KC alum Bethan Morgan-Williams is one of three laureates, together with composers Hovik Sardaryan and Kitty Xiao. The Curatorium of the Ernst von Siemens Music Foundation has decided to honor three very different young composers. Each Composer Prize is endowed with €35,000 and additionally includes a digital recording release. The award ceremony will take place on May 23, 2026 at the Prinzregententheater in Munich.
Bethan Morgan-Williams, born in Wales, studied with Diderik Wagenaar at the Royal Conservatoire in The Hague and with Gary Carpenter at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester. She has worked with, among others, the London Symphony Orchestra, Ensemble Musikfabrik, the Birmingham Contemporary Music Group, and the violist Antoine Tamestit. Bethan lives a secluded life in Wales. The contrast between rural tranquility and urban sensory overload is the starting point for her works, which are multi-layered and rhythmically complex, and which always seem to lead the listener through different landscapes.
About the Ernst von Siemens Music Foundation
The foundation was established in 1972 by Ernst von Siemens, grandson of the company founder Werner von Siemens. It began its work at the beginning of 1973 and in the same year the first Ernst von Siemens Music Prize was awarded – to Benjamin Britten. Since then, the foundation has awarded the Ernst von Siemens Music Prize every year to a composer, performer or musicologist who has made outstanding contributions to international musical life. Previous winners include KC alum Michel van der Aa.
Website Bethan Morgan-Williams
Website Ernst von Siemens Music Foundation
Photo: Rui Camilo
