Composer residencies have increasingly looked to make the composers accessible to audiences, writes Ivan Hewett in Monday’s (10/2) Telegraph (London). “That excellent classical music website Dilettante.com is about to take the process of democratisation one step further, by appointing its own ‘composer-in-residence’. The aim, they say, is to redefine the composer-in-residence for the digital age. He or she will win a modest prize of £1000, and a year-long residency on the website, allowing them to engage with web-site members through a Composer’s Corner blog, a podcast series, online forums, and masterclasses. It will culminate in 2010 a live event with a performance of a new work. But first the composer has to be found, and to do that Dilettante has launched a world-wide competition, open to all composers everywhere. A short-list of three works has already been chosen, and you can hear all three on the web-site and place a vote for your preferred candidate. Or better, hear them live at the London Sinfonietta’s concert next week, when each piece will be played alongside a contemporary classic that inspired it.”
Posted November 2, 2009
