“a catalyzing, crystalizing moment for the Louisiana new music community.”

-B.K. Zervigón

Launched in 2025, Batture Contemporary is an annual new music festival showcasing the diverse array of composers and performers based in Louisiana. The festival includes concerts, workshops, and open rehearsals free and open to the public in venues throughout the city of New Orleans.

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Versipel New Music is delighted to announce the winning composers and works for the 2026 Batture Contemporary Festival:

Byron Asher, Phoenix
Lewis Blakley, Hambre Insaciable
K. Tiser Blankenship, Buzzards
Cory Diane*, New Ways
Keri Devilynn, Hyperspace
Kerem Ergener and David Walters, Machaut’s Puis Qu’en Oubli
Jeremi W. Edwards, Essence of Water
Jinxin Fu*, Impression on Dongba
Tucker Fuller, I Remember
Mara Gibson, Ephemera
Ryan Harrison, Songs for a Girl
Filipe de Matos Rocha,  String Quartet No. 1 in C Neapolitan Major: Djavaniando Meshuggah and Reich
Odaline de la Martinez, Four Afro Cuban Poems
Jeffrey Perry, Variations on an Anthropocene Theme
Elise Poché, Sonata for Solo Violin
Christopher Trapani, Slow Smoke
Ben Robichaux, Portraits for Brass Quintet
Nathan Wheeler, Nusuth
*not pictured

Please join us in congratulating these incredible composers!

Hear the winning compositions in New Orleans during the Festival, Sept. 18-20, 2026. Stay tuned in the coming months as we share venue details!

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Batture Contemporary 2026 is supported in part by:

• a grant from the Louisiana Division of the Arts, Office of Cultural Development, Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism, in cooperation with the Louisiana State Arts Council, as administered by Arts New Orleans. Funding has also been provided by the National Endowment of the Arts.
• a grant from the New Orleans Tourism and Cultural Fund