Choral Sketches 2026

Chamber Choir Ireland and the Contemporary Music Centre, Ireland are now seeking applications for Choral Sketches with composer mentor Rhona Clarke.

What is Choral Sketches?

• Choral Sketches is a unique artist development opportunity for composers who wish to develop their skills in writing choral music with mentoring from renowned Irish composer Rhona Clarke.
• The purpose of Choral Sketches is to provide a creative, open environment for composers to experiment and create, benefitting from mentorship, peer learning, and feedback from the singers and their conductor. 
• The process of developing a new choral work is central to this artist development experience. The main focus is on the workshop stage where sketches can be trialled with the singers and conductor of Chamber Choir Ireland. After this workshop, the composers use the insights they’ve gained to develop their sketches into a completed piece for a final public performance reading by Chamber Choir Ireland and their conductor.

What is a Sketch?

A “sketch” is defined as one or more music notated scores which can be worked on during the workshop with clear instructions for the choir and conductor. They must contain original music composed by the participant composer. 

Who is Choral Sketches For?

• Choral Sketches is for composers who wish to develop their choral writing skills. 
• All applicants must be born or resident in Ireland (residency is defined as being resident in Ireland for at least three years at the time of your application).
• All applicants for Choral Sketches 2026 will receive equal opportunity irrespective of gender, civil status, family status, sexual orientation, religion, age, disability, race, ethnicity or indigenous status. 

Choral Sketches - Detailed Timeline

Phase 1: Primary Mentoring and Experimental Singers Workshop

• Mid-March 2026 - A maximum of three composers will be selected to take part in Choral Sketches 2026.
• Late-March 2026 - the selected composers will first meet with the composer mentor, Rhona Clarke in a one-to-one meeting to discuss their proposal and meet with their fellow participant composers in CMC. 
• April 2026 - Selected composers will prepare short notated ideas/performance material to be submitted via a PDF by 15 April 2026 ahead of their first closed workshop with 4-8 voices from the choir on 30 April 2026. The purpose of this workshop is to explore techniques and possibilities in writing for voice which will aid them in the development of their sketches.  
• Following this workshop composers will have the opportunity to schedule a 45 minute in-person or online workshop with composer mentor Rhona Clarke to discuss findings from this workshop and advise on how to proceed in the next stage of development of their sketches for presentation at the tutti public workshop. 

Phase 2: Secondary Mentoring and Development

• October 2026 - The selected composers will submit their sketches to CMC by 12 October 2026 ahead of their tutti public workshop with Chamber Choir Ireland. 
• November 2026 - These sketches will be the focus of a tutti public workshop the week beginning 23 November 2026, where each composer will be allocated 40 minutes to workshop their choral sketches with input from Chamber Choir Ireland’s newly appointed Artistic Director, Gabriel Crouch and Choral Sketches composer mentor, Rhona Clarke. All composers must attend this workshop in person.
• Following this workshop there will be another 45 minute one-to-one online mentoring session with composer mentor, Rhona Clarke. 

Final Phase: Submission and Performance Reading

• February 2027 - Composers will submit their finished piece to CMC by 1 February 2027. The duration of the finished piece will be no more than 6-8 mins in length for acapella 16 voices. It is not possible to write for additional forces.  
• March 2027 - The finished pieces will then be the subject of a performance reading by Chamber Choir Ireland in March 2027. There will be 15-20 mins allotted for each composer's performance reading allowing time for feedback and brief comments. All composers must attend this event in person. 

Would you like to apply for Choral Sketches 2026?

In order to make a submission, composers must submit the following through the Online Form on or before 2 March 2026 at 12 noon. 

In the interest of fairness late submissions will not be considered by the panel. 

Please include the following:

• A short proposal (600 words max) outlining how Choral Sketches will enable you to explore your compositional ideas and develop your skills. Please provide this in PDF format along with your contact details. This proposal will then be the subject of your meeting with composer mentor, Rhona Clarke in early 2026. 
• A CV with relevant experience and list of compositions.
• Two recently completed original scores in PDF format (not excerpts) and mp3 recordings or electronic realisations of each score. These examples should aim to demonstrate to the panel your potential to write for choir. 

Candidates will be marked under the following criteria:

• The artistic merit of their proposal
• How their example works demonstrate their ability to write for choir
• The suitability of the candidate to take part in the opportunity

Notes for applicants

• The selected composers will each receive a stipend of €500 for their participation in Choral Sketches. This stipend will be paid by CMC over the course of the opportunity. 
• Participating composers may apply for CMC travel bursaries and receive CMC printing support directly related to the project.
• If you have made an unsuccessful application to Choral Sketches in the past, this does not preclude you from applying in 2026. For Choral Sketches 2026 applications that are based on previous applications, please take care to ​explain how you have developed your idea since last applying.
• Participating composers with disabilities may apply for CMC access bursary support. This opportunity is open to all composers born or based on the island of Ireland. 
• Late and/or incomplete applications will not be considered. 
• There is no age restriction for applicants.​ We encourage composers of all ages to apply.
• We especially encourage those from traditionally underrepresented backgrounds to apply. 
• Participant composers will be required to have their work made available online for educational purposes for audience attendees of the workshops. 

For queries on Choral Sketches, please contact Keith Fennell, CMC Production Coordinator. Email: kfennell@cmc.ie

Chamber Choir Ireland is the country’s flagship choral ensemble and national chamber choir and the Contemporary Music Centre is the archive and resource centre for Contemporary Music, supporting artists working in New Music throughout the island of Ireland.

Find out more about Choral Sketches from composer participants in episode #87 of  CMC's podcast amplify