[Voxnovus] Call for Scores - Fifteen-Minutes-of-Fame featuring oboist Ava Wirth

[New Voice in New Music]

Fifteen-Minutes-of-Fame featuring oboist Ava Wirth



Vox Novus is calling for one-minute pieces composed for Ava Wirth. For 
this Fifteen-Minutes-of-Fame, we are looking for oboe solos specifically 
written for Ava Wirth.

Selected works will be premiered on Saturday May 6, 2023 on 
Fifteen-Minutes-of-Fame featuring Ava Wirth.

This performance will be presented as a live streaming online concert 
and broadcasted to multiple streaming platforms such as YouTube and 
Facebook.

Only works one-minute in length for oboe will be considered.

Guidelines:

-Deadline for works is January 31st, 2023

-Works are for oboe solo only.

-No works over one minute (60 seconds) will be reviewed.

-Works should be composed specifically for this call and performer.

-All pieces must be premieres.

-Multiple submissions are not accepted.

-Works need to be submitted online at www.MusicAvatar.org

-You will need to register with Music Avatar for free to submit your 
work online.

-After logging in to Music Avatar, select the opportunity named 
"Fifteen-Minutes-of-Fame featuring Ava Wirth" and press the "submit" 
button to start the submission process.

-You will need to provide a maximum 50 word biography and 50 word 
program notes.

-You will be able to upload a score as a PDF file (You are also 
encouraged to upload an audio realization of the work)

-Must include the dedication to Ava Wirth on the score.

-Performance notes should be included in the score.
-Selected works will be broadcasted online to multiple video streaming 
platforms including Facebook, YouTube, and Vimeo. No performance 
royalties will be paid.

-Selected composers will be asked to sign a consent form. (Composers 
retain their author rights.)

-Results will be announced via the Fifteen-Minutes-of-Fame website and 
the Vox Novus mailing list.

More can be found be found at:

www.VoxNovus.com/fifteen-minutes-of-fame




Ava Wirth

Ava Wirth is a Chicago based oboist with a focus on contemporary music. 
As a soloist, she has placed in competitions in the Midwest, including 
the 2019 Tuesday Musical Solo Competition Woodwind Division and the 2019 
New Albany Symphony Orchestra (NASO) Concerto Competition Senior 
Division. She has performed as a soloist with the Bowling Green State 
University (BGSU) New Music Ensemble at the 2018 and 2019 BGSU New Music 
Festivals as well as performing the Legacy Concerto by Oscar Navarro 
with the NASO in 2019.

As an avid supporter of contemporary music, Ava has taken part in 
commissions and recordings that promote new works. In 2018, she was 
principal oboist on the BGSU Wind Symphony CD, Trends: New Music for 
Wind Band, Vol. 1. Her most recent commissions and collaborations 
include Adam Kennaugh’s 2020 work for solo oboe, You’re Here Because 
Someone Won a Fight With a Rock and Josh Trentadue’s 2021 piece for 
five-part ensemble, Meditation and Hymn to Nature, which was 
commissioned by her ensemble, The _____ Experiment.

In her time at DePaul University, Ava performed as principal oboe and 
english horn with the DePaul Symphony Orchestra and DePaul University 
Wind Ensemble. In her free time, Ava enjoys tending to her succulents 
and watching comedy movies. She has earned a Master’s in Music from 
DePaul University while studying with Alex Klein (2022) and a Bachelor's 
Degree in Music from Bowling Green State University while studying with 
Dr. Nermis Mieses (2020).

Style Guide
Oboe Model: Loree Royal
Range: Bb3 - C7
-	Bb3 - Eb4, preferred dynamics are from mp - f. The natural tendencies 
of the notes may make it not sound as soft or as loud as notated.
-	E4 - to G6, comfortable in all dynamic ranges. Alternate fingerings 
can be used to make some notes softer or louder than original fingering 
allows.
-	G#6 - A6, preferred dynamics are mf - f. The natural tendencies of the 
notes may make it not sound as soft or loud as notated.
-	A#6 - C7 , pp - p. If writing these notes, please leave time for 
embouchure and fingering preparation.

General:
-	Fast technical passages are enjoyed. For reference, the fingerings 
associated with G major and D major are the easiest to play fast.
-	Upward intervals are easier than downward intervals. Intervals in 
either direction can be articulated or slurred, easiest when 
articulated.
-	Vibrato will be used unless indicated otherwise.

Extended techniques:
-	Circular breathing - can be done for long periods of time. Easiest on 
moving notes, but can be done on held notes. Easiest to use in mid- 
register, but can be done in all but the highest register (G6 - C7).
-	Flutter tongue - achieved by rolling ‘R’s’. Cannot be done for 
extended periods of time - more air leaves the embouchure during this. 
Easiest in mid-register, but can be done up to G6.
-	Multiphonics - refer to the books on contemporary oboe. Not all of the 
multiphonics will work the same on my Loree Royal as they do on the 
other oboe models used for the books. Please indicate fingering.
-	Harmonics - refer to books on contemporary oboe.
-	Pitch bends - can be done with embouchure and/or keys. Refer to books 
on contemporary oboe.
-	Double tonguing - can be done, easiest in mid register. I do not 
prefer periods of extended fast articulations, single or double tongue.
-	Alternate fingerings - the less fingers used in the original 
fingering, the more opportunities for alternate fingerings. These can be 
used for dynamics, tonal changes, or microtonal tuning.
-	Microtones - refer to books on contemporary oboe. Please indicate 
fingering, some can be done with embouchure.

Resources:
-	The Techniques of Oboe Playing, Peter Veale, published by Barenreiter
-	Oboe Unbound, Libby Van Cleave
http://libbyvancleve.com/oboe-unbound

Hear Ava Wirth at:
https://soundcloud.com/ava-wirth-584632687

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfC_pRdO4ICWOk-pc-OzFxg





Fifteen-Minutes-of-Fame

Fifteen-Minutes-of-Fame is 15 one-minute works written by different 
composers specifically for a musician or ensemble. 
Fifteen-Minutes-of-Fame gives a variety of new music by living composers 
to audiences hungry to hear what is being created in today's music 
scene. The Fifteen-Minutes-of-Fame project has featured more than 75 
musician/ensembles premiering the works of over 1000 composers.




Fifteen-Minutes-of-Fame is a Vox Novus project.