presented in association with
BBC Radio 3 and The Brook Street Band
TERMS AND CONDITIONS
Outline
Young composers from across the UK are invited to compose a new work for two violins, cello, and harpsichord, which utilises the remarkable skills of The Brook Street Band.
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A shortlist of entries will be presented by the ensemble in a workshop led by composer Christopher Fox at the National Centre for Early Music (NCEM), York on Thursday 15 May 2025. At 7.00pm on the same day, The Brook Street Band will perform each of the pieces in the presence of a panel of judges: Tatty Theo, Founder of The Brook Street Band; Les Pratt, Producer BBC Radio 3; Delma Tomlin, Director of the National Centre for Early Music. Two winners will be announced, one for each of the two age categories.
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The winning work(s) will be premiered by The Brook Street Band in a public performance as part of the love:Handel Festival in Norwich in October 2025. This concert will be recorded for broadcast on BBC Radio 3’s Early Music Show.
It is recommended that all interested candidates listen to recordings of The Brook Street Band and, in particular, of Handel’s Opus 5 Trio Sonatas.
Registration and application are via the National Centre for Early Music’s website use the link below.
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The BBC is not responsible for the management or content of this or any other third party website.
The brief
A trio sonata movement
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Instrumentation: two violins, cello and harpsichord
Composers are invited to create a short work for the musicians of The Brook Street Band.
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The ensemble of two violins, cello and keyboard became the most popular chamber music medium of the late-17th and early 18th centuries. The grouping offered composers such as Arcangelo Corelli, Henry Purcell and George Frideric Handel the opportunity to create wonderfully inventive music in which the interplay (often conversational and imitative) between the violins is counterpointed by the cello, with the harmonic texture elaborated by either harpsichord or organ.
In writing for The Brook Street Band, we would like you to find new ways of writing for this ensemble. We would like you to reflect some of the characteristics of this early century repertoire, and we suggest that you take Handel’s Opus 5 Trio Sonatas as a reference point. Each of these sonatas is made up of a set of contrasting movements, but we want you to write just one. You should explore a particular musical world in your piece lasting between three and four minutes: fast, slow, dramatic, playful, sad, the choice is yours.
Don't write a pastiche of early 18th century music. As its name implies, composers of this period thought of the trio sonata as a three-part ensemble, the string instruments being the main musical elements with the keyboard providing the harmonic glue to hold them together - yet we would encourage you to think of the harpsichord as an equal partner in your piece. At the same time, Handel’s Sonatas offer some exciting compositional ideas that you might like to use as a springboard. Each of the movements of his Trio Sonatas has a very clear character: he uses familiar musical forms like the operatic aria, or a dance, or a set of variations above a repeating bass line. Sometimes he even re-uses existing music, although he didn’t have to worry about 21st century copyright law.
Remember that the instruments of the early 18th century are different from their modern descendants. Listen to our introductory videos, the 2025 Award Playlist, and to The Brook Street Band’s recordings to have a think about how your music can inhabit that sound world.
Award rules
Entry is open to all UK residents aged up to 25 at the time entry closes on Friday 7 March 2025.
There are two categories for the awards as follows:
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18 years and under on the closing date (born on or after 08/03/2006)
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19 – 25 years on the closing date (born between 08/03/1999 and 07/03/2006)
Applicants and winners of past awards are eligible to enter the 2025 award.
Employees and close family members of the BBC, BBC Group Companies, the NCEM and The Brook Street Band, and persons connected to the award and their close relatives are not eligible to enter. Proof of age, identity and eligibility may be requested.
The composition must be unaccompanied.
The composition should be scored for two violins, cello and harpsichord
The composition should be between 3- and 4-minutes’ duration.
How to enter
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Composers interested in entering the award must register their interest by completing the online form at youngcomposersaward.co.uk by 12 noon on Friday 7 February 2025. Please ensure that you register in good time as late registrations cannot be accepted.
Following registration, you will receive a link to the online application form. The completed application form, along with your uploaded score, should be submitted online no later than 12 noon on Friday 7 March 2025. Allow plenty of time for this in case of technical hitches. Entries received after the deadline will not be considered.
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Your score should have your name on it and should be in A4 format, ideally produced using computerised publishing software, and submitted as a pdf file. Name the file in the format: your surname.initial_title of your piece. For example: Spafford.O_Bog Bodies.
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Entrants aged under 18 must have the consent of a parent or guardian for their entries to be valid.
Judging criteria
Shortlisted entrants will be judged on the following criteria:
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Skilful use of compositional techniques.
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Imaginative composition fused with an awareness of effective writing for instrumental ensemble.
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Selection process
A shortlist of up to 8 entrants will be chosen by a judging panel consisting of a member of the National Centre for Early Music, the BBC, The Brook Street Band and a professional composer. All entrants will be notified no later than 5.00pm on Friday 4 April 2025 whether their pieces have been shortlisted.
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The judging panel is unable to provide individual feedback.
Shortlisted entrants will be expected to attend a full day workshop at the NCEM on Thursday 15 May 2025 led by composer Christopher Fox, where they will hear their pieces presented by The Brook Street Band.
At 7.00pm on the same day, Thursday 15 May 2025, the shortlisted pieces will be performed at the NCEM in the presence of the panel of judges and an invited audience. The winning piece(s) will be announced after the concert. The performance will be livestreamed through the NCEM’s website.
Should a shortlisted entrant not be available after reasonable attempts to contact them, the NCEM reserves the right to select another entrant to attend the workshop or – where applicable – to be awarded the prize.
The NCEM’s selection of the winners is final, and no correspondence will be entered into.
The NCEM will provide accommodation for the workshop and performance, and will reimburse reasonable transport costs, for the shortlisted entrants and for one parent/guardian of those under the age of 18.
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The prize
The prize offered is a performance by The Brook Street Band of the winning compositions in a public concert as part of the love:Handel festival in Norwich in October 2025. This concert will be recorded for future broadcast by BBC Radio 3.
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Should the prize not be able to be delivered in the form stated above and/or at the date stated above, NCEM/partners reserve the right to award a suitable alternative.
There will be no cash equivalent and the prize cannot be transferred.
Each winner will receive a complimentary set of tickets to this concert for themselves and up to two members of their family/friends. Their names and educational institutions (if appropriate) will be listed in the programme.
Reasonable transport and accommodation costs for this concert will be reimbursed by the NCEM to the winners and up to two members of their family/friends.
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Copyright and permissions
By submitting your composition, you grant to the BBC, NCEM and The Brook Street Band free of charge, permission to use the material in any way they want (including modifying and adapting it for operational and editorial reasons) for services in any media worldwide (including on the sites accessed by international users).
In order that the BBC can use your composition you must confirm that:
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your composition is your own original work
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it has not previously been performed or published
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it does not infringe any UK laws
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you have the right to give the BBC permission to use it for the purposes specified above
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Copyright in your composition will remain with you after the premiere and the aforementioned permission is non-exclusive. You can continue to use the material in any way you wish, and you can also permit others to use the material. All entries must be the original work of the entrant and must not infringe the rights of any other party. In addition, the use of generative AI tools to create or develop any part of an entry is not permitted and will lead to disqualification
Any competitor under the age of 18 who attends a workshop or public performance must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.
The shortlisted entrants must be prepared to work with the NCEM and its partners to raise the profile for the award. This will include consent to be photographed and filmed during the process, and to supply information for press materials and conduct radio and television interviews if requested. The publicity materials gathered will be used by the NCEM and its partners on their websites and in general publicity material. It is understood that the NCEM and its partners have the right to perform, record and broadcast the winning piece(s) subject to the usual Performing Rights contractual arrangements.
All entries must be the original work of the entrant and must not infringe the rights of any other party. In addition, the use of generative AI tools to create or develop any part of an entry is not permitted and will lead to disqualification. The BBC and NCEM accept no responsibility if entrants and/or their parent/guardian ignore these Terms and Conditions and agree to indemnify the BBC against any claim by any third party from any breach of these Terms and Conditions.
The shortlisted entrants may be filmed and/or interviewed and will be required to assign to the BBC/NCEM/The Brook Street Band, the copyright and other rights for all purposes (including use in all media now known or which may hereafter become known) in their contribution for broadcast for the full period of copyright and any extensions, revivals or renewals thereof.
The shortlisted entrants will grant the BBC/NCEM/The Brook Street Band, the unlimited right to edit, copy, add to, take from, adapt or translate their contributions for broadcast or performance. The entrants also waive irrevocably any “moral rights” they may have under the laws of any jurisdiction.
The shortlisted entrants will grant the NCEM/The Brook Street Band, the right to perform the piece after the premiere.
Contributions cover all contributions made by the shortlisted entrants in connection with the production of any BBC programme including, but not limited to, their performance (including rehearsals) and spoken, written and artistic materials (including audio and video recordings thereof).
The NCEM reserves the right to:
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cancel or adapt the award
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vary or change the prizes
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disqualify any entrant who breaches the rules or who commits a fraud, at any stage, if in their opinion it is deemed necessary or if circumstances arise outside its control.
In so far as it applies, the programme accords with the BBC's Code of Conduct for Competitions and Voting, details of which can be found on the BBC's Standards and Guidelines website: www.bbc.com/editorialguidelines/guidance/code-of-conduct
The promoter of the award is the National Centre for Early Music and is subject to the law of England and Wales.
Entrants will be deemed to have accepted these rules and agree to be bound by them by entering the award.
The NCEM Young Composers Award is intended as an educational project and preference will be given to those who have not yet embarked on a professional career.
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Privacy notice
The personal data you provide will be processed by the NCEM in accordance with the Data Protection Act 2018, for the purposes of administering the award.
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For further information about how NCEM processes your personal information including your rights under data protection law, please see the NCEM’s Privacy Policy at PRIVACY NOTICE – NCEM.
The personal data of all entrants will be passed to the BBC if requested for the purposes of judging the award and recording of the winners’ scores. After the award, the BBC will destroy all personal data except that of the winners, which will be retained for a period of 2 years for regulatory purposes and kept in the programme records.
When your personal information is passed to the BBC, the BBC is a separate controller of your personal information. That means the BBC is responsible for your personal information when it is passed to the BBC. The BBC has a legitimate interest to process your personal information for the purpose of administering the award. We have considered the impact of our processing on you, and we are satisfied that the personal information that is provided to the BBC is limited and is necessary to review the applications and conduct the award.
For further information about how the BBC processes your personal information, your rights under data protection law and the contact details of the BBC’s Data Protection Officer, please see the BBC’s Privacy Policy at http://www.bbc.co.uk/usingthebbc/privacy/privacy-policy