tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6980672.post116630340457776221..comments2023-10-08T08:38:09.714-04:00Comments on Musical Perceptions: Composition CompetitionScotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01286095156825716887noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6980672.post-49779609652379369282008-02-14T12:49:00.000-05:002008-02-14T12:49:00.000-05:00Perhaps by having a winner-take-all attitude there...<I>Perhaps by having a winner-take-all attitude there are many performers and composers who are being discounted for not having won or placed in such a competition.</I><BR/><BR/>I feel this way myself to be honest. Competitions are a lottery based on judges preference at best and who you know at worst. Often without a good quality recording and professional performance, you might as well not bother,and this also takes luck and connections. The worst part is that you are given no feedback what so ever, so it is not an opportunity for growth. Yes, you generally have to have good craft, but quite frankly most of us who stick with it have good craft. My wife recently a women's competition(both of us are composers). Seeing the doors it has opened up for her has been quite illuminating. The same people that wouldn't have given her the time of day a month earlier suddenly want her to write for them. I have been increasingly soured to the entire field because of competitions, their pressure, and the arbitrary nature of it all. I feel that it actually hurts music by rewarding status quo instead of original voices. The few that I actually do think are fair and ok(though I have yet to win) are the BMI awards. They cannot get rid of the judges biases, but at least recordings, who you know, and where you go to school don't come into play.<BR/><BR/>Regardless I think everyone needs to look more at the music and less at who wins the lotto.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6980672.post-1166467055272197632006-12-18T13:37:00.000-05:002006-12-18T13:37:00.000-05:00Additional annoyance: "SASE, if you wish your mate...Additional annoyance: "<I>SASE, if you wish your materials returned</I>"<BR/><BR/>25 bucks, <I>and</I> you have to pay your own return postage? Can we just judge the thing ourselves, too?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6980672.post-1166461713638787072006-12-18T12:08:00.000-05:002006-12-18T12:08:00.000-05:00Not being a composer, I should probably remain sil...Not being a composer, I should probably remain silent on this one ... but too late ...<BR/><BR/>I used to dabble in poetry, and entered a few contests. Many legit contests did ask for an entry fee. Such is life. <BR/><BR/>That being said, it does seem that the prize is rather low. I wonder if they could have said, instead, that $500 would be the minimum prize, and more might be available, depending upon number of entries. <BR/><BR/>Just an idea ....Pattyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16172401944836258683noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6980672.post-1166410354804014272006-12-17T21:52:00.000-05:002006-12-17T21:52:00.000-05:00I'll save myself the 25 bucks and not enter this o...I'll save myself the 25 bucks and not enter this one. Actually I have decided not to enter any composition competition with an entry fee because they are all variations on the same theme. There have to be better ways to strengthen the composition-performance "food chain."Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6980672.post-1166393353685781402006-12-17T17:09:00.000-05:002006-12-17T17:09:00.000-05:00Scott, I've posted a lengthier plea for a boycott ...Scott, I've posted a lengthier plea for a boycott on my blog (here: http://renewablemusic.blogspot.com/2006/12/boycott-this-competition.html ).<BR/><BR/>The problem here is straightforward: if the prize were, say, $5000, the composers entering would have some indication that the organizers were operating in good faith by sharing some of the risk. But this, a competition in which the first 20 entries pay for the cash prize, is a risk-free proposition for the organizers and shows that they were happy to share in the PR generated by the competition but not willing to either (a) pay for themselves, or (b) do the work required to find a third-party sponsor to endow the prize.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6980672.post-1166391745720687302006-12-17T16:42:00.000-05:002006-12-17T16:42:00.000-05:00I'm not familiar with composition contest practice...I'm not familiar with composition contest practices, but I know it is quite common for performance competitions to have an entry fee. I don't blame anyone for decided against this competition based on risk analysis, but I don't think it is unethical (my translation of obscene) to construct a competition in this way. Steve's concerns about artistic competitions in the first place is valid. I was going to say that these competitions are ways to get exposure for new composers or performers as a healthy way of growing the art. But is this true? Perhaps by having a winner-take-all attitude there are many performers and composers who are being discounted for not having won or placed in such a competition.Scotthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01286095156825716887noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6980672.post-1166390270208479932006-12-17T16:17:00.000-05:002006-12-17T16:17:00.000-05:00Steve Hicken is polite. I'll be blunt: a $25 entry...Steve Hicken is polite. I'll be blunt: a $25 entry fee for a competition with a single $500 prize is obscene. Boycott this.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6980672.post-1166382953081075512006-12-17T14:15:00.000-05:002006-12-17T14:15:00.000-05:00Thanks for the info, Scott.I have to say, though, ...Thanks for the info, Scott.<BR/><BR/>I have to say, though, that I'm not keen on competitions in which the composers must finance their own participation. Especially when the right not to make an award is reserved.<BR/><BR/>Then again, I'm not that keen on artistic competitions in any case.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com