Cork International Choral Festival is now accepting submissions for the 2023 Seán Ó Riada Composition Competition. The competition is aimed at composers born, or resident, in Ireland and offers a cash prize in addition to the Seán Ó Riada trophy. 

The winning composition will be selected by a panel of adjudicators, comprising composers and choral experts, and will receive its world premiere during the festival’s Gala Concert in St Fin Barre’s Cathedral on 3 May 2024, performed by Chamber Choir Ireland. The winning composer will also be invited to attend the festival as its guest and play an active part in the Choral Symposium.

Applications are welcomed from composers of all experience levels. The composition should be a new work, written for a capella choir and up to five minutes in length. It should be in four parts, and the text may be original or existing, in English or Irish.

The deadline for applications is 8 December.

The Seán Ó Riada Competition was founded in 1972 and aims to recognise Irish choral composers and enrich the repertoire of Irish choral music. Compositions are submitted anonymously, with the composer’s name revealed only after the judges have made their decision. Previous winners of the competition include Solfa Carlile, Rhona Clarke, Patrick Connolly, Frank Corcoran, Séamas de Barra, Eoghan Desmond, Amanda Feery, Donal Sarsfield, James May, Peter Leavy, ​​Daragh Black Hynes, and last year’s winner, Laura Heneghan.

For further details on the competition, visit corkchoral.ie.