Lake George Music Festival — Composer's Institute (2027)

This is a programme you pay to attend rather than a grant, which is worth knowing before planning around it. The Lake George Music Festival's Composer's Institute brings a small group of composers to upstate New York for a fortnight in June. Under director Alyssa Weinberg you write a new string quartet, which The Rhythm Method, the ensemble in residence, workshops, premieres and records professionally in both audio and video. Around that sit one private composition lesson, two masterclasses with guest composers, daily seminars on contemporary music and professional practice, and an all-access pass to the festival's nightly concerts.

Tuition is USD 1,800. Lodging with a host family and lunch each day are included in every acceptance package; the alternative is the festival's hotel campus at USD 100 a night shared or USD 199 single. You arrange and pay for your own travel. A non-refundable USD 500 enrolment fee falls due on acceptance and counts toward tuition, with the balance due in mid-April. A limited amount of scholarship money exists, and you ask for it on the application form.

You must be over 18; no nationality limit is stated. Applications open in mid-October through an online form and need a CV, two or three recent scores as PDFs with recording links that are not password-protected, and a personal statement, either one or two paragraphs or a two-minute video. The festival says the statement counts as much as the portfolio. A reference letter is optional, and the USD 25 application fee is waived on request without questions.