Student Composition Contest Winners 2023 – Let’s Play Music Piano Program
- Let's Play Music
- Jun 1, 2023
- 3 min read
Updated: Feb 3
At Let's Play Music, we encourage students to learn more than just reading and performing music; we teach them how to create something new!
This year, over 1800 3rd Year Let's Play Music students and over 500 Presto Year II students in the US and Canada composed music with us. These are the best of those compositions completed by our grads this year.
We want to show you some of our favorites, as selected by our guest judge, Dr. Stephen Mitton.
Best Overall Student Compositions in Let’s Play Music Program Going to the Park with Mom by Benjamin From the Studio of: Celia Brasfield
Best Overall Student Compositions in Presto Program Amalgination by Nathan From the Studio of: Melissa Richardson
Most Original Student Piano Composition Dutch's Great Escape by Mia From the Studio of: Tiffani Judd
Best Story in Student Composition Contest Bees Going Home by Jude From the Studio of: Anna Hinkley
Best Use of ABA Form in Student Compositions Artist's Song by Harper From the Studio of: Kim Thomas
Best Melody in Student Compositions Flowers by Claire From the Studio of: Barbara Gill
Best Use of Chords in Student Compositions
A Day at the Ballpark by Eli
From the Studio of: Luanne Harms
Honorable Mention, Best Overall (Let's Play Music): The Aquarium by Derrick From the Studio of: Darlayne Coughlin
Runner Up, Best Overall (Presto): The Hogwart's Mystery by Andrew From the Studio of: Teresa Shaver
Honorable Mention, Best Overall (Presto): The Graveyard by Conner From the Studio of: Paige Allred
Honorable Mention, Most ORIGINAL: Day, Night, Evening, and Sunset by Roman From the Studio of: Emily LeFevre
Honorable Mention, Best Story: Lost Bird in the City by Josh From the Studio of: Sheleena Cope
Honorable Mention, Best Use of ABA: Jump Little Dolphins, Jump! by Sophia From the Studio of: Sherri Jensen
Honorable Mention, Melody: It's Twelve O'Clock by Molly From the Studio of: Heather Anderson
Honorable Mention, Best Use of Chords:
Galaxy Peace by Christian
From the Studio of: Kathy Nelson
Congratulations to these kids, families, and parents AND all who have successfully composed, published, and performed their very first piano piece!
Meet Our Guest Judge: Dr. Stephen
This year, our honorary judge was Stephen Mitton. He is a composer, performer, and educator based in Mesa, Arizona. He holds a Doctorate in Music Composition from the University of Michigan and was recently named MMTA's Commissioned Composer for the year 2021.
In his compositions, Dr. Mitton aims to grab audiences’ attention by generating short, memorable motifs and melodies that serve an overarching narrative or concept. His music is frequently centered on exploring the mental landscapes where language, memories, dreams, and emotions overlap. Does that sound similar to how we help our students craft their compositions? You can image how honored we feel that such a thoughtful and creative composer agreed to be our judge for our LPM musicians.
With so many students participating across the US and Canada, it’s exciting to imagine the variety of ideas and styles that emerged from their compositions. Initiatives like this remind us that creativity can thrive in many areas—whether composing music, exploring art, or even building imaginative worlds in digital spaces like the EaglerCraft, where creativity and experimentation are also part of the fun.