High School Composer Mentorship

The William Ferris Chorale invites high school students in the Chicago Public Schools who are interested in composing music – especially for choir – to apply to our Composer Mentorship Program.

Now in its fourth season, the William Ferris Chorale’s Emerging Voices initiative collaborates with Chicago Public Schools students to compose new music for choirs.

This season we are launching a Composer Mentorship program as part of our Emerging Voices initiative, and are seeking individual high school students with interest and skill in composition to work with a mentor-composer to develop a work for WFC to perform and record in March 2027.

Applicants must be:

  • Enrolled at a high school within the Chicago Public Schools

  • Interested in working with an established composer to revise and develop their work

  • Excited to learn about the craft of music composition and see their work premiered by a professional choir in front of an audience

The chosen composer will:

  • Meet 4-6 times with our Composer-Mentor, Eric Malmquist, to develop, revise, and/or expand the submitted composition in private lessons.

  • Have 20 minutes to listen to their piece in a scheduled rehearsal with WFC and the Composer-Mentor to hear their work and offer revisions.

  • Have the work premiered and recorded by WFC in March 2027.

Complete this link to apply!

  • Submit (though the form above) a SATB composition for choir that you would like to work on further. This composition should be your own personal, original work -- not an arrangement. 

  • Write a personal statement (200-300 words) about why you want to be considered for this program and how it will impact your life. Please address:

    • Why you want to be chosen for this program?

    • What impact this program would have on your life?

    • What you want to learn from this program?

    • Describe a time when you have received feedback on a musical composition or performance in the past, and you have done or changed in response to it to that feedback.

Applications due October 1, 2026!

Eric Malmquist (b. 1985) writes earnestly heartfelt and engaging music. He draws on a deep love of early music and modern influences to produce works that are focused and emotional.

He has been commissioned and performed by the Collaborative Arts Institute of Chicago, Baroque on Beaver Island, Chicago Composers Orchestra, the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra, tubist Scott Tegge, historical keyboardist Charles Metz, historical flutist Leighann Daihl Ragusa, Chatter, Constellation Men’s Ensemble, the International Chamber Artists, the Newberry Consort and the Wicker Park Choral Singers.

Recent performances include City Music with the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestras Accelerando Strings; Open, Clear & Free, a 25-minute men's choir cycle on parks for Constellation Men's Ensemble; A History of Fatherhood in Sante Fe and Albuquerque with Chatter; and a concerto grosso for Baroque on Beaver Island entitled Great Lake Music. His tuba sonata has been performed by Gene Pokorny of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Scott Tegge of Gaudete Brass.

A passionate composer of art song, his works have been performed by Grammy-nominated tenor Nick Phan, Grammy-nominated soprano Laura Strickling, early music specialists Ellen Hargis and Josefien Stoppelenburg, and soprano Ariana Strahl. Ariana premiered his orchestra song set Let Me Sing with the Chicago Composers Orchestra in 2019. His commissioned work Prairie Music for CYSO was featured on Chicago’s Ear Taxi Festival in October 2016 and at Midwest Clinic in December 2016. CCO and WPCS co-commissioned and performed Blemish’d Muse, a 20-minute work for choir and orchestra, in 2016. His song cycle If You Travel Far Enough was the very first commission of the ICA, and was featured on Live from WFMT in 2015. Michael Hall premiered his Sonata for Viola and Piano in 2014, and Gaudete Brass premiered his Three Preludes in 2013.

His music has been performed across the US and has been featured repeatedly on 98.7WFMT. Recordings of his music are on sale: “Music in Bloom” featuring period instruments, on the disc “New Song” and by pianist Jonathan Hannau.