Results
AIMA International Composition Award 2023 Prize Winner
American International Music And Art Association proudly announces prize winners for 2023. After reviewing all the submissions, the judging panel awarded YAO YITONG(Category II), YU ZHUEN (Category III) and LIU RUI (Category IV) as the Grand Prize winners, they will share $2,000 Prize.
YAO YITONG(Category II)
Butterfly' s Love To The Flower for Chamber music
Yitong Yao, from Ningbo, Zhejiang, China. who had studied with Composers Hong Gao, Weihao Qiang and Rongxin Peng to learn composition. She had just graduated from the Composition major at Music Middle School Affiliated to Shanghai Conservatory of Music, and is now studying at Shanghai Conservatory of Music.
Die Lian Hua (Butterfly' s Love To The Flower), the title of a prominent Chinese Ci tune, originates from the imperial musicians of the Tang Dynasty. Poetry based on this tune is often poignant, voicing the poet's deeply entangled sorrows; their emotions pervade the poem 's scenic descriptions, treating mountains and rivers as sentimental catalysts. The composer takes inspiration not from the dynastic poems themselves, but from their creative process; through music, she too hopes to recite the poetry engraved within her own heart.
Feedback from judges:
-Wow, very compelling piece of music that is mature for this age category.
-Very descriptive and intricate work, with dramatic contrasts between movements. Good mix of traditional, folk pentatonic idioms and more contemporary (jazz and rock-infused) elements. Form has nice symmetry and narrative arc.
-Great handling of texture and I particularly like the writing for the temple block, as well as the 2nd movement.
YU ZHUEN, currently studying at the Shanghai Conservatory of Music, has won the third prize in the 2019 (12th) Chinese Collegiate Computing Competition Computer Music Creation Group National Competition, and the Platinum Award in the Composition Group at the 2023 season 3 Best Classical Musician Award.
The inspiration comes from DaSiMing in the Jiu Ge (Nine Songs) written by Qu Yuan (He is an ancient Chinese poet from the state of Chu). I want to express the essence of this poem through music, the opposition and conflict between humans (witch) and nature (DaSiMing), sensibility and rationality, warmth and merciless.
Feedback from judges:
-This piece is very ambitious, yet carefully thought out in terms of the form, expression and technical issues. Bravo!
-A complex and intricate work with a combination of timbres that effectively portray elements of the ancient and supernatural at the same time. "Wave" and "Await" are two of my favorite sections because they feel less chaotic than the other sections.
-Colorful orchestration! A good choice of instruments (especially for percussion). You handled both the story telling and orchestration well.
Chu Sacrificial Rites Love Song for Chamber music
YU ZHUEN(Category Ⅲ)
Doctorate in Composition, a young teacher in the Composition Department of the Music College at Guangxi Arts University. She is a high-level talent introduced to the institute and also serves as a resident composer for the China-ASEAN Contemporary Orchestra. Her works have been performed in well-known music festivals such as "China-Asean Music Festival" and "ISCM New Zealand World Music Festival". In 2021, she held a solo chamber music concert featuring her own compositions. In 2023, she held a solo vocal music concert featuring her own compositions. Music theory research papers have been published in "People's Music", "Music creation", "Art exploration" and other core music journals more than ten.
The Waking of Insects is the third solar term in the 24 solar terms and the beginning of spring. The four-tone collection "la, si, re, mi" (4-23 [0,2,5,7]) is based on the four-tone series of the five-tone mode in Guangxi folk songs. This material is frequently morphed throughout the song, logically showing various scenes during the Awakening of insects: spring thunder begins to sound, awakening insects hibernating underground, and everything is full of vitality.
Feedback from judges:
-Powerful and compelling piece for solo flute. Very impressive!
-A very beautiful piece that colorfully depicts the waking of insects using creative extended techniques and articulations. Form is balanced and organic. Congratulations on achieving such a high level of virtuosity and lushness in a work for solo flute! The recording is excellent.
-Effective use of the flute, both in the quality of melodic writing, but also incorporating extended techniques. It is also idiomatic to the flute. Great job!
The Waking of Insects for Instrumental Solo-flute
LIU RUI(Category Ⅳ)
Congratulations to the winners!
Thank you for participating in this competition. we wish you the best for your musical life, and hope you can achieve greater success in the future.
The award information of other contestants will be sent via official email, along with the certificate and judges' comments.
