The Karl Sczuka Prize is awarded for the 65th time. Award ceremony as part of the Donaueschingen Festival.
The award is made for “the best production of a work of radio art using musical material and structures in an acoustic performance.”
The Karl Sczuka Prize for Works of Radio Art/Ars Acustica, established by the Südwestrundfunk (SWR) in 1955, will be awarded this year for the 65th 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 (audio file, manuscript and/or treatment, biography with catalogue raisonné, photo portrait of the artists) using the online application form (accessible here) by May 23, 2026. Please note, that for a successful application you will need to submit all documents and the audio file (max. file size one GB). 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 June 1, 2025. Works not yet broadcast are also welcome.
The award ceremony of the “Karl Sczuka Prize” and the “Karl Sczuka support grant” 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. They can be accessed online here.
If you have any questions, please contact the secretariat of the Karl Sczuka Prize at: sczuka [@] swr.de.
deadline: May 23 2026, 12pm (CET).
more info: https://www.swr.de/swrkultur/hoerspiel/karl-sczuka-preis/
