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String Quartet Composition Competition
String Quartet Composition Competition
West Cork Music champions and showcases the talent of young composers through its prestigious annual String Quartet Composition Competition. Open to Irish citizens and Irish-resident composers aged under 35, the contest reflects West Cork Music’s deep commitment to fostering and celebrating talent in the Irish chamber music scene.
A Call for Scores is publicised each November. The winners are announced by May. Their winning works are then rehearsed and premiered at the West Cork Chamber Music Festival in June/July. Here in Bantry, competition winners have a unique opportunity to connect with appreciative international audiences and build relationships with composers and performers from across the global chamber music community.
Current and recent judges of the competition include Donnacha Dennehy, Lera Auerbach, Brett Dean and Deirdre Gribbin.
2027 Festival Call For String Quartet Scores
The Young Composers Competition for the West Cork Chamber Music Festival will open for submissions in November 2026.
- €1000 prize money
- 3 nights at the 2027 Festival (25 June to 4 July)
- A public workshop with the composer who adjudicates the competition
- 2 public performances
Submission deadline: Wednesday 24 March 2027
The winners will be announced by Friday 23rd April on the website. Winners will be notified individually by email.
We are delighted to announce that Sam Perkin will adjudicate the 2027 Competition.
Entrants must be under 35 years old on 1 January 2027. The work must be scored for string quartet and must not have been performed prior to the 2027 Festival.
Previous Winners
We send our congratulations again to our 2026 winners: Daniel Luke Smith, Amy Tyson and Aiden Taylor. And many thanks to composer Donnacha Dennehy for adjudicating the competition and leading the workshop.
” I really felt that the festival was invested in realisation of my music.” – Kevin Terry, 2021 winner
Earlier winners of the competition include:
Seán Doherty (Assistant Professor of Music at Dublin City University)
Solfa Carlisle and Amanda Feery (both winners of the Seán Ó Riada competition)
Robert Coleman (NCH Jerome Hynes competition winner)
Finola Merivale (currently a fellow at Columbia University’s Institute for Ideas and Imagination in Paris)
Our Winners Through the Years
We are proud to recognise the talented composers who have received competition awards in previous years.
Amy Tyson Wheatfield with Crows
Aidan Taylor String Quartet II
Daniel Luke Smith A Shape, Becoming
Many thanks to Donnacha Dennehy for adjudicating.
Jack Moran Into the Dark 2
Alessandro Loro Digressions
Alexander Mouzouri Hermeneutischer Zirkel
And many thanks to Bushra El-Turk for adjudicating,
‘The West Cork Chamber Music Festival was not only an incredibly thorough and well-thought-out event, but also a wonderful experience for me personally as a composer. I was able to work with experienced and professional musicians in an environment that was inclusive and welcoming to all types of music. The recordings and friendships I made there will be remembered by me for a long time to come.
The workshop with Bushra El-Turk was an insightful lesson in musical aesthetics and philosophy and will certainly guide my thoughts and future endeavors during my next studies in Austria. The scenery and standard of musicianship were complimented by concert goers who were open minded and curious!’
Alexander Mouzouri
Many congratulations to the winners:
Kevin Terry – Ground Loop/Articulations
Lindsey Vincent – Apex
Luke Smyth – Jules Valensaut
Many thanks to Deirdre Gribbin for adjudicating this year.
Congratulations to our winners:
- Timothy Ethan Doyle – Blooms
- inti figgis-vizueta – love reacts only
- Robin Haigh – Samoyeds
- James May – Sculpture VI
Many thanks to Andrea Torrodi for adjudicating this year.
Congratulations to the 2024 Winners:
Aoife Kavanagh Every Cloud Passes Over
Rory Murphy nonsense
Daniel Vives-Lynch String Quartet No.2 in D Dorian – Tine na hEireann
And many thanks to Deirdre Gribbin for adjudicating.
Congratulations to the winners of the 2023 Competition.
Timothy Doyle – Currents – performed by Inis Quartet
Leah Mullen – The Hartford, 1894 – performed by Treske Quartet
Murrough Connolly – Ildaite – performed by Calathea Quartet
And many thanks to Donnacha Dennehy for adjudicating the competition and leading the Young Composers Forum.
Many congratulations to the three winners:
- Ultan O’Brien – Na Coillte Istoíche
- Niall Tormey – Kreatura
- Liam Dougherty – Sisphye
- Luke Smyth – Darkly Lit
Many thanks to this year’s adjudicator Deirdre Gribbin.
Congratulations to our winners:
- Omar Zatriqi – Key Chain Halcyon Quartet
- Lisa Robertson – Machair Beckett Quartet
- Darragh Kelly – Blue Red Abbey Quartet
- Daragh Black Hynes – Procession Doolan Quartet
Many thanks to this year’s adjudicator Deirdre Gribbin.
Our West Cork Music Festivals
Join us, across six glorious weeks each summer, as West Cork Music celebrates the best of chamber music, literature, and traditional Irish music through its world-class festivals at the edge of Europe.
Nurturing & showcasing emerging talent
The West Cork Chamber Music Festival is a setting where talented musicians and composers are invited to immerse themselves in the world of chamber music through masterclasses, performances, and connections with our supportive festival community.