West London Chamber Choir, directed by Hilary Campbell, is giving a concert of new choral music on Friday 19 March 2027 in central London and has just launched a competition for composers, the 2026 Henk de Jager Choral Composition Competition. Composers are invited to set one or more of the following texts – Psalm 103, Psalm 100, Proverbs 3, or “Beech Tree” by Anja de Jager – producing a choral piece of between 4 and 5 minutes in duration, with or without piano accompaniment for mixed voice chamber choir. Divisi up to SSAATB is acceptable. The deadline for entries is 26 October 2026, after which we expect to shortlist six works to be performed for the first time at the concert. Dame Judith Weir (recently Master of the King’s Music) and Stephen Jackson (formerly choral director of the BBC Symphony Chorus) will be present at the concert, will judge the winning entries and award prizes on the night.

We are keen to reach a wide range of composers through the competition and would be grateful if you were willing to list details on your website. A prize of £1,000 is available for the winning entry; second prize receives £500 and the Audience Prize winner receives £100. There are no nationality or age restrictions to apply.

Submission Details

Scores should be sent as a PDF, along with a MIDI, MP3, or similar audio file of the work. The composer’s real name must not appear anywhere on the work, but please include a pseudonym. A cappella works must include a piano reduction for rehearsal purposes.

Supporting documents

​The entry must be accompanied by a separate document, containing the following information:

• Title of the work.
• Composer’s full name.
• The chosen pseudonym (listed on the score)
• Address.
• Telephone number.
• Email address.
• Nationality.
• Signed declaration confirming acceptance of the competition rules.
• A CV or short biography of the composer.

All submissions should be sent to westlondonchamberchoir+competition@gmail.com