Congratulations to Ying Wang: she is awarded the 70th Composition Prize of the City of Stuttgart 2025 for her work SCHMUTZ for violin and ensemble. SCHMUTZ was commissioned by the Cologne festival ACHT BRÜCKEN in 2019 with the support of the Ernst von Siemens Music Foundation and was premiered by Klangforum Wien under Julien Leroy with Sophie Schafleitner on the violin.
The jury statement said: ‘SCHMUTZ by Ying Wang is a work of extremes, of eruptions and collapses, of jubilation as well as silence. The solo violin rolls mountains of material in front of it, losing itself in the omnipresent mass of sound, noise and information as well as in moments of solitude. Although SCHMUTZ is a chamber concerto, it often has an orchestral expanse, sometimes even a secret double concerto with electric guitar. The longing for liberation and at the same time the need for purification are conveyed very convincingly in this music.’
Ying Wang writes about her work: "I am in danger of suffocating. Due to this small, everyday carelessness. Due to the ignorant and self-satisfied disposal. I am in danger of being silenced by the broad-gauge loudspeakers. Plastic in the sea, oil in feathers, noise in the ear, poison in food, stench in the air, fear in thoughts. This network of burdens, laid out by each individual, spreads steadily. My music tells of this torment."
The award-winning compositions, which include works by Georgia Koumará and Elnaz Seyedi in addition to SCHMUTZ, will be performed as part of the award ceremony at the ECLAT Festival Neue Musik Stuttgart in February 2026.
The series of works honoured by the Composition Prize of the City of Stuttgart, which has been awarded since 1955, reflects the stylistic development of New Music in Germany since the end of the Second World War. A total of 209 works were submitted by 112 participants for the 70th Composition Prize 2025.
Alongside the news of the award, Ying Wang unfortunately also had to take note of less favourable news: Due to the devastating fire disaster, she will not be able to take up a three-month scholarship at the Villa Aurora in Los Angeles for the time being.
Kompositionspreis der Landeshauptstadt Stuttgart
