Composition CompetitionThe IMEA Composition Competition is an annual competition that offers young Indiana composers (grades six through college) the opportunity to have their work evaluated by established composers/educators who provide written feedback. This event is designed to help these young composers learn and grow as creative musical thinkers. The winning composers are recognized at the Professional Conference in January. 2025 Gold Rating RecipientsName: Cole Barlage Composition Title: “Variations on Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star in C Minor” Sample of Composition: Recording Excerpt Division: 2025 Middle School Division, Band School: Zionsville West Middle School Teacher: Candi Granlund Bio: I'm a 13 year old trumpet player. I was inspired by my family's deep ties with music. My Grandmother and Mother started bringing me to the theater at a very early age and would bring me backstage to see the pit where the orchestra would play. They would always tell me that music transcends all languages. As I got older, I really began to connect with music and understand what my family had been trying to show me all those years ago. It has been a very special way for me to bond with my Grandmother, Mom, and Uncle. About the Piece: I wrote this piece with my classmates in mind, in hopes that we could play it during our 8th grade year. I wanted to compose something that would be fun to play, and make people laugh. This piece has many tempo changes and the melody is often passed around between instruments. There are 5 variations, including a contrasting grandioso segment as the 4th variation. This composition will be enjoyable for audiences of all ages! Name: Levi Campbell Composition Title: “Scratches” Sample of Composition: Recording Excerpt Division: 2025 High School Division, String Orchestra School: Perry Meridian High School Teacher: Ariya Marr Bio: Hello! My name is Levi Campbell. I am going into my senior year of high school. I have been playing the cello since sixth grade. I fell in love with music in my eighth grade year. I have since picked up the Violin, Viola, and Bass. I have been writing since May of 2021. “Scratches” is my eleventh original piece for a string orchestra. It is my twenty-first piece, everything included. About the Piece: “Scratches” is my twenty-first piece. I started writing the piece at the end of March of 2025. I finished the general layout of the piece at the end of April. It is around six minutes in length. The piece is mainly a waltz with a short, cut-time intermission. The piece presents a melancholic, almost mysterious tone. “Scratches” represents the monotony that everyday life brings and the damage it can do to someone. There is a cry for something more, yet it never comes; the piece goes back to where it started, gaining nothing but the scratches. Name: Oliver Heiman Composition Title: “Divination - Prédir l’avenir” Sample of Composition: Recording Excerpt Division: 2025 High School Division, Full Orchestra School: Lawrence Central High School Teacher: Sarah Stoutameyer Bio: Oliver Heimann is an Indianapolis-based composer, as well as a Hornist and jazz Trombonist. He enjoys writing for Symphony Orchestra, Concert Band, and Big Band. Heimann attends Lawrence Central High School, which was recently awarded the All-Music Award by the Indiana State School Music Association. Heimann is also an entirely self-taught composer who began with works for jazz, and expanded outwardly from there. Even in Heimann’s orchestral pieces, hints of jazz and jazz theory still remain. About the Piece: “Divination - Prédir l’avenir” is the third movement of Heimann’s “L’Académie de sorcellerie,” a thrilling four movement symphony written for symphony orchestra. The piece as a whole revolves around the idea of an academy for sorcerers, with each movement representing a different branch of magic. This movement, “Divination,” encapsulates the magic of predicting the future, and as such, the piece is split into three sections, all representing stages of vision, and marked by their tempos (grave, andantino, grave.) It provides a wash into the clarity of vision, before returning to the fog of a crystal ball. Name: Oliver Heiman Composition Title: “Mischievous Heist” Sample of Composition: Recording Excerpt Division: 2025 High School Division, Jazz Band School: Lawrence Central High School Teacher: Sarah Stoutameyer Bio: Oliver Heimann is an Indianapolis-based composer, as well as a Hornist and jazz Trombonist. He enjoys writing for Symphony Orchestra, Concert Band, and Big Band. Heimann attends Lawrence Central High School, which was recently awarded the All-Music Award by the Indiana State School Music Association. Heimann is also an entirely self-taught composer who began with works for jazz, and expanded outwardly from there. Even in Heimann’s orchestral pieces, hints of jazz and jazz theory still remain. About the Piece: Mischievous Heist was written by Heimann to mimic the sounds of jazz in the 30s. With a rapid pace, a catchy melody, and a light swing feel, this piece encapsulates a sneaky bank heist with a mischievous twist. The tempo is very malleable, sounding good at most any tempos, making it much more friendly to beginner or intermediate jazz ensembles. Name: Milo Savage Composition Title: “Double Bass Sonata” Sample of Composition: Recording Excerpt Division: 2025 High School Division, Instrumental Solo School: Fishers High School Teacher: Julie Armey Bio: Milo Savage is a composer, bassist, and educator from Fishers, Indiana. From a very young age, he was surrounded by music (particularly Tchaikovsky), and it only grew from there. He started the cello in second grade, but quit to pursue the double bass (a better instrument) instead. He started composition in 7th grade and has composed many works, some even played by his school orchestra. He hopes to go into a career in performance, but will still compose on the side. About the Piece: This project was a huge undertaking. It was started in September to be a composition played by my friend and me. After writing the first movement off and on for 2 months, I couldn’t continue. I set it off to the side to write my Piano Quintet, which coincidentally shares thematic material with the Sonata. After the second movement, I hit yet another rock. Eventually, I came across an old piece for bass and piano that I wrote and it was perfect for the job. I still look at this composition as one of my best, even months later. Name: Milo Savage Composition Title: “Song for Aspen Burns” Sample of Composition: Recording Excerpt Division: 2025 High School Division, String Orchestra School: Fisher High School Teacher: Julie Armey Bio: Milo Savage is a composer, bassist, and educator from Fishers, Indiana. From a very young age, he was surrounded by music (particularly Tchaikovsky), and it only grew from there. He started the cello in second grade, but quit to pursue the double bass (a better instrument) instead. He started composition in 7th grade and has composed many works, some even played by his school orchestra. He hopes to go into a career in performance, but will still compose on the side. About the Piece: Aspen Burns is a character in every sense of the word. He resembles virtuosity in performance and composition. Allegedly, when he was only 11 months of age, he wrote the manuscript for an impossible symphony (his 11th) that was discovered on the streets of Indianapolis, which was transcribed by me and then eaten by my dog. Allegedly. This composition, composed for a music theory project, is the life story of Mr. Burns, from birth to death. Name: Matthew Raubuck Composition Title: “Creations: Art and Its Creator” Sample of Composition: Recording Excerpt Division: 2025 Collegiate Division, Vocal Choir School: Ball State University Teacher: Dr. Sally Kang Bio: Matthew Raubuck maintains a diverse catalog of original compositions, including works for vocal and instrumental solos, duets, chamber ensembles, and large ensembles. His music has been performed at Ball State University, and he was recently commissioned to compose a choral piece for the Pennsylvania Summer Choral Society. Drawing on his background as a jazz guitarist, Matthew creates music that blends the intricate harmonic and melodic language of jazz with the performance practices and instrumentation typical of concert music. About the Piece: “Creations: Art and Its Creator” is a four-song cycle for unaccompanied treble choir that explores the relationship between artists and their creations. While composing the work, I was inspired by the idea of how creators, whether poets, musicians, or even God, engage with what they bring into being. Each movement draws upon the vivid and expressive poetry of Sara Teasdale, James Weldon Johnson, and John Keats. Together, these texts and musical settings invite listeners to reflect on the deep emotional and spiritual connections between artists and the art they create, offering a meditation on inspiration, purpose, and legacy.
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