Anna Calvi Selects Winner Of The 2012 Shure Songwriting Award, Supported by BMI

The Institute of Contemporary Music Performance is delighted to announce the winner of this year’s Shure Songwriting Award supported by BMI, as chosen by the Mercury Prize and Brit Award nominee Anna Calvi. This innovative scholarship competition for aspiring singer-songwriters saw a record number of applicants compete for a place on the Institute’s prestigious BA in Songwriting degree course, worth £5,750.

Ten finalists were chosen through a combination of public voting and a panel of experts from the Institute’s impressive songwriting faculty. All the finalists and their videos were then presented to Anna Calvi, who has been making a notable impact in the music industry with her self-titled debut album. Anna was so impressed by the high level of the entries that she chose a winner and two runner-ups to also take partial scholarships. The winner of this year’s Shure Songwriting Award goes to Mairead Furlong, taking a full scholarship at the Institute.

Mairead now has a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to professionally develop her talent and skills on this fantastic course. As well as enjoying this great opportunity to learn, Mairead will also benefit from the many opportunities that arise at the Institute to write, collaborate and perform in live London showcase events in front of the Institute’s unparalleled network of key industry professionals.

The highly successful competition is now in its fourth year of issuing places on Institute Songwriting courses. Last year successful songwriting students included Elena Tonra and Igor Haefeli - aka Daughter who are now signed to 4AD records, the home of artists such as Bon Iver, Iron & Wine and The National. 2012 promises to be a big year for Daughter with a busy summer playing various festivals across the UK and Europe.