We’re announcing the winners!
The OM and its conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin are thrilled to announce the names of the Composition Competition winners:
Francis Battah, Marie-Pierre Brasset, Cristina García Islas and Nicholas Ryan.
The OM would also like to give 5 honourable mentions to composers who presented quality submissions:
Maggie Ayotte, Alexander Blank, Patrick Giguère, Dominique Lafortune and Denis Nassar-Baptista.
Congratulations to the winners and thank you to all the participants!
The OM would like to thank its Grand Ambassador, Power Corporation of Canada, for supporting the composition contest and encouraging Canadian artists.
Since its foundation in 1981, the Orchestre Métropolitain has championed Canadian artists through its programming, whether it be its instrumentalists, composers, singers or conductors. With this in mind, the OM hopes to combine its commitment to emerging Canadian talent and to the creation process by launching its first-ever composition competition.
As part of the numerous special activities surrounding its 40th season, the Orchestre Métropolitain is inviting Canadian composers to submit a proposal of an original work for orchestra of a finished duration of five (5) to six (6) minutes. Four (4) works will be selected and subsequently performed by the Orchestre Métropolitain under the baton of Yannick Nézet-Séguin. Each selected work will be included in one of four concerts of the Beethoven Marathon, which closes the OM’s 20-21 season with a performance of each of Beethoven’s nine symphonies.
Each proposal of a work should embody what Beethoven has represented to the world throughout the centuries. Keeping in mind the musical legacy of a tireless composer, deeply anchored in the social and political realities of his era, the submitted works can represent, for example, Beethoven’s message of hope in the face of destiny, his relationship to nature, his preoccupations which are still relevant today, the world around us, or the individual versus the collective, and can be a reaction, hommage, critique, social or cultural observation, among others.
The OM also encourages composers to communicate the Beethoven symphony to which they would like their piece to be paired – the selected works can be played before or after any specified symphony.
TO APPLY
IMPORTANT DATES
BEETHOVEN MARATHON CONCERT SERIES
PRIZES
The four (4) selected works will be performed in concert by the Orchestre Métropolitain and conducted by Yannick Nézet-Séguin at the Maison symphonique de Montréal in June 2021, as part of its Beethoven Marathon.
Six prizes will be awarded:
Other details:
Why use Beethoven’s music as inspiration?
The year 2020 marks the 250th anniversary of Beethoven’s birth, which would have been celebrated around the world. Unfortunately, many of the scheduled concerts have had to be cancelled or postponed due to the pandemic. Beethoven’s unique approach to overcoming adversity—translating human qualities like doubt, solitude and introspection into music—are all good reasons to examine our relationship to his musical legacy.
Ludwig van Beethoven was always sensitive to the social realities of his time. The OM encourages participating composers to echo Beethoven’s work in their own personal compositions and will honour each unique perspective the participant chooses to impart, whether it be a critical reflection, positive or negative reaction, or homage to Beethoven.
Why registration fees?
A $75 registration fee is required to participate in the Competition to cover its organizational costs. In light of the precarious nature of some composers’ financial situations, the OM has decided to offer a financial relief component for the registration fee. Participants are eligible for financial aid to reduce or waive their registration fee depending on the circumstances. This option will appear on the registration form.
Why participants must be 40 or younger to apply?
The 2020-2021 season marks the OM’s 40th anniversary. In an effort to discover new talent and highlight this symbolic number, the OM wishes to limit participants to composers aged 40 or younger. The age limit also offers emerging composers an opportunity to propel their art onto a big stage and into a professional context with musicians and a conductor committed to the next generation of music.
Krisjana Thorsteinson
Artistic Coordinator
concours40@orchestremetropolitain.com
514-598-0870, ext.40