🦋 The Butterfly’s Dream: Music Composition Challenge

Rebeca Valverde -

This month, Flat invites you to step into a dream—and ask a timeless question:

What is real, and what is illusion?

Inspired by the ancient parable of Zhuangzi’s dream, this challenge explores the mysterious boundary between waking and dreaming, truth and perception, human and butterfly. Zhuangzi once dreamt he was a butterfly, fluttering with joy, unaware of being Zhuangzi. Upon waking, he wondered:

"Am I Zhuangzi who dreamt of being a butterfly, or a butterfly now dreaming I am Zhuangzi?"

Through music, we invite you to wander between these two states—dream and reality—and express the beauty, confusion, wonder, or fear that comes with not knowing where one ends and the other begins.

🎼 The Challenge

Compose a piece that embodies the spirit of Zhuangzi’s dream and the idea of duality—of floating between two worlds.

You score should represent:

  • The transformation from reality to dream (or dream to reality).
  • The blurred lines between identities and perceptions.
  • A surreal, weightless musical world.

Let your music drift, question, shimmer—and leave us wondering what’s real.

🧾 Instructions

  • New Compositions Only: Create a fresh piece just for this challenge in Flat—no adaptations of existing work.
  • Theme Alignment: Your piece should reflect the core idea of duality, dream vs. reality, or the philosophical question posed by Zhuangzi.
  • Length: Keep your score between 1–4 minutes.
  • Collaborations are allowed this time (max. 3 composers).

🧩 Judging Criteria

Your piece will be evaluated based on:

  • Concept & Symbolism (30 pts): How clearly your music reflect the dream vs. reality theme.
  • Creativity & Technique (25 pts): Originality in composition, instrumentation, and approach.
  • Emotional & Narrative Flow (20 pts): How well your music guide the listener through this dual journey.
  • Philosophical Depth (15 pts): If your piece evoke introspection, contradiction, or mystery.
  • Founders’ Enjoyment (10 pts).

🏆 Prize

🥇 First Place

  • A 1-year Premium subscription to Flat.io
  • A challenge winner badge to display on your profile

⏳ Deadline

Submit your score > here, by July 31, 2025 at 23:59 GMT-5.
Late entries will remain forever in the dream realm... and won't be judged.