river thames quartet composition concours

The River Thames has inspired artists, poets and authors for centuries - from Monet to Wordsworth to Dickens. Flowing through rural Oxfordshire, the heart of London and out into the North Sea via Essex and Kent, human activity along the edge of the river traces back to pre-Roman times. To this end, the story of the Thames is the story of Britain.

County Hall Arts (CHA) is delighted to announce its latest competition in honour of this renowned river. Classical music composers are invited to submit proposals for the River Thames quartet composition concours with the opportunity to share in a prize pool of €100,000. Proposed works might be inspired by and reflect the history, vibrancy and natural wonder of the Thames.

The first stage of the competition invites composers to submit a short "pitch document" (up to 3 pages, this may be text and/or image-based) setting out their vision for this classical River Thames quartet composition. In addition, entrants should please supply an audio file or link to an earlier composition, a previous sample score composed for a quartet or small ensemble (ideally corresponding to the aforementioned audio file) and a biography/CV.

A selection of entrants will be long-listed and invited to create their quartet composition for a second stage of adjudication. The work then commissioned should be for flute quartet (flute, violin, viola and cello) - with a separate version to also be created for piano quartet. It’s anticipated that the winning and second place pieces will ultimately be performed by the County Hall Quartet and Kyoto Quartet.