Invitation to submit works

The Karl Sczuka Prize for Works of Radio Art, established by the SWR in 1955, will be awarded this year for the 63rd time. The invitation to submit works is public and the award consists of a main prize, endowed with 12,500 euros, and a support grant of 2,500 euros. Associated with the support grant is the possibility of carrying out a two-week production in a Südwestrundfunk radio play studio. According to the regulations governing the prize, the award is made for “the best production of a work of radio art using musical material and structures in an acoustic performance”. An independent jury, consisting of Olaf Nicolai (chair), Inke Arns, Julia Cloot, Michael Grote and Thomas Meinecke, will select the prize winners.

The prize is open to authors, composers, directors, and production teams. They must submit their productions to the Südwestrundfunk in the form of an audio file ready for broadcast together with the required documentation and entry form (accessible at www.swr2.de/sczuka) by 23 May 2024. The producer can submit the entry on behalf of the originator. If the first broadcast or publication on a sound storage medium or online has already taken place, its date must not lie before 1 June 2023. Works not yet broadcast are also welcome.

In connection with the Karl Sczuka Prize presentation, the "Karl Sczuka Research Grant in cooperation with the Goethe-Institut" is awarded as an additional prize jointly by SWR and the Goethe-Institut. The aim of the Research Grant, which is endowed with 5,000 euros, is to support the research phase for international radio art projects, which is often only possible under rudimentary conditions. It offers the possibility of a research stay in a non-German-speaking country. The Research Grant, awarded annually, is aimed at artists who work in the field of acoustic and time-based art (audio, performance, and sound artists) that deal with narrative, technical and artistic possibilities of the radio medium and are active in Germany.

The award ceremony of the Karl Sczuka Prize and the "Karl Sczuka Research Grant in cooperation with the Goethe-Institut" will take place during the Donaueschingen Festival.

The regulations setting out all the conditions governing the submission of entries are available in German and English.

The application form should be addressed to sczuka-entry@swr.de. You will then receive by e-mail the authorisation of a network folder to which you can transfer the required documents (audio file, manuscript, biography, catalogue raisonné, photo).

If you have any questions, please contact the secretariat of the Karl Sczuka Prize at: