Suzanne and Lee Ettelson Composer’s Award 2025

Ninth Planet is excited to announce the 39th annual Suzanne and Lee Ettelson Composer’s Award. An award of $1,000 will be given for a new chamber work. Works submitted may have been performed previously. The winning work will be performed in the San Francisco Bay Area during Ninth Planet’s 2025-2026 concert season. Attendance at the performance is encouraged but not required. Works not awarded the prize will also be considered for programming.

CONTACT: You may reach us at ninthplanetnewmusic@gmail.com if you have any questions.
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See FAQ document here.

ENTRY FEE: $20 general, $10 student (currently enrolled at a degree-granting institution)

SUBMISSIONS WILL STAY OPEN UNTIL MAY 31, 2025
1. Enter your information (Name, Contact, and URL to audio recording and PDF) on the APPLICATION FORM page.
2. Complete the submission fee. A Payable link will be provided after submitting the Application Form above. Submissions are not considered complete until the fee has been received.

Entries and payment must be received by May 31, 2025, at 11:59 pm PT.
The winning work will be announced in early July 2025.

NOTES: Submitted PDFs and audio links must not contain any names or identifying marks to ensure an unbiased review process.

Submission Guidelines:
Entries may be scored for TWO (2) to NINE (9) performers – plus conductor and electronics, if desired.

Available instruments  (one player each) from the Ninth Planet Ensemble are listed below:
Additionally, you may choose ONE (1) instrument NOT LISTED below (e.g., Voice, a 2nd Violin, Viola, etc)
However, the TOTAL cannot exceed NINE (9) performers.
The optional conductor and electronics do not count towards the performer total.

  1. Flute (C/Piccolo/Alto/Bass)
  2. Clarinet (Bb, Bass, Eb)
  3. Trombone (Tenor, Bass)
  4. Electric Guitar (also Acoustic Guitar)
  5. Piano (also Keyboard)
  6. Violin
  7. Cello
  8. Double Bass
  9. ​Percussion

Electronics (Max patch, Ableton, Mainstage, etc)
Conductor

There is no limit to piece length.

​No solo works, sorry.

Maximum of 2 submissions per composer.

​NOTES: ​​Ninth Planet reserves the right to use the concert recordings of Award recipients for promotional purposes.