The ITA Composition Contest allows talented composers to showcase their trombone writing skills. Composers are invited to submit their original trombone octet and/or quartet of 6-8 minutes in length.
Winning compositions will be announced in April during International Trombone Week (ITW). The sheet music will be available at no cost to trombonists wishing to perform it through the remainder of the year.. The winning compositions will have a featured professional performance. Composers may have additional performances and promotional interviews highlighting their winning compositions.
The winning composers will receive:
- A featured professional performance at a future International Trombone Festival and a complimentary festival registration;
- 1 three-year Regular Membership to the International Trombone Association.;
- Promotion of the winning composition during International Trombone Week
- A $100 gift certificate to ITA’s merchandise shop
As a condition of accepting the award, each winning composer must agree to one of the following distribution options for a period of one year following the announcement of the competition results:
- Grant the International Trombone Association permission to make the winning composition (sheet music) available to the public free of charge for one year; or
- Provide a worldwide discount code offering 25% off the purchase price of the winning composition (sheet music) for one year.
Composition Requirements
The International Trombone Association Composition Competition (ITACC) provides composers with an opportunity to showcase their writing for trombone ensemble. Composers are invited to submit original works for either trombone octet or trombone quartet.
Please Note: Composers may submit works in either the octet or quartet category, or both. A maximum of two compositions per category may be submitted.
To be eligible for consideration, submissions must meet the following requirements:
- Octet Category: Scored for 8 trombones (6 Tenor and 2 Bass Trombones).
- Quartet Category: Scored for 4 trombones (3 Tenor and 1 Bass Trombone).
- The composition must be an original work by the submitter. No arrangements are allowed.
- The composition must have been completed during the current eligibility period (2025 or 2026). Previously published works are eligible only if their original publication date falls within the current eligibility period.
- The composition must be between 6 and 8 minutes in length. Length is determined by the duration of the submitted MP3 recording.
- Each submission must include one PDF score (individual parts included; max 15 MB) and one MIDI recording (WAV or MP3; max 30 MB);
- By submitting a work to the ITACC, the composer certifies that the submission complies with ITACC Artificial Intelligence (AI) Policy and may be asked to confirm the work’s authorship or creative process. Any submission determined to contain AI-generated creative material may be disqualified. Deliberate misrepresentation of AI-generated material as the composer’s original work may also result in ineligibility for future ITACC competitions.
In pursuit of diversity, we especially invite individuals from under-represented groups to apply.
Process
Deadline: Qualifying submissions were received by December 14, 2026.
Judging: will take place in January and February 2027 by a panel of judges and trombone ensembles. The winning composition will be announced in March 2027. The judges’ decision is final.
Questions? Contact us at: ItaCompContest@gmail.com
Register
- Register for the Octet Category here
- Register for the Quartet Category here
Please note: This is a separate contest from the ITF Composers Workshop. Every composer is encouraged to enter both if you wish.
