The International Rostrum of Composers (IRC), organized by the International Music Council, is an international forum of representatives of broadcasting organizations who come together for the purpose of exchanging and broadcasting contemporary music.

Currently, over 30 national radio networks participate in the Rostrum presenting some 60 works composed within the five years preceding the Rostrum. After the listening sessions, the assembly of delegates selects and recommends the most important works in two categories: general and “young composers”. These and other works will be presented in concerts and broadcast after the Rostrum by the participating and other interested radio stations.

Moreover, all works presented at the IRC are made available by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) to its wide network of Members and Associate via its Music Exchange programme. These dissemination schemes ensure excellent international coverage for the composers.

Since the foundation of the IRC in 1955, some 400 composers have been promoted and their works broadcast thousands of times within the network of participating radios. After 69 editions, the IRC continues today to be the most important platform for the promotion of contemporary music via radio broadcast with some 800 broadcast of the selected works in the last season. Moreover, the IRC is an invaluable occasion to meet colleagues from all over the world and share about contemporary music.

Besides the high number of broadcast, selected composers in the two categories are offered some additional opportunities. For the General Category, IMC and NorrlandsOperan co-commission an orchestral work  while for the Under-30 category, thanks to the contribution of the Portuguese Radio Antena2, the selected composer benefits from a bursary.

In addition, thanks to a partnership with the prestigious publishing firm Universal Edition, selected composers in both categories are offered with free access for one year to the UE SCODO publishing service while all reccommended composers can benefit of special conditions.

From 2015 to 2018 the IRC was part of a broader project called Rostrum+ which was co-funded by the Creative Europe Programme of the European Union.