Ogston Music Prize

Ogston Music Prize

A prize of £2000 for music-making will be awarded annually to an undergraduate studying at the University of Aberdeen.  The prize is not open to students in their first year of study.

The competition for the prize will be advertised within the University in February and auditions for entrants held on 21st March.  Around five will be selected for the final public performances on 23rd April when the student judged to have given the best musical performance on the occasion will be awarded the prize.

Previous winners of the Ogston Music Prize will not be eligible to enter the competition.

The panel of judges for the auditions and the final performances will be arranged by Dr Aaron McGregor, Lecturer in Music (Performance).  The panel for the final public performance includes the multi-talented vocalist, composer, and musician Seonaid Aitken.

The 2022/23 Ogston Music Prize was won by Jamie Reilly.

The Ogston Music Prize 2024

Applications are now being accepted for the Ogston Music Prize, the Department of Music's annual performance competition. Finals will be held on Tuesday 23 April 2024 at 19.30.

Auditions for the award (Round 1) will be held in the morning of Thursday 21 March 2024. An auditions schedule will be made available in advance.

The judging panel will include Head of School and Professor of Music Chris Collins, and Lecturer in Performance Aaron McGregor, who will be joined at the Finals by our external judge, violinist and jazz vocalist Seonaid Aitken (http://seonaidaitken.com).

If you wish to enter, please read the following conditions carefully and submit your application as
outlined below:

  • Applications are welcome from any matriculated undergraduate student at the University of Aberdeen (without restriction on subject of study, musical instrument/voice, or musical style/genre).
  • Previous winners of the Ogston Music Prize are not eligible to enter.
  • Applicants should prepare one piece of no more than 5 minutes duration for the initial audition.
  • Applicants must provide their own accompanist for the audition and for the final if selected.

Five finalists will be selected to compete for the finals on 23 April 2024. Each finalist will present a programme of between 10-15 minutes in duration.

The final round will be a public performance as part of the Department's concert series. 

Finalists will be expected to attend a workshop at a date prior to the event with Aaron McGregor, including performing a selection of their final programme. 

The winner will take home a cheque for £1,500, with second place awarded £500. Both students will become a prominent part of the musical life of the University in the following year, performing at graduations and concerts, as well as featuring in the Ogston Music Prize concert in April 2025.

A letter of application detailing your instrument / voice and audition repertoire should be emailed to Aaron McGregor no later than 1 March 2024.