submissions are closed FOR 2024 CYCLE

Thank you to everyone who submitted for our Call for ____ Commission Program! You will hear from us by July 2024.
Please email icicle@iceorg.org with any questions.

Call For ____ Commission Program 2024

The International Contemporary Ensemble invites individual or collective practitioners of performed sound to apply to create a new work for the International Contemporary Ensemble. 

Two early-career artists (as defined in the FAQ below) will be commissioned for a new work to be premiered at one of our events during an upcoming concert season. The selected artists will also receive workshop and rehearsal opportunities with the Ensemble’s musicians throughout the process. Commission fees are $4,000 and selected artists will create a new work between 6 and 10 minutes for 3-6 players from the Ensemble. With generous support for early-career artists coming from the Jerome Foundation, at least one of our commissioned composers will need to meet the guidelines of being NYC or Minnesota based and not currently enrolled in a degree granting program. If you are not based in NYC or Minnesota and/or still enrolled in a degree granting program, please still apply. Please apply through the submission form by April 19, 2024 (11:59pm EST).

Selected artists will receive: 

  • $4,000 Commission Fee

  • Workshop time with musicians of the International Contemporary Ensemble, including individual sessions and group session

  • Electroacoustic technical support

  • Performance of the work by members of the International Contemporary Ensemble

  • Documentation, including documentary/promotional storytelling, high definition performance video available for free at digitice.org

  • Marketing/PR support

  • Composer Mentorship

  • Close collaboration with the Ensemble by way of a Musician Liaison

Application process:

  • No application fee

  • In application:

    • Artist statement (500 words max)

    • Resume/CV (one page max)

    • Project Description (500 words max) including instrumental forces and duration

    • Two work samples (video or audio):

      • 5 minutes max per, or choose the segment for the review panel to listen to

      • Include a score or textual description per sample

      • If providing a score, please label the segment for review that corresponds with the selected audio

    • Demographics: Date of Birth, Gender, Ethnicity

  • Submissions are digital-only

  • Review panel consists of Ensemble artists and other artists in the field

  • Please Note: You must be 18+ years of age to apply

  • ICE staff, board, and/or their relatives, and anyone who has previously received a commission under ICE’s auspices are ineligible.

PROPOSAL PARAMETERS:

  • The work will be created for three to six performers, to be drawn from the Ensemble’s instrumentation only, rather than guest performers or the composer as performer. Please Note: We cannot guarantee specific players to perform in your proposed work.

  • Duration: 6-10 min

  • Available Instrumentation:
    Voice (mezzo-soprano or soprano)
    Flute, piccolo, alto flute, bass flute (any two)
    Oboe and/or English Horn
    B-Flat Clarinet and/or B-Flat Bass Clarinet (no contra-alto or contrabass clarinets)
    Bassoon (no contrabassoon)
    Horn in F
    C or B-Flat Trumpet
    Trombone/Bass Trombone
    Tuba
    Piano
    Guitar (electric or acoustic)
    Strings (violin, viola, cello, double bass)

    Percussion 1 player, modest forces: vibraphone, xylophone, glockenspiel, and crotales (any two) or drumset are possible.
    (No timpani, bass drum, chimes, and marimba)

    Electronics (if fixed media or performable by ICE members)

  • Unusual or homemade instruments must be performable by ICE members and available for future performances

What to expect after you apply:

  • Confirmation message

  • Notice of acceptance mid-June (2024)

    • Commissions must be completed within one year of the award date

    • There will be no financial compensation or travel stipend provided, but limited financial aid for travel is available on a case-by-case basis

International Contemporary Ensemble is committed to creating a welcoming, safe space where all artists can thrive. We encourage applicants who are Black, Indigenous, People of Color, women, trans and/or non-binary, 2SLGBTQIA+, immigrants, individuals with disabilities, as well as people of diverse social, educational, and economic backgrounds.

At least one selected artist will be an early-career artist from NYC and/or Minnesota, whose commission will be made possible through leadership support of the Jerome Foundation. Residents of those locations and those who identify as early-career artists are strongly encouraged to apply.

Questions? Contact us at icicle@iceorg.org.

The International Contemporary Ensemble values the ideas and creativity that each applicant brings to the table, and is committed to creating a diverse and inclusive collaborative working space. All applicants will receive consideration for participation without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, familial status, sexual orientation, national origin, ability, age, or veteran status.

Commitment to Equity: We at the International Contemporary Ensemble believe that as a collective committed to advancing experimental music, it is our responsibility to challenge our biases and practices around who performs, or has their works performed, on the world’s stages. We acknowledge that Western European classical music has excluded individuals based on wealth, race, sex, pedigree, background, gender-identity, disability, and sexual orientation. We are actively making changes to all entry points to our organization to ensure that Black, Indigenous, and/or People of Color are represented throughout the organization and on the world’s stages, and that our operations and decision-making structures support building spaces of belonging for everyone involved in the process of developing new music.

Frequently Asked Questions

+ What does “Call For ____” mean?

In 2021, during a conversation about redesigning the open call process with the new music community, there was a desire to humanize the process and focus on the process of collaboration with artists. We also want to move away from possible restricting identifiers such as composer, improviser, sound artist, performer, etc., understanding that many creative artists work across and in-between these markers. And so...the blank is for you to decide! This is meant to be open and inclusive to proposals that relate to creating a new work with the Ensemble.

+ What if I live outside of NYC and/or Minnesota?

Please apply! We are welcoming applications from all geographic locations. At least one of the selected artists must come from New York City (5 boroughs) or Minnesota as per Jerome Foundation guidelines.

+ Who is an “early-career” artist?

According to the Jerome Foundation, early-career artists “typically have a track record of generating and publicly presenting full work over which they have ultimate creative control in the discipline in which they are applying, but are not yet at a point in their careers where they receive consistent development and production opportunities and significant recognition, awards, and acclaim.” This category does not relate to an artist’s age.

Jerome Foundation frames the early career spectrum expansively as artists with at least a 2-year track record of creating and presenting their own projects (i.e., not first-time creators of new work or beginning artists) and with no more than 10 years of such experience. The Foundation does not consider time spent in degree-granting programs (or other breaks such as for caregiving) as part of the period defining 2-10 years of eligible practice.

+ How many artists will be accepted? How many people outside of NYC and Minnesota?

We plan to commission 2 artists per year, including at least one through the Jerome Foundation who come from New York City or Minnesota.

+ Could you give direction on how to write a good artistic statement?

What we're looking for is your distinctive creative voice in the artistic statements. What is it that motivates you to create and how might that manifest in a collaboration with us? It’s not a specific proposal. What is the way that you've always wanted to collaborate but never have been able to? How does that define your goals as an artist? Aim it more toward goals and aspirations, than anything else. We will look to your resume/CV for your experiences. The artist statement might be the place where you speak to what you'd like to do as an artist. The project description field is where you will input your proposal for the Ensemble.

+ Is this for artists only if they compose?

What we mean by artists here are people who make work in sound. We’re trying to be as broad and inclusive as possible. You might be a composer, a performer, a sound artist, a performance artist, an interdisciplinary artist, or simply someone for whom sound is their primary medium.
If you are a performer, and you have always wanted to compose this might be a place for you. The whole purpose of this is that every artist should feel welcome in this process.
We welcome people from lots of different disciplines and affiliations with artistic craft. The work must be performable by ICE musicians and not include yourself as a performer in the piece.

+ I am filling out the form in one language but my work samples (scores) are in a different language – will this be an issue for review by the panel?

No. Please fill out the form/submit work samples in any language that best works for you. Works will be assessed on the work itself, not on the language they are in. For example, if the score is in Spanish, the review panel will be able to have a translation.

PAST CALL FOR ____ COMMISSIONS

Learn more about our past commission programs: iceCOMMONS (2017-2021) & icelab (2011-2014)