Calling all composers

The latest McCaffery Family project will provide composers a unique opportunity to have their original works performed by the Renaissance Revival Orchestra later this year.

After a year on some of the world's most prestigious stages including at Deutsche Oper Berlin and the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Australian conductor Leonard Weiss will bring the international momentum to Gippsland — and is inviting composers to be part of it.

On September 5, Wiess will take the podium at Drouin Secondary College to lead the Renaissance Revival Orchestra in "Symphony of Love – World Premiere".
Produced by The McCaffery Family, the concert is built around an open call for orchestral scores, in particular new, previously unperformed works of up to five minutes that explore the theme of love.

Organiser Malcolm McCaffery said the project was both artistic and cultural in intention.
"We love performing the classics by Bach, Beethoven, Mozart and other classics. They are a foundation of the repertoire," he said.

"But orchestral music cannot exist only as a museum. If the artform is going to thrive, it needs living composers, new perspectives, and music that reflects the world we live in now."

The call is open to composers of all ages and backgrounds. Submissions may explore romantic love, family, friendship, community, love of place or culture, identity, belonging, loss, or love remembered.

All musical styles are welcome — tonal or atonal, classical, contemporary, cinematic, minimalist, pop-influenced, folk-inspired, or cross-cultural.
Selected composers will have their work rehearsed and performed by a live orchestra and will receive professional audio and video recordings following the concert.

The initiative was partly inspired by the financial barriers many composers face. Recording even a short orchestral work with a modest studio ensemble can cost thousands of dollars, while major professional premieres can require budgets far beyond the reach of most independent artists.

By bringing together skilled amateur and professional musicians from Gippsland and Melbourne, the Renaissance Revival Orchestra aims to create meaningful access to live orchestral performance in regional Victoria.

If there is sufficient interest, organisers may host a composition and orchestration workshop to support emerging composers who want to write for orchestra but are unsure where to begin.

Submissions close Sunday July 19 at 11:59pm AEST. Selected composers will be notified by August 16.

Full details and the submission form are available online at https://forms.gle/RNQwbdWLu5H3YJaPA
For any inquiries, contact Malcolm McCaffery at malcolm.mccaffery@gmail.com