G. Schirmer Prize

Recognizing the next generation of talents…

G. Schirmer & Associated Music Publishers, part of the Wise Music Group, has established the G. Schirmer Prize for the Gabriela Lena Frank Creative Academy of Music: a new, multi-year partnership offering recognition and mentorship for select composers participating in GLFCAM. This award pays tribute to the invaluable work of Gabriela Lena Frank and further advances our mutual vision of fostering young composers’ growth and advancement in the field, with an emphasis on supporting underrepresented populations.

The G. Schirmer Prize is an annual prize that offers a financial award and mentoring support to one GLFCAM composer each year. The award includes access to publishing industry professionals and a cash prize, as well as networking opportunities.

2024 Recipient

2024 G. Schirmer Prize Recipient – Che Buford

Che Buford (he, they) is an NYC-based artist whose work explores creating new narratives within the world of music while engaging in themes of memory and place. Che performs as a violinist in various musical settings, specializing in improvisational performance, contemporary compositions, electroacoustic work, and interdisciplinary collaborations. As a composer, their work explores the possibilities of timbre and acoustical phenomena and connects them to elements of place, memory, poetry, and the everyday. Upcoming highlights for the 2024-2025 season include the world premiere of a new solo violin and fixed media work written for renowned violinist Midori, as part of her 2025 recital season with performances at 92NY, The Celebrity Series of Boston, San Francisco Performances, and the Colburn Celebrity Series. A new work for visual artist Deborah Jack’s seven-panel video installation, co-composed, recorded, and produced by Diaphanous Ensemble, will be exhibited in fall/winter 2024 at the New Orleans Triennial. Finally, a debut solo album is set to be released in spring 2025.

inner palpability (2023) for string orchestra

G. Schirmer & Associated Music Publishers, part of Wise Music Group, is proud to announce Che Buford as the recipient of the 2024 G. Schirmer Prize for the Gabriela Lena Frank Creative Academy of Music (GLFCAM). This award pays tribute to the invaluable work of Gabriela Lena Frank and further advances our mutual vision of fostering young composers' growth and advancement in the field, with an emphasis on supporting underrepresented populations.

“GLFCAM continues to be a nurturing, supportive family for me,” writes Buford. “The academy not only offers a collaborative and hands-on approach to learning craft, but also encourages you to embrace your individuality as a composer in a safe yet rigorous environment. I often reflect on the invaluable lessons I learned at GLFCAM as I navigate the field, and I feel immense gratitude and clarity in my artistic pursuits. I am deeply thankful to Gabriela Lena Frank for her wisdom and support, and to G. Schirmer for recognizing and supporting my work.”

“I am thrilled that the Wise Music Group, which became a partner to my music-making more than twenty years ago, has extended this recognition of the Schirmer Prize to Che Buford,” writes Gabriela Lena Frank. “Che came to our attention several years ago when we had already filled our fellowship seats. We therefore created a special seat for them as a special guest so that we could begin a relationship with this exceedingly talented artist sooner than later; they became a full Fellow in 2022 and we continue to work with Che now that they are a beloved Alum. Che’s music is visceral, brightly-hued, and filled with vitality. They are a shining light in these hard times. My hearty congratulations to both Che and my colleagues at the Wise Music Group for this award.”

“Our selection panel has unanimously chosen Che for the 2024 G. Schirmer Prize for GLFCAM,” notes Andrew Stein-Zeller, Director of Promotion for G. Schirmer. “We were all quite taken with Che’s writing. Their music is attractive, direct, and elegant on the page and in performance. It is truly a privilege to become acquainted with new generations of composers through the prism of Gabriela’s academy, which is a great force for radical empowerment in our community. Che has a bright career ahead, and we look forward to hearing their music in New York and around the world in the years to come.”

2022 Recipient

2022 G. Schirmer Prize Recipient – Jungyoon Wie

Born in Seoul, South Korea, Jungyoon Wie (Cycle 8 Fellow) is a composer, educator, and pianist based in San Francisco. Themes of identity have been the center of her compositional journey; Songs of My Grandmother (2021) for clarinet, violin, cello, and piano, was her first attempt to write a musical biography drawing from her own family history and the cultural, musical, and religious influences she had growing up in Korea. This project was preceded by her string quartet Han (2019), made in collaboration with filmmaker Toko Shiiki. Han explores shifting dynamics of identity, otherness, and the marginalized experience of women by using expressive modalities from Korean, European, American, and contemporary backgrounds. Her most recent project is Watercolor Smudge (2021), which was premiered by the Korean National Symphony Orchestra on May 29, 2022; Wie uses the orchestra to render her experience of trial and error in the watercolor medium.

G. Schirmer & Associated Music Publishers, part of Wise Music Group, is proud to announce Jungyoon Wie as the recipient of the 2022 G. Schirmer Prize for the Gabriela Lena Frank Creative Academy of Music (GLFCAM). This award pays tribute to the invaluable work of Gabriela Lena Frank and further advances our mutual vision of fostering young composers' growth and advancement in the field, with an emphasis on supporting underrepresented populations.

“GLFCAM is a family to me. As an immigrant, I had a hard time finding communities that made me feel a sense of belonging. When I went to GLFCAM for the first time as a composition fellow, it was perhaps the first time I didn’t have to worry about fitting in. The artists and composers I met there had such different backgrounds from one another. A lot of them identified themselves as misfits, just like I did for myself. Ironically, being together with other misfits made me feel like I belonged. This really empowered my creativity and restored faith in my composing work and art. I’m honored to receive the G. Schirmer Prize, and I have gratitude for G. Schirmer’s support of my artistic work.” 
-Jungyoon Wie

“I am so happy that the Wise Music Group, which transformed my life as an emerging composer nearly twenty years ago, has extended this recognition of the Schirmer Prize to Jungyoon Wie.  From the moment she first became part of the family at the Gabriela Lena Frank Creative Academy of Music, Jungyoon has been a charismatic force. Her music is inventive and gorgeous as she beautifully exemplifies the composer as a cultural witness. I consider her a necessary voice in today's trying times. My hearty congratulations to both Jungyoon and my colleagues at the Wise Music Group for this award!"  
-Gabriela Lena Frank

“The choice of Jungyoon for this year's Schirmer Prize was instantly unanimous. We were intrigued and impressed by Jungyoon's variety of very personal expressive ideas heard across her repertoire partnered with a fresh inquisitiveness and established fine compositional skills.”
-Peggy Monastra, Senior Promotion Advisor for G. Schirmer, Inc.

2020 Recipient

2020 G. Schirmer Prize Recipient – Aeryn Santillan

Aeryn Santillan (Cycle 5+11 Fellow) is a composer, guitarist, bassist, and label manager whose work is heavily influenced by the DIY punk scene and actively aims to blur the lines between band/ensemble and song/composition. Aeryn performs bass in the New Jersey based, internationally touring screamo quartet, Massa Nera. She co-founded this place is actually the worst, an experimental mathcore duo, and post-genre DIY label, people | places | records, with composer/guitarist Andrew Noseworthy. Two of her exceptional compositions are featured below.

Aeryn holds a Bachelor of Music degree from Columbia College Chicago and a Master of Music in Theory and Composition degree from New York University. Previous mentors include Gabriela Lena Frank, Michael Gordon, Julia Wolfe, Marcos Balter, David Reminick, Drew Baker, and Ilya Levinson. Aeryn has been a fellow at the Bang on a Can Summer Festival, Toronto Creative Music Lab, and the Gabriela Lena Frank Creative Academy of Music.

“My experience working with GLFCAM has been nothing short of life-changing,” writes Aeryn. “Gabriela isn’t just bringing composers and performers together for a one-off summer collaboration, she’s fostering a stronger music community that is open, intersectional, collaborative, and caring. I’ve met some lifelong friends and collaborators through GLFCAM that I am very grateful for. I’m honored to receive the G. Schirmer Prize for the Gabriela Lena Frank Creative Academy of Music and will continue to learn and grow with the community around me.”

“When I first received Aeryn’s name as a nomination, I thought: ‘Oh my goodness, what shall I do with a punk composer?,” writes Gabriela Lena Frank. “I clutched the proverbial pearls and peeked through my hands at their submitted scores. As I listened to their music, I remember going still as talent and potential radiated from my speakers, proving them irresistible to me. When Aeryn later came to Boonville, CA as an invited Fellow at GLFCAM, it was clear they were an open-hearted spirit with fierceness in abundance and an impressive code of ethics.  We are all the better for having Aeryn as a member of our community, a shining example of crossing cultural and aesthetic boundaries while extending a hand of friendship to new listeners and practitioners.”

G. Schirmer Senior Promotion Adviser Peggy Monastra adds: “All of us at G. Schirmer and the Wise Music Group are proud to support the impactful work taking place within Gabriela Lena Frank’s visionary Creative Academy of Music. With the Schirmer Prize it is our wish to both honor her invaluable work and dedication and to support the future career of one of the academy’s exceptional composer mentees. We were especially struck by the very individual compositional voice and integrity of the music and writings of Aeryn Santillan, especially those created during their residency with GLFCAM. We wish Aeryn and the GLFCAM richly rewarding and enduring growth and success.”

About G. Schirmer, Inc.

Part of Wise Music Group international network of publishing houses, G. Schirmer, Inc. is the oldest continuously active North American classical music publisher. Through its network of publishing houses, including Chester Music, Edition Wilhelm Hansen, Alphonse Leduc, and Novello, the Group represents works by many of the most important creators from the 20th and 21st centuries, including Abrahamsen, Aucoin, Barber, Catán, Corigliano, Dennehy, Dorman, Einaudi, Ellington, Fenton, Gabriela Lena Frank, Ives, Lieberson, Lutoslawski, Menotti, Mazzoli, Muhly, Musgrave, Saariaho, Salonen, Sarah Kirkland Snider, Sheng, Tan Dun, and Tavener. The company continues to be a driving force in classical music.