About the Festival

The Emerging Composers Intensive at Hidden Valley brings together 10 composers for a festival of creative collaboration. Guided by renowned composition and performance faculty, each participant develops a new chamber work which is professionally rehearsed, performed, and recorded in scenic Carmel Valley, CA.

Spring Orientation, Workshops, and Lessons (Virtual; March-June 2026):

Participants will engage in:  

  • A series of workshops on effective collaboration led by the composition and performance faculty in preparation for their first-draft deadline on April 15.

  • Two private lessons with members of the composition faculty. These lessons will prepare composers to continue working toward the second draft submission on June 1.

Summer Activities in Carmel Valley, CA (In-Person; June 26 - July 5, 2026):

  • Three rehearsals/workshops of their work guided by the faculty.  

  • Private lessons with each composition faculty member to revise their work in advance of a final deadline of their piece mid-week.  

  • Seminars with composition faculty members.

  • Drop-in sessions with performance faculty to get advice on their work from a performers' perspective.

  • Professional training workshops about presentation, public speaking, career preparation, and network building.

  • Final concerts of the composers' works paired with existing chamber music repertoire at Hidden Valley Music Seminars' concert hall that are professionally audio/video recorded  

  • All participating composers will receive a professionally recorded video and audio of these performances. 

Post-Intensive Exposure:

  • Video and audio recordings will be featured on ECI’s Youtube channel

  • All artistic partners will be reviewing the final performances of ECI and body of work of the participating composers to determine their own interest in exploring any potential programming and commissioning opportunities at their discretion. 

  • Now: Application Opens

    Jan 15: Application Deadline

    Feb 1: Admission decisions

    Mar 1: Instrumentations for new works are assigned

    Mar 1 - June 1: Virtual workshops

    April 15: First draft submission to composition faculty

    April 15 - May 15: 1-on-1 online lessons with composition faculty on the first draft (2 lessons)

    June 1: Final draft submission due

    Jun 26 at 5pm: In-person program begins

    July 4 evening: Final Concert #1

    July 5 afternoon: Final Concert #2
    (Students may depart after the final concert, if needed)

    July 6 at 9am: Departures

Tuition & Room/Board:

The 2026 program cost is $2,325. This fee includes:

  • Tuition for the entire virtual and in-person program.

  • Single room (with on-suite bathroom) and board for the evening of June 26 to the morning of July 6 at the Hidden Valley Music campus.

  • Professionally recorded video and audio of the final performance of the composer’s work written for the program.

  • Works to be reviewed by ECI’s artistic partners for potential professional opportunities

Participants are responsible for their own travel to and from the program.

Letters of invitation for visa applications are available for international applicants.

APPLICATION INFORMATION:

The program is open to young composers between age 18 and 31.

Applications for summer 2026 will open in fall 2025.

Requirements: 

  • 2 pieces with contrasting styles. For each piece, please include both the score in PDF form and a link to an audio/video file. For audio files, MP3 is preferred, but MIDI mockup is acceptable.

  • 1-2 professional references and their contact information. 

  • Resume & List of Works.

  • A brief Letter of Interest outlining (1) your primary motivations for applying and (2) a memorable collaborative experience.

  • Optional: A get-to-know-you video