Student Soloist Competition Guidlines
Student Soloist Competition
2024-2025
I. Conditions of Eligibility
鈥 鈥疉. Applicants must be full-time students enrolled in an undergraduate, graduate (including IARTS PhD program), or certificate music program at 蜜柚视频.
鈥 鈥疊. Applicant must be enrolled for credit in applied study on their instrument/voice with a member of the applied faculty or a graduate assistant assigned to teach private lessons. Applicants are exempt from this provision during the quarter they are student teaching. However, they must have the approval of the appropriate applied teacher.
鈥 鈥疌. Applicants must meet all ensemble requirements as described in the Undergraduate or Graduate Handbook.
鈥 鈥疍. An applicant may enter only one solo work in the competition. Applicants who wish to additionally participate in any multiple soloist work will be permitted to do so. However, a student may only win and perform once per competition.
鈥 鈥疎. Complete a competition entry form online or print and return it to the Student Soloist Competition Committee chair by the deadline printed on the form.
鈥 鈥疐. Any student selected as a winning single soloist may not compete as a single soloist in the following year's competition, regardless of different student status or instrument, but is encouraged to compete as a member of a multiple soloist work entry. Students who win as members of a multiple soloist work may compete again in the next competition, but only as a single soloist.
II. Repertoire
鈥 鈥 A. Performance Duration
The work selected should be between six (6) and twenty-five (25) minutes without cuts, in its final performance version. Any composition outside of that time frame must be approved by the Student Soloist Committee. For the competition finals, there is a time limit of fifteen (15) minutes. To accommodate this time limit, cuts are allowed and encouraged, in conference with studio instructors. Cuts of large tutti sections are especially appropriate. (Duration times submitted on forms should be based upon actual timings of the applicant playing the repertoire stated on the form with accompaniment.)
鈥 B. Repertoire Requirements
1. Competition repertoire must be for an ensemble accompaniment, in its traditional instrumentation.
2. Applicants may enter the competition with any multi-movement work, any one movement concerto or a single movement from a larger work which meets the duration requirements. Multiple soloist works are also acceptable and should be heard by a preliminary jury representative of all divisions. Vocalists may perform more than one work to meet the six-minute minimum duration.
3. Transcriptions which are currently performed professionally and approved by the appropriate division faculty will be permitted.
4. Winners will perform their work without cuts or deletions, including cadenzas appropriate to the repertoire. For the finals, cuts made to accommodate the time limit are allowed and encouraged. Such cuts or deletions must be approved in advance by the division faculty and the ensemble conductor. All cuts and deletions must be indicated clearly on the application, and in scores shared with judges.
5. Selections must be readily available in the School of Music library, or readily available for rent or purchase.
6. As we strive to provide equitable and meaningful opportunities for students at 蜜柚视频, we encourage and welcome works by women, LGBTQ+, BBIPOC, and other underrepresented composers.
6. All competition selections must be approved by the appropriate ensemble conductor prior to submitting the application. Eligibility of each work will be based upon difficulty of the accompanying parts and availability and/or cost of the music and scores required.
III. Audition Requirements
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鈥 鈥 鈥疉. Memorization
Although encouraged, memorization is left to the discretion of the applicant's applied teacher and division.
鈥 鈥 鈥疊. Accompaniment
1. Appropriate piano accompaniment should be used for both the preliminary and final auditions, unless otherwise decided by division.
2. Accompanists must be those assigned by the School of Music collaborative piano coordinator.
3. 鈥疐inalists must supply a link to a digital copy of the score for judges use or supply three hard copies at the time of the competition, with any cuts clearly marked.
IV. Preliminary Auditions
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鈥 鈥 鈥疉. Preliminary auditions for each division should be held at least two (2) weeks before the final competition. Requests to hold the preliminaries less than two weeks before the final competition must be approved by the Student Soloist Committee Chair. Judging will be coordinated and held individually by the faculty from each division. (Brass, Keyboard, Percussion, String, Voice, Woodwind)
鈥 鈥 鈥疊. Each division should forward their most qualified entries to perform in the final auditions, including multi-soloist entries. Each area is limited to sending two student performances to the final audition. If the area faculty unanimously agree, an additional one (1) finalist can be sent to the final audition.
V. Final Auditions
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鈥 鈥 鈥疉. Three (3) qualified musicians not affiliated with 蜜柚视频 will adjudicate the final auditions.
鈥 鈥 鈥疊. The judges will select a maximum number of two (2) winners from the finalists. If the judges unanimously agree, up to an additional two (2) winners can be named, with approval of the ensemble directors. In addition, the judges may select a maximum of two (2) finalists as an honorable mention, which may function as performance alternates (in the case of a winner being unable to perform), at the discretion of the ensemble directors. Judges will select the winners via consensus based on the merit of the performer, not the merit or perceived appeal of the composition performed.
鈥 鈥 鈥疌. Student soloist winners will be expected to perform their work with a large ensemble within a calendar year of the final competition, by discretion of the large ensemble directors. Their work will be conducted by a full time, faculty ensemble director.
鈥 鈥 鈥疍. Any entry will be disqualified at any point in the competition if the Concerto Committee finds that the contestant or applied teacher has not complied with all conditions of the competition.
E. The audience of the final competition will be polled electronically, separately from the judges鈥 deliberations, to select an 鈥淎udience Choice鈥 Award winner.
鈥 鈥 鈥疐. The results of both the preliminary and final auditions will be final. Any grievances should be directed, in writing, to the chairperson of the Student Soloist Competition Committee. (rev. 9/2024)