Established by Board Member Rosalind Devon in memory of her father, the renowned Cantor Aaron J. Caplow. Its purpose to stimulate new compositions on Jewish themes, for liturgical use and/or concert performance.
The Caplow Composition Competition is open to all members of the American Society for Jewish Music. The winning pieces have been performed its series concert series entitled Music in Our Time.
Seeking: Original sacred and/or secular vocal (choral or solo) and instrumental works on Jewish themes that are between five and ten minutes duration, that have never been available for sale in published or recorded form.
Requirements: Entrants MUST be members of the American Society for Jewish Music. Composers who are not members may join the Society for the usual membership fee.
There is no additional entrance fee for the competition. Submissions will be by pseudonym. Any age, gender or religious affiliation is acceptable.
Musical Style and Format: 1. Any musical style is acceptable. 2. Any language is acceptable. Translations (not necessarily singing translations) for non-English works must be provided. 3. Permission for texts not in the public domain must be obtained, and entrants should submit appropriate verification. The Society will not be held responsible for copyright violations. 4. Instrumental works should be of practical size, scored for not more than five to six players. 5. Vocal works may be with keyboard alone or any combination up to five players. 6. No more than one work may be submitted in either the sacred and/or secular categories. 7. No score will be reviewed without an accompanying tape or CD.
Prizes: The Aaron J. Caplow Prize of $2000 will be awarded at the discretion of the panel of distinguished judges. The Society reserves the right to offer the premiere performance, but will not be obligated to do so.
Next Deadline: Contact ASJM
* Information above subject to change prior to next round of competition
PAST COMPETITION WINNERS
Maurice Gardner, composer, was born in 1909 on the Lower East Side. He received his musical training at The Juilliard School, where he studied composition with Leopold Mannes. After a four-decade career in New York City as a composer for films, radio and television, Mr. Gardner continued to compose after moving to Florida in 1970. He was a three-time recipient of the State of Florida Individual Artist Fellowship Award, and received numerous commissions from such performers and organizations as Jaime Laredo, Chamber Music America, Meet the Composer, the Barlow Foundation, and the Pacifica Quartet. Mr. Gardner was writing a large sacred cantata for baritone and orchestra and a symphony for large orchestra at the time of his death in 2002 . The Competition Prize from The American Society for Jewish Music was his last major award.
Michael Karmon, composer, born in 1969, spent his formative years in Israel. He holds a Ph.D. in composition from the University of Minnesota . His compositions have been performed by such ensembles as the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, and he has received major fellowships and grants from the McKnight foundation, the Minnesota State Arts Board, the American Composers Forum, the University of Minnesota and the American Music Center. His compositions sometimes touch on subjects related to Judaism: the song cycle I Never Saw Another Butterfly, which was performed at the Holocaust Memorial Museum In Washington, D.C; and Voices of Heritage, for which he was awarded an ASCAP/Morton Gould Young Composer Award in 1999. A former guitarist, a number of Michael¹s chamber compositions are for the guitar: Four Tales: A Chamber Concerto for Guitar, which won a first prize in the 19th Annual National Association of Composers competition, and Frets vs. Fretless, which was recently performed by the Minnesota Contemporary Ensemble. His music is published by Theodore Presser Company. Current projects include an orchestral piece to be premiered d by the Dubuque Symphony Orchestra in April, 2002, and a guitar duo for a consortium of ensembles.
