OSAKA ó The Japan Chamber Music Foundation is seeking chamber ensembles to take part in the 5th Osaka International Chamber Music Competition and Festa to be held in May 2005 in Osaka.
The event, to run May 17ñ25 at Izumi Hall in Chuo Ward, Osaka, aims to find talented chamber musicians from around the world and cultivate their skills. It has been held every three years since 1993 and is recognized as a gateway to success for young musicians.
The foundation has announced its hope that the music competition will help restore vitality to Japanese society and culture through the promotion of chamber music and will also deepen international cultural exchanges.
The foundation will offer travel expenses and lodgings for participants. The competition, admitted to the World Federation of International Music Competitions, features one section for string quartets and another for ensembles of three to five instruments. Eligible ensembles in the second category are woodwind quintet; woodwind trio; flute, cello and piano; piano quintet; flute quartet and saxophone quartet.
Applicants for the competition must be aged from 16 to 35 at the time of the event. The festa, taking place during the same period, will be judged by members of the public along with a panel of professional musicians. It is open to ensembles consisting of two to six musicians who play music in any style and use any instrument used in both traditional and folk music. It has no age or nationality restrictions.
The winners of the first prize in the competition will receive 3 million yen [currently about US$27,000], the second prize winners will receive 1.5 million yen [US$13,500] and the third prize winners will receive 1 million yen [US$9,000].
In the festa, the winners of the Menuhin Gold Prize, named after violinist Yehudi Menuhin (1916ñ1999), will receive 2 million yen [US$18,000], the silver prize winners 1 million yen [US$9,000], the bronze prize winners 600,000 yen [US$5,400]. A special folkloristic music prize of 300,000 yen [US$2,700] will be awarded to the best performance of traditional or ethnic music.
The first-place winners in each section will be invited to perform in a series of concerts to be held around the nation.
Information and application forms can be obtained by sending 240 yen worth of stamps to The Competition and Festa Secretariat, Japan Chamber Music Foundation, 2-33 Shiromi 2-chome, Chuo-ku, Osaka 540-8510.
Applications can be downloaded from www.jcmf.or.jp/competition . The deadline for entries is Nov. 1. Call (06) 6947-2184 or fax (06) 6947-2198 or e-mail [email protected] for details.
The Yomiuri Shimbun. All Rights Reserved. Copyright 2004