Call for Works 2021

Electroacoustic Festival – during a pandemic?  Yes!

The New York City Electroacoustic Music Festival solicits works for its festival in 2021.

At the present time, it is unknown whether we will be able to host a live, in-person event, but there is a small chance that we will be able to.  If we do not start planning for it now, it won’t be possible.  Therefore, we are issuing our call for works, with the following understandings:

  • If New York City returns to normal, and concerts and international travel are again permitted, we will hold a live event lasting approximately a week during the summer.  Since we want to maintain as much flexibility as possible, we are not announcing a date yet but will do so when this becomes known.  
  • If the pandemic is still ongoing and live events like concerts are not allowed, we will host a virtual festival as we did in 2020, with an online stream of concerts hosted on our website. A decision will be made by April 2021.

Therefore, we urge you to consider submitting a work to our festival.  Due to the likelihood of a virtual event, please consider the following limitations:

  1. In an online event, electroacoustic works can accommodate no more than two channels.  Therefore we ask you to consider submitting works that can adequately be played in a two channel (stereo, or binaural, or both) format.  We can also play works from a site like SoundCloud.
  2. Audio or video recordings of live performances can be accommodated (video recordings are preferred).
  3. Audio or video recordings of works involving live electronics, including computer processing, laptop orchestras, or live coding, can be included.
  4. Videos must be capable of being played online, especially if they can be posted to a site like vimeo or YouTube.
  5. Paper sessions and panel discussions are possible online through a platform like Zoom.  In this case, they will have to take place at a specific date and time, but if they are online, both the presenters and the audience can be at their own locations, anywhere in the world that has an internet connection.
  6. Only virtual presentations of installations are possible.

We know that, even during the pandemic, composers have still been creating new works, and there has been little opportunity to have them performed.  Our events will provide a showcase for these new works.

The rest of the announcement gives details of the kinds of proposals that may be submitted.  All this information will be posted on our website, www.nycemf.org.

I.  Music and Video

  • Submission deadline: February 1, 2021.
  • Entry fee: none.
  • Works must be submitted online through our Conference Management Toolkit (CMT).
  • All submissions should be anonymous. Please make sure that no artist markings are recognizable.  (Non-anonymous submissions will not be disqualified, however.)

Composers or performers are invited to submit works in any style of electroacoustic music in any of the following categories:

  1. Electroacoustic music for fixed media alone, with up to two channels of sound for an online presentation, or up to 16 channels if live.
  2. Stereo video or audio recordings of works involving live electronics, including computer processing, laptop orchestras, or live coding, or up to 8 channels, if live.
  3. Stereo audio or video recordings of works combining musical instruments or voices with live or fixed media electronics, or up to 8 channels if live.
  4. Stereo video and multimedia works.
  5. Virtual installations involving music or video.

Individuals may submit one or two concert works. Individuals may also submit proposals in other tracks (papers, installations, etc.). Works of any length may be submitted, but to be as inclusive as possible, we are more likely to select shorter works. If submitting two works, one work should be under 6 minutes.

Works in progress are acceptable if a substantial portion of the work is complete.  If accepted, the final duration of the work cannot exceed the duration specified at the time of submission.

Please upload high quality MP3 stereo mixes for your audio works.  For videos, we prefer lower resolution files to be submitted.

Composers may submit works for any instrumentation, but if the submitter requires NYCEMF to provide the performer(s), additional costs will need to be paid for each performer.  We prefer that individual composers use their own performers and negotiate any compensation with them.

Performers (artists that are not the composer of the work), including choreographers, may also submit up to two works with the agreement that they will perform them if selected.

Works that have been performed at a previous NYCEMF festival are not eligible for submission unless they have been substantially revised.

For a live concert, NYCEMF will provide in each performance space a mixing console, speaker system, microphones, cables, and a computer and audio interface for the playback of fixed media audio/video. Composers of interactive works will be responsible for providing their own computer, audio interface, and any specialized peripherals.

Performers

The featured performers for NYCEMF 2021 will be Madeleine Shapiro, cellist; Esther Lamneck, clarinet and tarogató player; Marianne Gythfeldt, clarinetist; and Maja Cerar, violinist.  Works may be submitted requesting these performers, but if chosen, the performers must be compensated.  We cannot accommodate international performers this year.

II. Papers

  • Submission deadline: February 1, 2021.
  • Entry fee: none.
  • Works must be submitted online through our Conference Management Toolkit (CMT).
  • All submissions should be anonymous. Please make sure that no artist markings are recognizable.  (Non-anonymous submissions will not be disqualified, however.)

The reviews are anonymous: once accepted, camera-ready papers will need to include author names.

For conference presentation and publication proceedings, at least one author or co-author must register. A presenter only needs to register once and may be presenting more than one work at the festival.

If   the festival is a virtual event, paper sessions can be presented at a specific date and time via a platform like Zoom.

III. Installations

  • Submission deadline: February 1, 2021.
  • Entry fee: none.
  • Works must be submitted online through our Conference Management Toolkit (CMT).
  • All submissions should be anonymous. Please make sure that no artist markings are recognizable.  (Non-anonymous submissions will not be disqualified, however.)

We invite submissions of installation works for exhibition at the conference. Categories include but are not limited to:

  1. Audience Participation Installations
  2. Data-driven Installations
  3. Happenings
  4. Interactive Installations
  5. Multimedia Installations
  6. Performance-based installations 

The call is open to all artists/composers regardless of nationality, age or career stage.

Works presented at previous NYCEMFs are not allowed unless significantly revised or evolved.

For presentation, the artist or at least one of the collaborators must register. A presenter only needs to register once and may be presenting more than one work at the conference. All necessary equipment, with the exception of loudspeakers and projectors, must be provided by the artist.

Installations must be capable or virtual presentation.

IV. Workshops

  • Submission deadline: February 1, 2021.
  • Entry fee: none.
  • Works must be submitted online through our Conference Management Toolkit (CMT).
  • All submissions should be anonymous. Please make sure that no artist markings are recognizable.  (Non-anonymous submissions will not be disqualified, however.)

We invite submissions of proposals for workshops to be held at the conference. Categories include but are not limited to:

  1. Auditory Display and Sonification
  2. Computer Music Composition
  3. Computer Language-Based: ChucK, CSound, Live, MAX, Supercollider, etc.
  4. Improvisation and Technology
  5. Laptop Orchestra/Live Coding
  6. Music Information Retrieval
  7. New Instruments for Musical Expression
  8. Preservation and Access to Electro-Acoustic Music
  9. Robotics and Music
  10. Soundmapping
  11. Sound Reinforcement
  12. Sound Synthesis
  13. WebAudio
  14. Other

The call is open to all regardless of nationality, age or career stage.

Formats include full day, half day, or quarter day.

If the festival is a virtual event, workshops can be presented at a specific date and time via a platform like Zoom.

V. Curated Concerts

We are not presenting curated concerts for 2021.

VI. Review and Post-Review of Submissions

All submissions will be subject to peer-review.

For accepted works, the final audio and video files or paper presentations must be uploaded by May 1, 2021.

VII.  Registration and Fees

Submitters whose works are selected are required to confirm participation in the Festival by May 1, 2021. 

Registration is required for all persons whose works are programmed at NYCEMF 2020. If we have a live festival, we anticipate that the registration fee will be approximately $200, but there will be an early registration discount.  

If we have only a virtual festival, there will be a nominal registration fee of no more than $20.