ACDA has maintained an ongoing commitment to choral composition for more than five decades. In 2022, ACDA expanded this commitment to have a positive impact on choral music through the creation of new works and support of new voices.
- Award amounts for the Brock Prizes for Professional Composers and Student Composers have been increased to re-establish those prizes as some of the most substantial awards in choral composition.
- The composition awarded the Brock Prize for Student Composers will be premiered at all six ACDA region conferences.
- The prizes will only be available to ACDA members to ensure that prize money and benefits are reinvested directly in members and their work.
- A new program, a Focus Competition designed to address identified gaps in the repertoire needs of ACDA members and their ensembles, is being created.
ACDA Composer Members
ACDA welcomes composers in the ACTIVE and RETIRED membership categories. You can learn more about the benefits of ACDA membership here.
ACDA members interested in composition are strongly encouraged to add “Composition” as an Activity (Primary or Other) in their ACDA member profile at acda.org. Simply log in to your account and update your profile.
Awards & Commissions
Raymond W. Brock Prize for Student Composers (awarded biennially)
Raymond W. Brock Memorial Commission (awarded annually)
Raymond W. Brock Prize for Professional Composers (awarded biennially)
ACDA Focus Competition (annual)
Archived Competitions and Awards
ACDA Pearl Prize (permanently closed)
Genesis Prize: A Composer/Poet Response (permanently closed)
Diverse Voices Collaborative Grant (permanently closed)
Online Choral Composer Communities
The American Choral Composers Facebook group is the primary place for American Choral Composers to network, discuss, crowd-source information, as well as hearing news, announcements, and opportunities.
The New Choral Music Facebook group is an invaluable place for composers to share scores, audio, or video with each other and with choral conductors looking for new music.
Conferences
National ACDA conferences provide opportunities for composers to hear top-level choral performances, meet other choral musicians and composers, network with conductors, attend composition-related interest sessions, and exhibit in the Composer Fair. Region and state conferences also provide a variety of similar opportunities in a more localized context.
Publications
Choral Journal articles help choral composers stay aware of current thinking, research, and trends. Periodic articles or even entire issues also focus on aspects of choral composition.
Check out the March/April 2023 Composition Focus Issue of the Choral Journal.
