Eligibility Requirements

• High school and college-aged composers are encouraged to apply. (As this is an educational residency, most successful applicants will fall within this age range. However, we recognize that learning isn’t an age-specific activity, and composers outside of this age range are encouraged to apply if this residency will be particularly helpful to them in developing their craft.)

• Interest in collaborating with and writing for choral ensembles including advanced treble and SATB ensemble.

• Hearing in Color and La Caccina maintain our commitment to dismantling inequitable systems of power in musical spaces. Applicants who don’t see themselves, their stories, or their communities reflected in the classical canon will be prioritized.

• Availability for the duration of the 2026-2027 season. (Collaborative commissions take time to perfect. Young Composers will be asked to meet with leadership from both La Caccina and Hearing in Color throughout the composition process, and to meet strict draft and workshop deadlines. Applicants should ensure that they have the time to commit to this intensive residency before applying.)

• Young Composers need not be local to Chicago to apply.

Residency Benefits

• Mentorship with Professional Composers, Hearing in Color and La Caccina artists

• Salon-style performance of the work at a special Composer’s Forum event designed to promote the Young Composer and their work and introduce them to industry professionals

• Final live performance and recording of the piece by the professional singers of La Caccina

• Documentation of the process to help promote the composer and their work

• $500 base-stipend + $250 travel stipend; additional paid commissioning opportunities through Hearing in Color, as available