‘The project is bold, innovative and visionary.’ Irina Odagescu (Romania)

'The concept of Invitation to Composers and the ensemble were both attractive as was the London Schubert Players’ clear commitment to performing and recording a number of new works in the season' Hugh Collins Rice (UK)

'I was attracted by the model with the solo viola and wanted to write a work for the London Schubert Players with whom I worked as a double bass player for a long time' Michael Cretu (Romania)

'I liked the idea of writing a piece of music in a pre-existing form. The ability to write something for voice meant it gave me the opportunity to re-visit a setting of Rilke’s Duino Elegy which I had previously written for baritone and orchestra' Robert Hugill (UK)

'It is not always easy for composers to find opportunities for their music to be heard. Invitation to Composers provides that opportunity and for them to be compared to other international musicians and their work with other styles. I hope the London Schubert Players will keep on spreading music throughout the world' Uberto Pieroni (Italy)

‘Having a particular line-up to write for is a major stimulus in itself. If it’s an unusual line-up, without an existing body of work, then that opens up a new vista.’ Peter Nickol (UK)

‘I was attracted by the Invitation to Composers project because I found the Enescu Chamber Symphony model really interesting in terms of timbre and texture combination possibilities.’ Martin Loridan (France)

‘I consider myself to be a radical and experimental composer. However, on seeing this project’s specification of “no experimental music”, I thought this was an opportunity for me to fulfill an old wish of mine: to bring Bartok’s folk music collections – which make the music anthropologists’ and scholars’ delight - into the public light where they still remain unknown to music lovers. The challenge was to use as many unknown collected melodies as possible.’ Ana-Maria Avram (Romania)

‘I find the whole project very interesting and helpful, especially these days when it is very difficult for a composer to promote his/her works. Enescu’s Chamber Symphony is a masterpiece of the genre and for me, it was a challenge to write for such an instrumental combination.’ Aurelian Bacan (Romania)

‘More than anything else, I was attracted by the compositional opportunities given by the wide instrumental scale of Enescu’s Chamber Symphony: almost a chamber orchestra, but whose members are all soloists. In addition to this, the idea of creating epic music stimulated me. Somehow I wanted to pay homage to this great composer and his fabulous music.’ Luca Vanneschi (Italy)

‘The London Schubert Players’ suggestion to composers to get inspiration from a very well known work in the classical music repertoire is very original and an inspiration in itself.’ Salvador Torre (Mexico)

‘It seemed to me that the Invitation to composers contained a genuine quest for beauty in new music. The works were to be judged by future performers themselves and the main purpose was to be the performance, recording and discussing the new works, and not some big prize for the advancement of the recipient’s career.’ Ivan Božičević (Croatia)

‘This particular project stood out from the others because of its reference to the classical music repertoire and of the musical calibre of its models – something that is very rare in these modernistic and “objective” times. The trigger for my contribution was imagining my own work being compared to or put next to a landmark piece.’ Bjørn Bolstad Skjelbred (Norway)

‘Congratulations to those who had the original idea and to those who are contributing to this project! The London Schubert Players are celebrating works that the great music masters never intended should be trivial. Did we think that we knew all about Mendelssohn or Saint-Saëns? Here is an opportunity to meet them at a different party…

By diminishing time we, today’s composers, can meet the old masters through our musical notes forming a chemical bond, a valence electron between the same instrumental combinations as those of the classics. Adina Dumitrescu (Romania)

‘The London Schubert Players project Invitation to Composers is a splendid opportunity, a challenge for composers from all over the world. By having our music analysed and performed by highly professional musicians one has the possibility of obtaining important composition experiences – and that is very valuable for one’s development’ Jonathan Östlund (Sweden)

‘The fact that the score is at least in part judged by performers makes all the difference.’ Nathan Shirley (US)

‘The Invitation to Composers project is practical, sensible and wonderful. The London Schubert Players are doing a great service for audiences everywhere. They took on this difficult and time-consuming project with an enthusiasm and dedication that merits congratulations and support.’ Rodney Waschka II (US)

‘Through this link with important compositions of the past, contemporary musicians can identify with the West’s extraordinary musical tradition.’ Roberto Brisotto (Italy)

‘I am very grateful to the London Schubert Players for providing the impetus for my piece. They have given rise to an intriguingly international selection of new works.’ Drew Wilson (UK)

‘The importance of the project lies in its great potential for composers, musicians and audiences from different countries to meet each other.’ Sviatlana Rynkova (Belarus)