Bernard/Ebb Songwriting Awards

Bernard/Ebb Songwriting Awards

Performance and Awards: Friday, April 16, 2027
Bethesda Theater, 7719 Wisconsin Avenue, Bethesda, MD

Named in honor of her uncle, Fred Ebb, the Bernard/Ebb Songwriting Awards was created by local arts philanthropist Cathy Bernard to support regional songwriters. Ebb was a Tony, Grammy, Emmy, Olivier and Kennedy Center Honors Lifetime Achievement Award-winning recipient. Up to $17,000 will be awarded to the prize-winning artists. The submission deadline is January 11, 2027.

Application

Community activist and avid arts supporter and patron Cathy Bernard created the Bernard/Ebb Songwriting Awards to support regional songwriters from Maryland, Washington, D.C. and Virginia.

Judges will select five to eight finalists for the Bernard/Ebb Songwriting Awards and these finalists will perform on Friday, April 16, 2027 at the Bethesda Theater in Bethesda, MD.  A live audience will hear two songs from each of the finalists while three judges will comment and select the final winners.  The top prize winners will be announced at the end of the performances.

The top prize winner will receive $10,000 plus performance opportunities in Bethesda, MD and throughout the region.

Awards

$10,000 First Place
$2,500 Second Place
$1,000 Awarded to Each Performer


Young Songwriter* Awards
$2,500 First Place
$500 Awarded to Each Performer

*Young Songwriter whose birthday is after January 11, 2009 may be awarded this prize.

The Jurors will select up to eight finalists who will be invited to perform their original songs in concert at the Bethesda Theater in Bethesda, MD.

Eligibility

The Bethesda Arts & Entertainment District invites eligible musicians to enter the Bernard/Ebb Songwriting Awards. Artists must be permanent, full-time residents of Maryland, Virginia or Washington, D.C.

All genres of music including Broadway/Musical Theatre, Adult Contemporary, Country/Bluegrass, Folk/Acoustic, Gospel/Inspirational, Pop, R&B/Hip Hop/Urban, Rock/Alternative, Vocal Jazz/Blues and an Open Category will be eligible.

Important Dates

Deadline for application:
January 11, 2027

Questions?

Contact Jason Liu at jliu@bethesda.org.

Online Application

Apply Online 

Create an account and user login. Upload images and pay $30 entry fee via major credit card.

Concert & Awards

The finalists will perform their original songs live on Friday, April 16, 2027 at the Bethesda Theater in downtown Bethesda, MD.

Date: Friday, April 16, 2027
Time: TBD
Address: 7719 Wisconsin Avenue

Cathy Bernard & Fred Ebb

Founder, Cathy Bernard

Cathy Bernard is the President of HCM Corporation, a real estate management and investment firm. She serves on the Board of Directors at Signature Theatre, Round House Theatre, Imagination Stage and Strathmore.  She is a Past President of the Bethesda Arts & Entertainment District Board of Directors.  Bernard has been named to the Top 100 Women in Maryland in 2006, 2008 and 2010.  She was also named to the Top 25 Women in Business in Montgomery County in 2008, and received the County Executive Volunteer Award in 2004. 

The Bernard Family Foundation provides grants to organizations in the arts, education and cancer advocacy programs.  Bernard is the niece of Fred Ebb and lives in Bethesda, MD with her two children.

Fred Ebb

Fred Ebb’s career in songwriting began in 1953 when he was asked by Columbia Records to write a song for Judy Garland.  Flora, The Red Menace was the first musical Fred Ebb and partner John Kander wrote together, and it was Liza Minnelli’s Broadway debut.

In 1966, their collaboration Cabaret, opened and received seven Tony Awards including Best Musical and Best Score. In 1972, the songwriting team wrote a number of songs for Minnelli’s television special Liza With a Z, which received an Emmy Award for Outstanding Single Program – Variety or Popular Music. In 1975, the two wrote the Broadway musical Chicago, directed by Bob Fosse and starring Gwen Verdon, Chita Rivera and Jerry Orbach.  Their other musicals include The Happy Time, Zorba, The Act, Woman of the Year, Kiss of the Spider Woman, among others.  Ebb has also worked with Shirley MacLaine, Lauren Bacall and Mikhail Baryshnikov. 

Ebb was a Tony, Grammy, Emmy, Olivier and Kennedy Center Honors Lifetime Achievement Award winning recipient. He passed away in September 2004.

2026 Winners

Integriti Reeves, Grand Prize Winner
Nate Stern, Grand Prize, Youth Winner

Pictured to the right are:  Cathy Bernard, founder of the Bernard Ebb Songwriting Award and Integriti Reeves, 2026 Grand Prize winner.

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