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The National Orchestral Composition Discovery Network
EarShot curates connections between orchestras and emerging composers. Drawing from a national network of advisors and advocates, EarShot works with orchestras around the country to identify and support promising composers in the early stages of their careers.
Orchestras have relied on EarShot to advise them on commissions, competitions, and program design in addition to identifying composers consistent with the orchestra’s artistic vision. EarShot is a partnership between the American Composers Orchestra, League of American Orchestras, American Composers Forum, and New Music USA.
EarShot Composer Residencies offer orchestras two to four-day residencies with selected composers comprising of rehearsals, feedback sessions, and recorded readings. Each residency is customized to the orchestra’s aesthetic or demographic interests, level of community engagement, and production schedule. EarShot provides a production subsidy as well as ACO staff time, composer recruitment and selection, travel, and score preparation in collaboration with orchestra staff.
The Jazz Composers Orchestra Institute (JCOI) brings together jazz composers at various stages in their careers to explore the challenges of writing for the symphony orchestra. Jazz is one of the central pillars of American music, yet jazz composers have very little access to the orchestra. Through intensive workshops with leading composers, conductors, improvisers, and orchestral players, JCOI introduces talented jazz composers to orchestras and help to forge new partnerships and musical explorations between them. ACO provides the composer recruitment and selection, mentor fees, travel, score preparation and pre-reading revision support, and production support in collaboration with orchestra staff.
We are particularly interested in advancing women, composers of color, and other underrepresented composers in the orchestral repertoire.
Visit the EarShot Composer Archive for an online searchable list of composers and works that have been selected, workshopped and read/performed by an EarShot member orchestra.
For more information about EarShot, please contact:
Aiden Feltkamp, Emerging Composers and Diversity Director
aiden@americancomposers.org
212.977.8495 x252
c/o American Composers Orchestra
494 8th Avenue, Suite 503
New York, NY 10001