Kennedy Center Friedheim Award

The Kennedy Center Friedheim Award was an annual award given for instrumental music composition by the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. It was established in 1978[1] and ended in 1995. The award was given only to American composers.

The award was established by Eric Friedheim (1910–2002), the publisher of Travel Agent magazine and a patron of the arts, and funded by the Eric Friedheim Foundation and the Kennedy Center Corporate Fund. He endowed the award in honor of his father, the pianist Arthur Friedheim (1859–1932), who had studied with Franz Liszt.[2]

The first prize was US$5,000, the second prize was $2,500 (originally $2,000), the third prize was $1,000, and the fourth prize was $500. There was no fourth prize until 1984, and the third prize was originally $500. The winners were narrowed down from often over 100 entries, to four or five finalists. The works were performed and the awards were given at an awards ceremony, which was held each year at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. The award alternated every other year between orchestral and chamber music.

From 1978 to 1995, 18 Friedheim Awards concerts were performed, drawn from 1,883 submissions, and a total of $158,500 in cash prizes was distributed to 70 American composers.

The awards came to an end following the last ceremony in 1995, when Eric Friedheim decided to withdraw his financial support, choosing to instead donate his remaining financial assets to the Peabody Institute.