APPLICATION DEADLINE: November 15th
LATE DEADLINE: November 19th
**Now open for violin and cello**
The competition will be held at Mercer Island Presbyterian Church 3605 84th Ave. SE, Mercer Island, WA 98040 on December 5th, 2015.
The Festival Artist Concert will be held at Frye Art Museum on December 4th, 2015 at 7:30 p.m.
The Winners’ Concert will be December 6th at 1:30 p.m. at Mercer Island Presbyterian Church.
The competition will last all day. Leave adequate time to arrive well before your assigned performance time. No changes or special scheduling accommodations will be possible.
You may observe other contestants as you wish, but please be courteous and only enter or leave a room between performances.
ELIGIBLE PERFORMERS: Residents of the U.S. and all other countries. Contestants must compete in their own age group. Contestants from Concerto group or one of the Chamber Music groups may also participate in a solo group. Performers above age 18 and chamber music group are not required to be currently studying with a teacher. Categories are listed below:
***Please note the new category divisions***
Fees include two adult tickets and one performer ticket to the Festival Artist Concert. If more than one student from the same family is competing, the second student’s fee will be reduced $15.00 (unless you prefer to have additional tickets to the concert). Please select this option on your application form, as it cannot be changed once the form is submitted.
Solo Piano:
Group A – up to 5 years – $55 Group B – up to 7 years (up to 4 minutes) – Fee $60 Group C – 8-10 years (up to 5 minutes) – Fee $65 Group D – 11-12 years (up to 7 minutes) – Fee $70 Group E – 13-15 years (up to 7 minutes) – Fee $75 Group F – 16-18 years (up to 10 minutes) – Fee $80 Group G – 19-26 years (up to 13 minutes) – Fee $85 Group H – 27 years and older (up to 13 minutes) Fee $85
Ensemble:
Group I – Concerto, piano (pre-college students up to age 18) – Fee $80 Group J – Concerto, violin or cello (pre-college students up to age 18)- Fee $80 Group K – Chamber Music (all ages) – Fees $80 per member
Solo Violin:
Group L – Age 9-12 (up to 7 minutes) – Fee $65 Group M – Age 13-15 (up to 7 minutes) – Fee $75 Group N – Age 16-18 (up to 10 minutes) – Fee $80 Group O – Age 19-26 (up to 13 minutes) – Fee $85 Group P – Age 27 and up (up to 13 minutes) – Fee $85
Solo Cello:
Group Q – Age 9-12 (up to 7 minutes) – Fee $65 Group R – Age 13-15 (up to 7 minutes) – Fee $75 Group S – Age 16-18 (up to 10 minutes) – Fee $80 Group T – Age 19-26 (up to 13 minutes) – Fee $85 Group U – Age 27 and up (up to 13 minutes) – Fee $85
PRIZES: First place winners will receive a trophy, second place and third place will receive a medal, and honorable mentions will receive a certificate. Two first prize pianists will be selected to receive one of two Carol and Brian Gregory Scholarships. One first prize violinist and one first prize cellist will be selected to receive a Mercer Island Concert Series Scholarship. The winners of the four $250 scholarships will be announced at the Winter Nights concert on February 14th, 2016.
If there are fewer than three competitors registered for a category, the judge may elect not to award a prize. In any category, the judges have the right to withhold any prize or award additional prizes. All judging decisions are final and may not be contested. If there are a high number of entrants in a given category, the competition coordinators may choose to divide the category into smaller groups that will be judged individually.
PRIZE PERFORMANCES: Winners Concert at Mercer Island Presbyterian Church: first and second place winners from every category will perform. Winter Nights Benaroya Pre-Concert (February 14, 2016): performers will be selected from the first prize winners by members of the RCMFS Artistic Advisory Board at the December 6th Winners Concert.
King FM Northwest Focus: performers will be selected by members of the RCMFS Artistic Advisory Board from among the first prize winners at the December 6th Winners Concert. Benefit events during the 2015-2016 season: selected first prize winners.
Winners with pieces requiring two pianos are not eligible for performances at Benaroya and King FM, but concerto performers will receive a recommendation letter for Seattle Symphony Young Artists Auditions.
Prizes and adjudications sheets will be available at the registration desk shortly after completion of judging for each category. All prizes and adjudication sheets must be picked up at the competition; no materials will be mailed to participants.
*Please note that there are admission fees for audience members, including teachers and parents, at the December 6th winners concert and the Benaroya Hall Pre-Concert. Ticket price TBA and tickets will be available at the door.
REPERTOIRE: All music will be performed by memory, except chamber works. All selections will be works by Russian or Soviet composers in their original form. Some transcriptions are allowed, but must be approved by RCMFS prior to submission of entry form (contact Chelsea Bloomberg – cbloomberg@russianchambermusic.org). Pieces must not be edited (shortened) for any reason without prior approval of RCMFS. String participants may choose accompanied or unaccompanied pieces, and must provide their own accompanist.
No warm-up instruments will be available on the day of the competition.
Please time your selection(s) carefully – this will determine how much time you are assigned on the schedule.
Teachers and/or students are responsible for presenting the judge with an original music score (no photocopies) with measures marked in the margin. (Competitors who forget their music or only have a photocopied version may play if they wish, but will not receive a judge’s evaluation or be eligible for any prize.)
No changes will be possible in the program once the application is received.
COMPETITION ETIQUETTE: Dress Code: Please dress professionally – no athletic shoes, cargo pants, or jeans.
Hand-held video cameras are permitted; no tripods, please. No flash photography.
Chamber performers, please bring your music stands.
SUBMITTING YOUR APPLICATION: Application forms should be filled out and submitted online and payment made via PayPal using the “donate” button on the RCMFS homepage at www.russianchambermusic.org. Chamber groups may pay the entirety of the entry fee from one group member’s application or divide the entry equally between all members and pay individual portions with each member’s application form. Do not mail entries!
Teachers and performers will be notified by e-mail of entrant’s playing time and contestant number no later than one week before the competition.
Please submit applications online as early as possible after September 15. Applications will only be accepted between September 15th and November 15th. Late entries will be accepted until November 19th, with an additional $30 fee. The application is available online at www.russianchambermusic.org.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR CLOSE ATTENTION TO THESE RULES. IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS OR NEED MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT THE PROJECT COORDINATOR, CHELSEA BLOOMBERG. 425-344-1342 or cbloomberg@russianchambermusic.org