Composition Competition
For every BCE concert, we organize a composition competition to promote the composer talent of the country that we are honoring, which is linked to the EU Presidency.
For the composition competition, we look for original pieces that will be premièred at our concert and that celebrates the particular country, that celebrates the sounds and culture of a particular country.
Apply for the BCE Composition Competition
It is with great honor that we will host a Composition Competition to promote the talent of Polish Composers and celebrate the EU Presidency of this member state.
The winning work will be performed by the Brussels Chamber Ensemble on June 20, 2025 in one of the most emblematic concert halls of Brussels. All Polish composers are invited to apply!
Brussels Chamber Ensemble
playing
Ruben van Eldik "Espoir" (World Premiere)
Winners of past Composition Competition
Ruben van Eldik
Born here in Brussels, Ruben Van Eldik is a 14-year old composer who lives in Tervuren with his family. His love for music was apparent early on in his life.
He began playing the piano at the age of 11 and, a year later, embarked on piano lessons with John Gevaert at the APKO academy. At 12, Ruben began to compose music. Now, at 14, he is studying at the KSO Lemmens Institute in Leuven.
When the BCE launched its second composition competition, Ruben entered – and won – with his stunning piece “Espoir”, a mesmerising impressionistic work, inspired by Anna Boch's painting 'Les falaises de l'Estérel'.
Adrián Fuentes Flores
Adrián Fuentes Flores was born in Málaga in 1998 and started studying the piano at the age of six. He studied the piano in Málaga and Badajoz with Daniel Ábalos and Ángel Sanzo, finishing his bachelor’s degree with the main two obtainable prizes: Best Academic Record Award and Extraordinary End of Studies Award. His pianistic education then continued in Belgium. He finished a master’s degree in piano at the Conservatoire Royal de Bruxelles this year, studying under Johan Schmidt. For his master’s degree he received a Grand Distinction.
For our Spain-themed concert, Fuentes Flores composed an astounding piece, his 'Suite Andaluza', that draws heavily from flamenco culture and cites Albéniz and de Falla as his major inspiration.
Adrián
also works as a music score editor, having edited more than thirty works for
individuals and companies in Spain. He has recently graduated from the Conservatoire Royal de Bruxelles with a
master’s degree in piano playing.
Marton Wirth
Wirth began composing as a young child, performing his own music at a local children's theatre. Upon graduating high school, he organised a farewell concert featuring a 40-player orchestra and choir performing his first symphony, his flute concerto and two cantatas.
Wirth studied under Axel Seidelmann, Maestro Uros Lajovic and Maestro Simeon Pironkoff at the University of Music and Performing Arts in Vienna. He also studied under Csaba Kutnyánszky at the Ferenc Liszt Music University in Budapest, and attended master courses with Maestro Seiji Ozawa, Prof. Paul Crabb and Peter Schreier.
In his own time he has performed his own pieces with friends, choirs and his own orchestra. He also founded an opera ensemble to perform his opera in Pécs and Budapest. Wirth lives in Iceland, where he serves as a music director at the Catholic Church of Iceland and performs his own sacred pieces on a weekly basis with his choir.
Upcoming Composition Competition
- Summer 2025: Poland
- Fall 2025: Denmark
- Spring 2026: Cyprus
- Fall 2026: Ireland
- Spring 2027: Lithuania
- Fall 2027: Greece
- Spring 2028: Italy
- Fall 2028: Latvia