Call for Submissions

“Today, composition is entirely individual, and everyone may choose the musical language they desire…” (Tallér Zsófia)

n 2026, the Zsófia Tallér International Composition Competition will be held for the fourth time. The competition is named after Zsófia Tallér, Erkel, Bartók–Pásztory and Artisjus Award-winning composer and university professor, who passed away in 2021 at the age of 51 after a long illness.
As a devoted and passionate teacher, she considered it a priority to support the new generation of composers and help them establish their professional careers.

Theme and Inspiration

This year’s task is to compose a new, original work inspired by Zsófia Tallér’s chamber cantata Anyuska régi képe(“Mother’s Old Photograph”). The piece, written to poems by Dezső Kosztolányi and Judit Tallér, is a personal remembrance that evokes the figure of the mother through an intimate and emotionally rich musical language.

Applicants are expected to create an independent, original composition inspired by the atmosphere and themes of this work, without using any direct musical or textual quotations from it.

The original composition can be heard at the following link:

Anyuska régi képe – concert recording

Format and Instrumentation

• Length: minimum 3 minutes, maximum 5 minutes
• Instrumentation: voice and piano
• The text may be in Hungarian, English, Latin, German, or Italian
• There is no restriction on voice type; however, for the gala performance or the vocal competition, the jury may request a transposed version of the winning work

Submission Guidelines

• Submissions must be anonymous and submitted under a motto/code
• No entry fee
• Age limit: 35 years

Scores must be submitted in PDF format, without any identifying information (e.g., name, institution)

The mottos/codes will be generated by the organizers. Applicants must include their name and contact details in the email, which will be kept confidential.

Please send submissions to:
competition2026@twelvetones.hu
Subject line: Zsófia Tallér Composition Competition 2026

Required attachments:

• Score (PDF)
• Audio file (MP3) — may be MIDI or a live recording, but must be of listenable quality

Prize and Performance

• First Prize: 1000 EUR
• The winning work will be performed at the gala concert of the Bartók Spring International Arts Weeks
• The winning composition will also be the recommended piece for the 2026 Debrecen Contemporary Vocal Competition in memory of Emil Petrovics

Submission deadline: 1 March 2026

By submitting their work, applicants consent to its public performance.
The jury reserves the right to withhold or divide the prize.
All decisions of the jury are final and cannot be appealed.

Jury Members

• Szabolcs Mátyássy, composer, associate professor — Chair of the Jury
• Éva Bátori, opera singer, head of department, associate professor
• Ádám Brandenburg, composer, assistant professor
• Ilona Dobszay-Meskó, composer, conductor

All decisions of the jury are final and binding.

13 November 2025