About this project

The Kronos: Under 30 Project is a commissioning program designed to support the creation of new music by young artists. Kronos will launch Under 30/#5 in spring 2012, and we are raising money for the project, which includes a call for scores, our review of submissions, selecting a young composer, commissioning the new work, rehearsal and development of the piece, premiere of the work, and recording the piece. A call for scores will be announced in 2012, and the commissioned new work will receive its world premiere in the 2013/2014 season.

The Kronos: Under 30 Project was created in 2003, Kronos’ 30th anniversary year, to support the creation of new work by young artists, and to help Kronos cultivate stronger connections and develop lasting artistic relationships with the next creative generation. Four pieces of music have been commissioned through Kronos: Under 30 since 2003. Since the program’s inception, nearly 1,000 applications from 49 countries on six continents have been received.

Kronos: Under 30 is not a contest, and all composers under 30 years of age are eligible to apply. In each round of the program, musicians are asked to submit recordings of works, regardless of instrumentation, to introduce Kronos to their music. The members of Kronos select one musician to whom they feel most artistically committed, and that composer is commissioned to write a new work for Kronos. The selected composer joins Kronos on tour for initial meetings, and then joins Kronos for a residency in San Francisco to prepare the new piece. Kronos and staff provide ongoing support to the composer through all aspects of the process.

Past Under 30 commissions:

Under 30/#1

The first work commissioned through the Kronos: Under 30 Project, String Quartet: Oculus Pro Oculo Totum Orbem Terrae Caecat (2003) by Alexandra du Bois was premiered in April 2003 at Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH. The piece has been performed by Kronos in major venues throughout the United States and Europe, including Théâtre de la Ville (Paris), the Ravinia Festival in Chicago, and the Barbican (London). Her piece was also featured in Kronos’ 2005 performance at Carnegie’s Zankel Hall. She was subsequently commissioned to write another quartet, Night Songs (Nachtliederen), for Kronos in 2006.

Presenter Partner: Hopkins Center at Dartmouth College
Additional Partners: Clarence E. Heller Charitable Foundation, Kronos Performing Arts Association, American Music Center

Under 30/#2

Felipe Pérez Santiago’s CampoSanto (2004) premiered in April 2004, and has been heard in major cities in 17 countries, including Moscow, Madrid, and Sydney. Along with Alexandra’s piece, Felipe’s piece was featured in Kronos’ 2005 performance at Carnegie’s Zankel Hall. He was commissioned to write another quartet for Kronos, Encandilado (Blinded by Light), which was premiered in July 2007 at the Festival Saint-Denis in Saint-Denis, France. 

Presenter Partner: Stanford Lively Arts/Stanford University
Additional Partners: National Endowment for the Arts, San Francisco Foundation, American Music Center, Board of Directors of the Kronos Perorming Arts Association on the occasion of Kronos’ 30th anniversary

Under 30/#3

Dan Visconti, commissioned in the third round of the Kronos: Under 30 Project, has heard his piece Love Bleeds Radiant performed in Washington D.C. and cities throughout the U.S. since its world premiere in January 2006 at the Hopkins Center at Dartmouth College.

Presenter Partner: The Hopkins Center at Dartmouth College
Additional Partners: Angel Stoyanof Commission Fund, The James Irvine Foundation, Margaret E. Lyon Trust, The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, San Francisco Foundation, Fleishhacker Foundation, American Music Center, Kronos Performing Arts Association, Sally and Don Lucas Artists Programs at Montalvo Arts Center

Under 30/#4

The fourth and most recent work commissioned through the Kronos: Under 30 Project is Aviya Kopelman’s Widows & Lovers (2007).  Her piece was premiered at Carnegie Hall in February 2008 and was performed at Théâtre de la Ville in Paris.  In February of 2009, the piece had its West Coast Premiere in Berkeley, California presented by Cal Performances.

Presenter Partner: The Carnegie Hall Corporation, Cal Performances, Kronos Performing Arts Association
Additional Partners: National Endowment for the Arts, William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, San Francisco Foundation, Stephen K. Cassidy, Sally and Don Lucas Artists Programs at Montalvo Arts Center

Under 30/#5

Details of Under 30/#5 will be announced in spring 2012. The commission will premiere during the 2013/2014 season.