have only one player per part, so to be safe, please avoid writing divisi parts.

🎻MY NOTATION SOFTWARE CAN’T CHANGE MY MUSIC TO A=415HZ, IS IT OK TO SEND THE MP3 IN A=440HZ?
Yes, that’s fine.

🎻ARE YOU LOOKING FOR MUSIC THAT REFERENCES/QUOTES/ENGAGES WITH VIVALDI'S FOUR SEASONS, OR COMPLETELY NEW/INDEPENDENT/ORIGINAL MATERIAL?
While you might choose to reference this year's 'inspiration' piece, you don't have to, it's not obligatory.

🎻HOW SHOULD I WRITE FOR A HARPSICHORD?
Either figured bass or a written out part will be fine.

🎻WILL THE CONTINUO COMPRISE A HARPSICHORD, CELLO AND DOUBLE BASS?
While you can write anything you like for the harpsichord we imagine that cello and bass would play the same line.
 
Inherently said:
This project got me listening to some work I might not have otherwise considered: Bach- St. Matthew Passion, Vivaldi- Four Seasons, Sibelius- Violin Concerto in d minor, and others by Beethoven, Mozart, etc. Unsok Chin's violin concerto No. 1 has got my head to the floor; I don't think I will be listening to anything else for a while. When I think 'I can do that,' I am not thinking about all the skills I don't have, and all of the solo violin writing I can't do. I am considering putting a plan in front of a group of musicians that they can follow. It only has to be that much.

Today is Sunday and many people, including me, will have an hour to work on music today, internationally!

Have a great day everybody!

Click to expand...

Holy smokes this concerto is dope! Thanks for sharing it.

Be aware that something as densely complicated as that may be fully written out, or done with aleatoric notation (though in my quick skim of the piece, I’ll listen in full later - it sounds more written than aleatoric to me) that a lot of this is dependent on a large body if people doing different things. The fact this competition wants single tutti parts per section so that it could be performable by essentially a string sextet and harpsichord means going for something as densely chaotic as this likely won’t work as well.
 
I would not hope to emulate the amazing work- my skills are super-basic - however - I am gobsmacked by this example! In interviews she has shared that she seeks to express the flood of light and colors that she meets in her dreams. Hearing this has helped me trust everything I don’t and can’t know, and just keep dreaming for a couple more weeks as the deadline slithers up to bite me in the neck.
 
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