1st Shanghai International Chamber Opera Composition Competition 2019 Rules

I. Aims :

Shanghai International Chamber Opera Composition Compitition aims to offer an internatonal platform which encourages young composers involved in the creative process of composing music and promotes outstanding origianl operas.

II. Institutions

Host: Shanghai Conservatory of Music

Organizers: Shanghai New Music Week,

Shanghai Music Art Development Center for Collaborative Innovation

Supporting programs :

Construction and Research of Chinese Opera Discipline System,

National “Double First-Class” University Project,

Shanghai High-level Local University Construction Project

III. Eligibility requirements

The competition is open to composers and students under the age of 35 (born after Jan.1st 1984) at the time of entry submission. There is no nationality or language restriction. Only one work per entrant will be accepted.

2. Entries must be wholly original works composed by the entrant after 2017 and must be unpublished, and not awarded in any other competition. The work should not have been previously performed in any concert or public event, either wholly or even in part (should it have different parts), nor with the present title or with any other it may have.

3. Instrumentation (for 6-9 instruments & 2-3 singers)

Permitted set of instruments/voice types: Flute, Oboe, Clarinet, Piano, 2 Violins, Viola, Cello, Double Bass; Soprano, Mezzo-soprano, Tenor, Baritone, Bass

4. The work must last about 20 minutes in length.

5. No composer’s name or any other identifying marks may appear anywhere on the work.

IV. Materials for Submission (Compositions must be submitted via email.)

All submissions to the competition should include the following:

1. An application form fully completed

2. A scanned copy of your ID Card or Passport

3. The full score of the submitted work

4. A brief description of the work （maximum 200 words each）

5. A resume, curriculum vitae or brief biography in Chinese or English

V. Application Deadline

All submission materials including the general score in PDF format must be submitted via email with attachments to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. no later than July 1st, 2019.

VI. Competition and Judging Procedure

1. The competition consists of two stages: preliminary and the final.  

2. The preliminary

During the preliminary, each eligible submission will be judged by a jury comprised of Mark Andre, Enno Poppe, Peter Swinnen, Deqing Wen, Chengjie Zhang and three entries will be marked for the final of the competition.  

3. The final:

The three compositions that qualify for the finale of the competition will be performed by the Shanghai New Music Week Chamber Ensemble conducted by ZHANG Chengjie at the Finals Concert of 1st Shanghai International Chamber Opera Composition Competition to be held on September 18th, 2019 from 15:15 to 17:15, based on which the jury will decide its final verdict on the prizes. The jury will be Mark Andre，Thomas Ades，Enno Poppe，Ivo Josipovic，Tomislav Saban, Peter Swinnen，TAN Dun, XU Shuya, ZHOU Xianglin, YE Guohui, WEN Deqing.

4. Prizes

The following prizes will be awarded in the Chinese currency RMB:

1st Prize: RMB￥30,000 （pre-tax）

2nd Prize: RMB￥20,000 （pre-tax）

3rd Prize: RMB￥10,000 （pre-tax）

5. The organizer provides for the six-day accommodation during the Shanghai New Music Week and the Shanghai New Music Week Pass for the three winners. The winners are responsible for all transport costs.  

VII: Other provisions

1. The winner has the full copyright of the work and its neighboring rights.

2. The winners must provide free of charge the exclusive use of the winning works and grant the organizer the following rights within three years from September 18, 2019.

A. The organizer reserves the right to compile the scores of the winning works, record them in audio and /or audiovisual form and the right to the publication and distribution of the above-mentioned in print or in the audio and /or audiovisual form with no extra fee or royalties.

B. The organizer reserves the right to the premiere and subsequent performances of the winning works and their publishing priority. No public performance is allowed prior to the performance give by the organizer without the consent of the organizer.

3. All the winning works must be marked as “one of the winning entries of the 2019 Shanghai International Chamber Opera Competition” on the score cover or in concert program list whenever and wherever they are given a performance.

4. The interpretation of these rules shall fall within the exclusive competence of the organizing committee.

Published by the Shanghai New Music Week

Download the Enter Form ( PDF )