MYC’s 38th Annual International Composition Festival
For 38 years we have been celebrating the compositions of Music for Young Children students around the world. Songs composed by children ages 3 to 10 from Canada, the U.S., Malaysia, Singapore, and Vietnam.
From March 24 to April 3, each composition is played and judged within their level in four different regions – Western Canada (BC, AB, SK, YK, NT, MB), Eastern Canada (ON, QC, NS, NB, PEI, NF), United States & Asia (Singapore, Malaysia, and Vietnam). The first place pieces from the four regions then go head to head to place Internationally. The eight first place International winners each receive $250 (eight different age levels). You can watch the International Decisions on our Facebook Page. The Livestream will air on Thursday April 3rd, at 11am EST! Follow us on Facebook for more details to come!
Our ultimate purpose and goal in teaching young children the concepts of composition is to help our students find their voice.
We are Music for Young Children, and our vision to ensure that our students not only have a solid foundation in music education, but also taught the tools and skills for them to feel comfortable in exploring how to express themselves creatively, in their own way.
As musicians, at times we have to focus on the “rules” of music (note locations, rhythms, counting, etc.). But when we get to focus on composition, this is the time when we can step back a little, guide our students, and overall encourage the creative process to sprout and grow.
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All MYC students write their compositions out in full. Even 3 and 4 year olds can express their ideas using MYC’s special Critter friends. Frances Balodis, Composition Chair and founder of Music for Young Children, says, “It is important when playing the compositions to remember how young these children are. I am pleased and amazed that they are writing down their musical thoughts. Seeing the hand script is overwhelming – big circles for notes and sticks for stems. They are doing their very best. It teaches them that their music can be shared far across the world…just because it is written down. Many life-lessons learned in this composing adventure.”
Thank you to this year's 11 reviewers, who are all experienced MYC Teachers. They are: Chair Frances Balodis, Owner Olivia Riddell, Tania Granata, Cheryl McDonald, Eileen Leversedge, Carrie Bailey, Barbara Faubert, Dan Tremblay, Melody Louie, Caroline Lenk and Roxanne Mcgahey.
Our Special Guest Reviewer for MYC's 38th Annual International Composition Festival is Cora Melanson! Cora is from Moose Jaw, SK and can't wait to review the final decisions!
Special thanks to George Litterst, creator of SuperScore. Once again this year George will be creating a free download of the 2025 Winners!
To view the video of the 2024 Composition Festival album: www.myc.com/about-myc/superscore/
A special thank you to Roland Canada, who are our sponsor for this year's Composition Festival. We at MYC are proud to be affiliated with Roland and grateful for their sponsorship of many years, as they continue to demonstrate their dedication to music education.
We would like to thank Gilmore Printing for sponsoring the printing of the composition stickers that each participant will receive. Gilmore Printing Services is a full service commercial printer that has been providing both digital and offset print services since 1991.
