Franco Proposal Contest

Congratulations to the winners of the 2023 contest! See the results. Check back later when we announce the 2025 competition.

Learning to compose opens up a world of possibilities for self-discovery, innovation, and connection with others through the universal language of music. With carillon music specifically, your music is potentially heard by thousands across the world. The best way to get started is to practice!

The Guild of Carillonneurs in North America invites you to develop your compositional skills by entering the Franco Proposal Contest. Held every 2 years, it is named in honor of the composer Johan Franco (1908–1988). He was an accomplished composer and a respected member of the GCNA, whose compositions for carillon number in the hundreds, many of exceptional quality.

What we're looking for

Type: Entries must be a proposal to write an original composition for carillon. Your proposal should contain:

One to three sample scores demonstrating your best work in any genre for any instrumentation. You may submit sample recordings of the scores as well.
A description of your compositional experience (suggested max 250 words).
A statement (about 500–1,000 words) detailing the ideas and direction of the proposed work. Sketches or images (e.g. motivic material, themes, compositional structure) may be submitted as well.

Open to: Everyone, except members of the Franco Committee. Composers that have written extensively for carillon will also generally not be considered and should instead enter the Franco Composition Contest.

Quantity: Only 1 entry is allowed.

Submission deadline: June 1, 2022.

No entry fee.

Prizes

Two prizes will be awarded. Both winners will receive US$2,000. Their compositions will be published by the GCNA, promoted on the GCNA website (see Publication and copyright), and premiered at the 2023 GCNA Congress.

How to enter

To enter the competition:

Anonymize the materials of your proposal by removing your name and any identifying information.
Email your contact information and anonymized proposal to the Franco Committee chair, Joey Brink, at franco@gcna.org.

That's it! Questions? Email franco@gcna.org.

What to expect after you enter

The jury consists of the following members on the Franco Committee: Margaret Angelini, Linda Dzuris, Alex Johnson, Thomas Lee, Scott Orr, Tiffany Ng, and Charles Zettek. They will evaluate entries based on their usefulness to the carillon community, namely their effectiveness on the carillon, playability, originality, and general musical interest.

To preserve anonymity, we ask that you not contact any members of the jury, directly or indirectly. Send your questions to the competition committee chair, Joey Brink, at franco@gcna.org.

Key dates

Winners announced: August 1, 2022
Completed score due: February 1, 2023
World premiere: June 2023 at the GCNA Congress

Composition tips and requirements

To familiarize yourself with the carillon, we recommend starting with these resources:

"Composing for the Carillon: Recommendations and Examples" by John Gouwens (and his companion video)
"Composing for Carillon" by Joey Brink

The work you will compose must be playable by a solo carillonneur on a 4-octave carillon (C–D–chromatic–C4; low C♯ omitted), with a 2-octave pedalboard (C–D–chromatic–C2). Notating outside of this range is permitted provided that substitutions are given in the 48-bell range. You may wish to limit your pedalboard range to 1.5 octaves (C–D–chromatic–G1) as many carillons (particularly European standard) have that reduced range. Arrangements for 2-octave carillon are welcome (again with low C♯ omitted).

Public performance of any winning composition prior to the 2023 GCNA Congress is grounds for disqualification.

Publication and copyright

By entering the contest, you agree to the following requirements regarding publication and copyright should your proposal win:

Winners must warrant to the GCNA that their composition, when completed, does not violate any existing copyright in whole or in part, and that they have the lawful right to authorize its publication.
Winners agree to grant full copyright and licensing rights to the GCNA.
If the winner has any arrangement with any performing rights organizations (e.g. ASCAP, BMI, SESAC, SOCAN), they must instruct the affiliated organization not to collect performance fees solely on the basis of this composition. In some cases, this may entail waiving rights to performance royalties.

2023 contest results

Thank you to everyone who participated—there were 33 entires in total. The Franco Committee's work was a huge challenge, and we're thankful for their effort. We are excited to announce the winning pieces; they will contribute greatly to the carillon repertoire! We will be working with each prizewinner on the composition and publication of their compositions, and we look forward to hearing them in Cohasset!

Winner: Pernille Faye

Composed work: Moonglades

Pernille Faye is a Norwegian/Irish composer based in London. She is currently in her first year at the Royal Academy of Music where she has been awarded a scholarship to study composition with Helen Grime and Morgan Hayes. She is the 2021 BDRS Composition Competition Under-19 Prize Winner. Her jazz sextet Responsibility received an honorable mention in the Composers Concordance 11th Annual 'Generations' Composition Competition and she was a Martin Read Foundation Young Composer for 2019, 2020 and 2021, receiving commissions for their Festival of Contemporary Music and studying with Dr. Pande Shahov and Ali Willis. Her music featured in the National Schools' Symphony Orchestra's Digital Celebration and in 2020 her piece Principles of Structure was a double shortlisted entry in the BBC Young Composer Competition. Pernille explores many styles of composing including projects with percussion, electronics and field recordings, as well as the project Rhapsody for Gibbons in collaboration with Monkey World Ape Rescue Centre, experimenting with the natural music of gibbon song alongside "human" music and creating a work to help raise awareness of gibbon conservation.

Winner: Joseph Klein

Composed work: Der Maestroso

Joseph Klein is a composer of solo, chamber, and large ensemble works, including instrumental, vocal, electroacoustic, and intermedia compositions. His music reflects an ongoing interest in processes inspired by natural phenomena, often drawing upon literary sources and incorporating theatrical elements as part of the overall musical narrative. He holds degrees in composition from Indiana University; University of California, San Diego; and California State Polytechnic University, Pomona; and his composition teachers have included Harvey Sollberger, Claude Baker, Robert Erickson, and Roger Reynolds. Klein is currently Distinguished Teaching Professor and Chair of Composition Studies at the University of North Texas.