Composers are invited to apply for the Albi Rosenthal Visiting Fellowship at the Bodleian Libraries. Responding to extraordinary times, in 2021 the Fellow will be invited to undertake a period of research using the Special Collections of the Bodleian Libraries, leading to a composition based on the chosen materials, which may be from any collection, including digitized collections accessible via digital.bodleian
In connection with the Fellowship, Oxford Lieder will commission a significant new song or song cycle from the Fellow. The precise nature of this will be open to discussion, but it is anticipated that that the work will be 15-20 minutes duration, and a commission fee (in the region of £2,000) will be paid by Oxford Lieder. The piece should be ready for performance at the Festival in October 2021. In addition, there may be an opportunity for performance of one of the composer’s existing vocal works at an Oxford Lieder Festival event during the 2021 season.
Applications are open to all. Composers at an early stage in their careers are encouraged to apply. There are no geographical restrictions, but note that it is the responsibility of any candidate who is invited to take up the Albi Rosenthal Fellowship to secure any necessary visa to enable a visit to Oxford to participate in a Lieder Festival event.
The Fellowship provides funds of up to £5000 to facilitate visits to Oxford to participate in Oxford Lieder events, participate in events of the Music Faculty, and to carry out research in person at the Bodleian’s Weston Library for Special Collections. These visits must be scheduled by agreement with the Bodleian Libraries and the Lieder Festival.
The Bodleian Libraries’ music collections are among the largest in the country and contain printed music from the 16th century onwards and large numbers of music manuscripts from medieval times to the present day.
The Oxford Lieder Festival is well established as one of the world’s leading song festivals and the biggest in the UK, attracting many of the world’s greatest artists.
TERMS OF THE FELLOWSHIP
Eligibility: Applications are open to all and composers at an early stage in their careers are encouraged to apply.
Terms:
- Applicants are not required to hold a doctoral degree.
- Bodleian Visiting Fellowships are intended for applicants external to the University of Oxford.
- Fellowships are open to applicants of any nationality, if necessary the candidate is responsible for obtaining the appropriate UK visa.
- Those who have held a Bodleian Visiting Fellowship within the past 5 years are not eligible.
Funding: The Fellowship provides up to £5000 to support the research and visits to Oxford at times to be mutually agreed.
Activity: The Fellowship provides an opportunity for performance of an existing work for voice at an Oxford Lieder Festival event during the 2021-22 season.
The Bodleian Libraries’ Special Collections range from ancient documents and Greek papyri to medieval and Renaissance manuscripts, world treasures such as the Codex Mendoza, English literary papers, and the papers of 20th-century medical scientists. Any of the collections found online are eligible as inspiration for the commission.
Further information about the Bodleian Libraries Special Collections can be found online
Selection: The selection panel includes representatives from the Oxford Lieder Festival, the Faculty of Music, and the Bodleian Libraries.
HOW TO APPLY
Applications must include:
• the application form, (downloadable from this page as either
a Word document or a
PDF document), including a list of the scores that will be submitted with the application
• the applicant’s CV
• a project proposal of up to 1000 words, explaining the approach that the applicant might take to an Oxford Lieder Festival commission and how they could use the Bodleian collections as inspiration. This proposal will be taken as indicative only, for the purposes of the selection process, and will not limit the scope or nature of the candidate’s actual research or composition, should they be awarded the Fellowship.
• a portfolio of anonymized scores (two or three) of works as pdfs. Recordings of any of the works submitted are welcome in addition to the scores. [See below for guidelines]
Guidelines for compositions submitted with the application
• either two or three works may be submitted. At least one of the works should be for voice and accompaniment.
• submissions must be original compositions; arrangements are not acceptable
• the composer’s name must not appear anywhere on the score or in the filenames
Recordings
• Recordings in the form of mp3 or MIDI files may be included but are not required. Electronic files must be labelled by the name of the composition only. The name of the composer must not appear in the file name or in the metadata.
• Maximum file size of 30MB (for larger works, please submit an excerpt).
• Recordings for multi-movement works should be submitted as a single file.
Queries
Please email fellowships@bodleian.ox.ac.uk if you have a query
Notification
The preferred candidate will be notified in February 2020, with an official announcement made by the end of that month. The candidate will be asked to accept within two weeks of the invitation.
