The Tampa Bay Symphony is announcing a call for scores competition for living composers. One score will be selected for performance on our Spring 2027 concert series.* Finalists will be notified by October 21, 2026 and the symphony will read/rehearse the compositions by the finalists at a public event at the New Tampa Performing Arts Center (PAC) on Saturday, January 9, 2027.

Each finalist is eligible for travel reimbursement if they can attend the Call for Scores Finals on January 9, 2027. Finalists are eligible for up to $650 in travel reimbursement if traveling within North America. Finalists traveling from outside North America are eligible for up to $1,200 in travel reimbursement.

There is a cash prize of $1,500 for the winning composer provided the composer attends at least one of the Spring 2027 performances in person or previously attended the Call for Scores Finals on January 9, 2027. Winner composers having not attended the Call for Scores Finals are eligible for additional travel reimbursement in addition to the $1,500 prize. (Up to $650 for travel within North America, and up to $1,200 for travel originating outside North America).

TIMELINE
Deadline for submission of materials: September 30, 2026.
Finalists notified by October 21, 2026
Finalists must submit parts by November 15, 2026 (parts will not be returned)
Parts and Scores must follow the guidelines set forth by: MOLA Guidelines for
Music Preparation.
January 9, 2027: Reading/rehearsal of finalist compositions followed by announcement of selected composition for the Spring 2027 concerts*

Spring Series 2027 Performances are: Sunday May 9, 2027 2:30pm at the Coliseum, St. Petersburg, Friday May 14, 2027 8:00pm at New Tampa PAC and Sunday, May 16, 2027 2:30pm at the Straz Center, Tampa - Dates and venues are subject to change (Winning composer must attend at least one of the performances to receive the cash award of $1,500.)

*The Tampa Bay Symphony reserves the right to choose no winning selection. The Music Director will also consider all finalist works and submissions for possible future programming even if not chosen by the orchestra as the winning piece.

ELIGIBILITY
• Pieces will be written for brass and percussion ONLY.
• Pieces to be at least 6 minutes in length but not to exceed 10 minutes in length. They can be one continuous work or in movements.
• Scored for this exact number of brass players: 4 horns, 2 trumpets, 3 trombones, 1 tuba and not to exceed timpani plus three percussion players.
• The work must be composed in 2026. Works that are mostly derived
from an earlier work are highly discouraged.
• Our scoring process does take into account difficulty/suitability for the Tampa Bay Symphony so composers should be mindful that they are writing for a community orchestra.
• All interested composers at any stage in their career are eligible to apply. There are no age or citizenship restrictions.
• Only one submission per composer will be considered at this time. Please do not send multiple works.
• Works shorter than 6 minutes or longer than 10 minutes are subject to disqualification at the sole discretion of the Tampa Bay Symphony.
• Works that have been chosen as winners or finalists in previous years may not be resubmitted, however previous winners and finalists are encouraged to submit new works.
• All works must be original works solely written and scored by the composer. A work may not have more than one author.
• Please note that we cannot provide detailed feedback to individual composers regarding their pieces or the judges decisions.

Instrumentation
BRASS & PERCUSSION ONLY, CONSISTING OF:
4 Horns
2 Trumpets
3 Trombones
1 Tuba
Percussion - Timpani + No more than 3 percussion players

APPLICATION PROCEDURE:
Submission of all materials is electronic. Please send an email to Susan Rhein at susan@tampabaysymphony.org using a subject line of TBS Composition Contest, including the following:
• PDF of the score of the submission
• PDF of program notes and performance history for the submission if it has previously
been performed. New works that have not been performed are welcomed.
• Audio (.mp3) or video (.mov /.mp4) recordings of the work, or links to on-line
recordings, if available (This is not required, MIDI representations are acceptable.)
• A brief bio of the composer submitting the work with contact EMAIL address and phone
number
• A $25 USD non-refundable application fee must be received by the Tampa Bay
Symphony by September 30, 2026. This application fee must be paid via PayPal invoice. Please do not submit your entry fee first! Submit your materials to Susan Rhein first. You will then receive a PayPal invoice.
Files over 20MB should be submitted using a file-sharing service such as Google Drive or Dropbox. Please address questions to Susan Rhein at susan@tampabaysymphony.org using a subject line of TBS Composition Contest.

DIFFICULTY LEVEL
The Tampa Bay Symphony is comprised of 80 + volunteer musicians of high skill level. Most standard orchestral repertoire is well-executed by the TBS. Samples of works performed over the last several years include:
Arutiunian Trumpet Concerto
Beethoven Symphony #6
Dvorak Symphony #8
Elgar Enigma Variations
Holst Beni Mora Suite
Liszt Piano Concerto #1
Puccini Highlights from Madama Butterfly
Rimsky-Korsakov Scheherazade
Shostakovich Symphony #5
Strauss (Richard) Four Last Songs
Sibelius Symphony #1
Tchaikovsky Symphony #2

The difficulty level of submitted works will be a consideration in the selection process. While challenging works in the standard repertoire are doable by the Tampa Bay Symphony, due to the limited rehearsal time and the unfamiliar nature of recently written compositions, composers are advised not to send works of exceptional difficulty level.
There are numerous videos on YouTube of the Tampa Bay Symphony performing in recent years.