Awards

The Hinrichsen Foundation has announced plans to provide a £15,000 grant to enable a UK organisation to provide a one year residency for a composer in residence. Applications from the sponsoring organisation (not the composer) must reach the foundation, from whom details can be supplied, by 31 October. For information/applications: c/o 27 Kingscroft Road, Leatherhead, Surrey KT22 7BU.

Women in Music has announced a commissioning fund to enable the creation of new women's music. Total funds £80,000 have been provided by the Arts Council of England to encourage ideas that are 'visionary, innovative and radical'. Potential applicants may be performers, composers or promoters, and should contact Alison Lea, Riverside House, Rattlesden, Bury St Edmunds IP30 0SF/tel: 01449 736287/fax: 01449 737649/email: 100256.30@compuserve.com for further details. The closing date is July 31, 2001.

Examinations

The Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music have announced the publication of their new syllabuses for piano, bowed strings, harpsichord, organ, guitar, percussion, singing and ensemble examinations. The new syllabus is applicable from January 2001. The singing syllabus has been enlarged to provide a more varied choice of repertoire. The publication of new repertoire lists for viola and double bass has been postponed; instead, these will be listed in the 2003/4 syllabuses.

The new diploma syllabus is also available, with the first exams in the UK and Ireland and in all other countries in January 2001. The LRSM 1992 syllabus will run concurrently with the new syllabus. Part 1 may be taken up until the end of 2001, and Part 2 up to the end of 2002. The Advanced Certificate syllabus remains in force up until the end of 2001. For more information, contact the ABRSM at 24 Portland Place, London, W1B 1LU (snail mail), 020 7636 5400 (telephone) or abrsm@abrsm.ac.uk

Publishers and promoters

Oxford University Press is delighted to announce the signing of Gabriel Erkoreka, who was born in 1969 in Bilbao, Spain. Having studied at the Bilbao and Vitoria Conservatoires, Erkoreka went on to study composition with Michael Finnissy at the Royal Academy of Music in London. His works have been widely performed, especially in Spain, and he is currently writing a work for guitar and ensemble for the Nieuw Ensemble. Also from OUP is a publication of Gilbert and Sullivan for Choirs, a new collection of eighteen stylish and popular songs from the Gilbert and Sullivan operas, all expertly arranged for SATB choir by Peter Gritton compiler of OUP's very successful Encores for Choirs). The book includes A Modern Major General, The Nightmare Song, A Policeman's Lot, and Titwillow, plus many more. Each piece is tailored to the needs of amateur choirs, and all the piano accompaniments are eminently playable. The volume is now available in music shops, price £9.95.

NPC Music is promoting a concert with the BBC Big Band Show at Sheffield City Hall on Saturday 11th November at 7.30 pm. Introduced by Shella Tracey, conducted by Barry Forgle and featuring special guest, Lee Gibson, the evening pays tribute to some of the Big Band legends, such as Glenn Miller, Ted Heath, Benny Goodman and Artie Shaw. Tickets are priced at £14, with a £12 concessionary rate. The box office number is 0114 278 9789.

A new publishing venture, the Cantiones Press will be officially launched at a concert at St John's Smith Square, London on Saturday, December 2 at 7.30 pm. Conducted by Alistair Dixon, The Chapelle du Roi will be joined by James Bowman, Charivari Agreable Simfonie, and the singers of the Schola Cantorum of Oxford in an evening of music by Purcell and Tallis.

Recording companies

Hyperion Records have selected their all-time Top 20 CDs and released them as specially packaged mid price limited editions. Many have been remastered and booklets updated and titles include Monteverdi: Sacred and Vocal Music, with Emma Kirkby, Ian Partridge and David Thomas, Matthew Best's masterful interpretations of Duruflé's Requiem, and Vaughan Williams' Serenade to Music, which features a young, and, at that point, relatively unknown Amanda Roocroft. As some of the finest recordings of the 1980s and 90s, these are certainly worth purchase at such a special price. Beware, however, selling only remain mid-price until the end of the year, so order your copies soon!

October 16 is the release date for a new 200-CD project from Universal Classics. Entitled Eloquence, this looks to be an interesting range of recordings from DG, Decca and Philips that range from the 1950s to the present day, which include artists such as Boult, Haitink, Masur, Abbado, Menuhin and Rostropovich to name but a few. Re-mastered using AMSI (Ambient Surround Imaging), recordings are colour-coded for convenient reference and most excitingly, all retail at a price of £4.99, therefore placing some excellent recordings in a competitive framework against budget-label companies such as Naxos. More details can be gained from Universal's website, www.universalclassics.com.

Dorian Records have forwarded what must be one of the strangest press releases yet - Space Shuttle Mission Specialist Bill McArthur plans to take CDs by harpist Becky Baxter and the Chatham Baroque with him on the Space Shuttle. Scheduled for lift off on October 5th, at approximately 9:30 p.m., it will be the 100th flight of the Space Shuttle Discovery. Given the extreme limitations on personal belongings the astronauts are permitted to take on board, Dorian considers it a great honor that two CDs from the Dorian Recordings catalog will be present on this Assembly Logistics Mission. The purpose of the mission is to continue construction of the International Space Station. The discs Mission Specialist McArthur will take with him on the Space Shuttle are O Lux Beata (DOR-93193), performed by harpist Becky Baxter, and Españoleta (DOR-90284, reviewed last moth in this journal), performed by Chatham Baroque, with guest artists Becky Baxter and Danny Mallon. Mr. McArthur has suggested that the bagpipe and bray harp tracks from O Lux Beata would be appropriate for reveille. Another member of the crew, Michael E. Lopez-Alegria, a native of Madrid, has expressed great happiness that Españoleta will entertain the astronauts as they travel.

Miscellaneous

The Manchester Musical Heritage Trust launched its journal, Manchester Sounds on Monday, 11 September at the Royal Northern College of Music. Edited by Rosemary Williamson and David Fallows, the journal is dedicated to aspects of musical life in Manchester, past and present. Contributors to the first issue include Michael Kennedy, Peter Crossley-Holland, Sebastian Forbes, Jonathan Baxendale, Martin Thacker and Hilary Groves. Single volumes, priced at £6, are available from Forsyth Brothers Ltd., 126 Deansgate, Manchester M3 2GR. The volume is also available on diskette for purchasers with visual impairments: details are available from Rosemary Williamson at the Royal Northern College of Music. See also: www.manchestersounds.org.uk.