​2016 NAfME Student Composers Competition
Calling all student composers!
​
NAfME is seeking original music written by student composers for featured performance in the Young Composers Concert at the National In-Service Conference in Grapevine, TX in November 2016. Teachers and students are invited to submit original compositions by students for possible inclusion in the concert. Students in elementary school, secondary school, college, and graduate school are eligible to submit compositions.
New: In 2016, the winning composition for chorus will be considered for performance by the NAfME National Honors Ensemble at the national conference. Compositions may also be submitted for specific chamber instrumentation, as outlined below, in order to be eligible for performance at the Young Composer Concert in Grapevine and to be eligible for a cash award. Compositions submitted that fall outside of the choral or chamber instrumentation guidelines will be adjudicated but will not be eligible for awards or for performance.
2016 Student Composers Competition Rules and Entry Directions
Previously published works are not eligible for submission in the competition.
Submission implies permission for NAfME to perform and record all selected works.
In 2016, the winning submission for a choral piece may be considered for performance by a NAfME National Honors Ensemble at the 2016 NAfME In-Service Conference.
Up to ten winning composers will receive cash awards, thanks to the generous support of the European American Musical Alliance (Dr. Philip Lasser, president) and the Double R Foundation. All entrants will receive written evaluations of their compositions.

Using an image has of course always been a source of inspiration for composers.  This includes simply capturing the "mood" of an image, e.g. a landscape, or more literally to soundpaint from an image, e.g. The Moldau, or maybe a direct, visual translation of image to staff.  My book "Music Paints My Picture", (particularly lessons in Chapter 1 on line and shape) offers several lessons on directly translating images, e.g. buildings, geometric shapes, window alignments, skylines, etc. to staff notation.  See the video below by Karim Metwaly on a direct visual translation to staff notation.  Can you come up with more ideas on direct visual translation to staff notation for your general music classes?