Resonate: A Call for Scores Application Procedures

The 2026 call is led by UCLA music performance professor David Kaplan(opens in a new tab), Decoda(opens in a new tab) and Contemporary Music Ensemble SORI(opens in a new tab) with support from a UCLA Global Research Award(opens in a new tab). 

Submission details 

• No application fee is required ;
• Submissions will be reviewed anonymously ;
• Composers may submit up to three works ;
• Three $1,000 prizes ;
• Application deadline is June 15, 2026.

Prizes awarded 

• Ensemble SORI prize: $1,000 ;
• Decoda prize: $1,000 ;
• Student and Early Career prize for composers in a degree program or who have had a degree conferred on or after January 1, 2023: $1,000 ;
• Professional recordings of live premiere performances. 

Composer Eligibility 

Open to composers of all ages, nationalities, career stages and backgrounds.

Work Requirements 

• Submitted works MUST include piano and MAY include up to three other instruments from this list: flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, horn, trombone, violin and viola. Solos, duos, trios, quartets and works with open instrumentation will be considered.
• Works of any compositional style will be considered.
• Works should be no longer than 20 minutes in length.
• Works must be composed in or after 2020.
• Submitted work must be an original composition (no arrangements permitted).
• Submission may include a complete sound recording (live or studio performances or midi realizations will be considered). A one-and-a-half to two-minute excerpt for first review can be indicated by a time stamp.
• Composers will have the option to contribute scores to the UCLA Contemporary Music Score Collection, Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University Library collection and libraries of international partner universities. If a work is published, composers must have the right to deposit it into one or more of the partner library collections.

Submission Process

• Prepare your materials, titling the score and recording files as TitleLastName.
• Complete the Resonate online entry form for each work submitted.
• Upload your files with the entry form. 

About SORI and Decoda 

Contemporary Music Ensemble SORI was founded in Seoul, South Korea, in 2001. The ensemble SORI is the first professional concert musical group in South Korea specializing in contemporary music. The foundation of SORI was initiated by a group of young performers who participated in the ‘2001 Music Today-Seoul International Competition for Composers.’ The performers are highly acclaimed for their musical abilities, not only as soloists but also as ensemble players. The dictionary meanings of SORI are simply ‘sound’ in English, ‘Klang’ in German and ‘timbre’ in French.

The musical orientation of SORI centers on inventiveness and variety, as its primary repertoire consists of newly composed scores submitted by international composers. The ensemble also commissions new music as part of a continuing effort to expand opportunities for young composers. In addition to concert recitals, SORI presents special multimedia and performance art events.

Decoda was founded in 2012 by musicians who first collaborated as members of Ensemble Connect, a two-year fellowship program of Carnegie Hall, The Juilliard School and the Weill Music Institute in partnership with the NYC Department of Education. Its work as an ensemble has grown out of this collective training, which focused on developing skills as exemplary performers, dedicated teachers and passionate advocates for music in communities around the world.

Decoda’s versatile musicians are equally committed to virtuosic performance and audience engagement. Its flexible instrumentation, from trios to large mixed ensemble, allows for unique, inspiring and engaging concert experiences for a vast array of audiences, from concert halls to schools, hospitals and correctional facilities. As alums of Ensemble Connect and in recognition of its members’ ongoing success as artists, educators and advocates for music, Decoda is the only independent ensemble to be recognized as an Affiliate Ensemble of Carnegie Hall.

Depositing Compositions in Music Library Collections 

Entering composers can choose to submit their work to the following Library collections:

• UCLA Contemporary Music Score Collection(opens in a new tab), an open-access collection
• Arthur Friedheim Library at the Peabody Institute of the Johns Hopkins University, for use by authorized users(opens in a new tab)
• Partner Library in South Korea, to be held in the print collection

Submission to a collection will not impact the prize review process.

Submission Review Process

An independent review panel, including ensemble representatives from Ensemble SORI and Decoda, will review scores and recordings and select three winning compositions.