See all the winners here

Seven young composers all under the age of 25 have been chosen from 180 applications to Classic FM and the Royal Philharmonic Society to write a new piece of classical music each to celebrate the radio station’s 25th birthday.

The winners are: Alexander Woolf (21) and Alexia Sloane (16) both from Cambridge; Jack Pepper (17) from Epsom; Benjamin Rimmer (23) from Stamford in Lincolnshire; Dani Howard (23), who was born in Hong Kong and now lives in London, Marco Galvani (22) from Prenton on the Wirral and Oliver Muxworthy (23) from Uckfield in East Sussex. With varying ensemble sizes, each composer will be paid for their work, which will be recorded live and broadcast on-air to Classic FM’s 5.4 million listeners across the UK. In addition, some winners will be paired with one of the station’s events, such as its 25th Birthday Celebration with the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra and Classic FM Live at London’s Royal Albert Hall, both in September, where their work will be premiered.

Any person born on or after Classic FM’s first broadcast on 7th September 1992 could apply. The panel was made up of composers Stephen McNeff, Paul Mealor, Errollyn Wallen and Debbie Wiseman

Rosemary Johnson, executive director of the Royal Philharmonic Society, comments: “How exciting it is to give these very young creative people such an interesting challenge and the opportunity to write for such big audiences.They have all demonstrated how up for it they are!”

Sam Jackson, Classic FM’s managing editor comments: “Over 350,000 Classic FM listeners are younger than the station itself – and in this, our 25th birthday year, we’re so excited to be showcasing the music of these seven brilliant composers to our wider audience of 5.4 million people. The Royal Philharmonic Society very much shares Classic FM’s mission of bringing classical music to as many people as possible, and their support of new music is second to none. Together, we’re looking forward to seeing how these young musicians rise to the challenge of composing for Classic FM!”

► About the winners
► About the commissions
► Download the press release

4 May 2017