SOUSA/OSTWALD AWARD—CASH PRIZE OF $5,000
The Sousa Foundation has joined with the ABA Foundation to financially support
the former Ostwald Award which has been renamed the Sousa/Ostwald Award. The
American Bandmasters Association will hold the 53rd Sousa/Ostwald Original
Band Composition Competition during December of 2011 with a deadline for submission
of November 4, 2011.}
The 2011 competition is for music from grades of difficulty (1 - 4) written
after November of 2009. (The 2012 competition will be for music from grades
of difficulty (5 & 6) written after November of 2009.)
The Sousa/Ostwald Award is one of the most prestigious awards for wind band
compositions. Since 1956 it has stimulated the creation of many important new
compositions, thereby enriching the entire spectrum of concert band activity.
Because of its continuity, this award has produced more concert band music
than any other competition of its kind. Literally thousands of musicians have
performed the works of competition winners for their appreciative audiences.
The Sousa/Ostwald Committee (Committee) is made-up of ABA members who review
the rules, then screen and judge the entries. Entries are unidentified as to
composer and are judged entirely on merit, thereby insuring complete artistic
integrity.
The winning composition will be performed during the 2012 annual American Bandmasters
Association Convention in Indianapolis, IN, Feb. 29—March 3.
Rules
1. All entries must be received by the Committee no later than November
4, 2011.
2. Entries must be original compositions for band that were composed after
November of 2009. No transcriptions/arrangements (except those of the composer’s
own work) will be eligible. Members of the ABA may not enter the contest.
3. The composition should be conceived and constructed so as to be performed
effectively by high school bands, thereby encouraging the widest possible exposure
of significant new band music to performers and listeners alike. The work should
be of such depth and scope as to require full symphonic band instrumentation,
approximately as follows: Flute/s, Oboe/s, Bassoon/s, 1st-2nd-3rd Bb Clarinets,
Bb Bass Clarinet, Eb Alto Saxophone/s, Bb Tenor saxophone, Eb Baritone Saxophone,
Cornets/Trumpets (at least three parts), 1st-2nd-3rd-4th F Horns, Trombones
(at least three parts), Euphonium/s, Tuba/s, Percussion. Score may include
Piccolo, English Horn, Eb Clarinet, Eb and/or Bb Contra Bass Clarinet/s, String
Bass, etc. Percussion may include Piano or any other keyboard instrument, and
anything else from which a sound can be produced.
4. There is neither a time limit on the length of entries or a limit on the
number of movements.
5. Submit only the full score of the composition (do not send the instrumental
parts) and a good recording on cassette tape or compact disc using the instrumentation
indicated on the score (not a MIDI).
6. The composer’s name must not appear on the score. A sealed envelope
with the name, address, and phone number of the composer should be affixed
to the title page of the score.
7. The award will be announced immediately after the winner has been selected,
usually in the third week of December. The winning work will be performed at
the current convention of The American Bandmasters Association. Depending on
the length
of the work, the Committee may decide to use an abbreviated version of the
winning composition at this performance.
8. The composer of the winning composition will receive a cash prize. The prize
entitles the ABA to performance rights at any future ABA conventions. The composer
must furnish a score and a set of parts for the Sousa/Ostwald winning work
at no charge to ABA. Some travel expenses will be paid by the ABA for the composer
to attend the 2012 Convention.
9. The Committee, by a three-fourths vote of those at the meeting, has the
option of withholding the award if no entry merits the award.
10. All rights to the work, including copyrighting and negotiating with publishers
for publication, remain with the composer, except for performance rights at
ABA conventions. (See #8 above.)
11. A composer may win the contest only two times, after which he
or she is ineligible to enter the contest again.
12. The score and recording will be returned to the composer if return
postage is included with the entry. The Committee will exercise all precautions to
insure that manuscripts and recordings are returned safely, but cannot assume
the responsibility for losses in transit. The score and recordings should be
wrapped securely,
with the outside of the package reinforced with plastic sealing tape.
13. A composer may submit more than one entry, but all entries must be sent
separately. Compositions transmitted via fax will not be accepted. Composers
should send manuscripts and recordings and direct all inquiries to the chairman
of the
Committee:Committee:
Kerry Taylor, ABA/Ostwald Committee
Director of Bands, Westlake High School
4100 Westbank Dr.
Austin, TX 78746
Email: ktaylor@eanesisd.net
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