2012 SOUNZ Contemporary Finalists Announced

The Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) and SOUNZ, Centre for New Zealand Music are pleased to announce the finalists for the 2012 SOUNZ Contemporary Award – celebrating contemporary classical composition.

Four Questions, No Answers

by Kenneth Young

The Juniper Passion

by Michael Williams
and John Davies (libretto)

[Inner]

by Alex Taylor

A total of 23 works were submitted for the Award this year giving the jurors the challenging task of selecting three finalists from a diverse range of genres and styles, clearly illustrated by the three pieces vying for the Award: The Juniper Passion, which is an operatic setting of a WWII incident at Monte Cassino; [Inner] - a short orchestral piece featuring solo viola and Four Questions, No Answers, written for chamber ensemble and soprano. 

The SOUNZ Contemporary Award is New Zealand’s premier composition award attracting a prize of $3000 with the winner due to be announced at the Silver Scroll Awards held in Auckland on 13 September.  This year, the event will be live-streamed by the New Zealand Herald - click here for more details - and will feature the finalists in the Silver Scrolls, the SOUNZ Contemporary Award and the Maioha Award. As in previous years, the five finalist songs for the Silver Scrolls and Maioha Awards and the winning SOUNZ Contemporary piece will receive (often surprising) tribute performances by guest artists.

"It's our privilege to celebrate the best music of 2012 as judged by the music makers themselves", says APRA's Anthony Healey. "The Silver Scroll is unique as it shines the light on songs that have or will indeed in the future make a difference. This year is no exception ".  

For details of the top 5 Silver Scroll songs, and the finalists in the Maioha Award, visit the APRA website here.