WAGNER COLLEGE YOUNG MUSICIANS

PERFORMANCE COMPETITION 2008 

The Wagner College Young Musicians Performance Competition will be held in March and May 2008. The Competition Preliminaries will take place on Saturday, March 15, 2008 at Campus Hall, Wagner College. The Competition Finals will be held at Campus Hall, Wagner College, on Saturday, May 17, 2008, 7:00 p.m.

Deadline for receiving entry is January 18

Applicants will be notified by mail of the time of their competition performance. To a limited extent and with sufficient reason, requests for an alternate time may be considered, but a change will not be permitted after February 15.

Eligibility

The Competition is open to all students in first through twelfth grades. Competition will be among students within in two different age groups:

a. Pre-high School (Level 1)

b. High School (Level 2)

Your music teacher must certify that you are able to perform at the appropriate level for your age.

Selections must have the approval of the student’s teacher, as well as the approval of the Competition. Editions to be used for performance may not he simplified or abridged versions.

For further information and past winners and see the web-site at www.wagner.edu/ymc
Categories

The Competition will be limited to solo performance of classical music in the following categories: bowed strings, plucked strings, woodwind, brass, keyboard, voice.

Competition Judges

The panel of judges will be formed of outstanding musicians from the New York metropolitan area who are distinguished as both teachers and performers.

Application Procedure

Applicants should return their applications by e-mail. Copy the Application Form to Microsoft Word, fill it out and then return it as an attachment to the Director, rcross@wagner.edu

Applications must be returned no later than January 18, 2008. Applications must be complete in every detail.

A non-refundable entry fee of $37.50 must accompany the application. Applications by e-mail may fill out the credit card information. If sending the application fee by mail, checks should be payable to payable to “Wagner Young Musicians Competition” and must include the participant’s name in the note area of the check. Applications submitted without the fee will be returned.

At the Competition Preliminaries, which will take place all day on March 15, 2008, contestants will provide judges with a copy of their performance piece(s). One copy is sufficient. Send no music with the application. Dress for the Competition Preliminaries may be informal. The contestant may not have anyone else in the room with the judges.

At the Competition Finals, which will take place on May 17, 7:00 p.m., the First Prize Winners in both Level I and Level II will perform the same pieces. The Competition Finals are open to the public, and contestants should dress accordingly in concert attire.

Competition Procedure

All material must be chosen from standard solo literature or approved substitute compositions. Works performed at a previous Competition may not be repeated. Length of performance will be limited to nine minutes playing time. More than one composition may be performed, but the total time may not exceed nine minutes. A minimum of five minutes for Group II contestants and three and one-half minutes for Group I contestants is required.
Accompanists

All music written with an accompaniment must be performed with its accompaniment.

Performers must provide their own accompanist. The Competition does not pay accompanists fees, including Grand Prize Winners. This must be worked out between you and whomever is your accompanist.
If you do not have your own accompanist, you may try contacting the following:
For voice: Alla Bell, 718.375.0037
For Bowed Strings and Woodwind: Esther Hwang, 347.596.6330 (or Rita Hamilton, 718.351.5982)

The applicant will be responsible for payment at the accompanist’s normal hourly rate. PLEASE BE SURE TO CONTACT THE ACCOMPANIST BEFORE YOU SUBMIT YOUR APPLICATION. You should not assume that an accompanist is available without making the appropriate arrangements for rehearsal time, etc. The accompanist’s name must be included on the Application Form.

Prizes

First, Second, Third Place and Honorable Mention may be offered in each category of performance for each age group (Pre-High School and High School). There is no monetary award attached to these prizes. Only one First Place Award will be offered in each category and age group. The awards and prizes are determined solely by the judges. Their determination is to be honored completely, and is therefore final, and subject to no appeal.

The competition reserves the right to withhold a prize at any level should there not be a performance at sufficient level.

Before leaving, each participant will receive a written evaluation from the judges, a Certificate, and a CD recording of his/her performance. Contestants should not leave until they have received their written evaluations, Certificate of Participation and performance CD.

Competition Finals and Awards Ceremony

In the Competition Finals the First Place winners in Level I and Level II age group now compete for Grand Prize. There are (or may be) two Grand Prizes, one Grand Prize being awarded to the winner in each age group. Each Grand Prize winner is presented in a solo recital at Wagner College the following spring before receiving the actual Grand Prize and the $500 award. The candidate must perform the same music as at the Preliminaries.

The Competition Finals will be held at the Music Performance Center, Wagner College, Saturday, May 17, 7:00 p.m. For further information, please e-mail the Competition Director at rcross@wagner.edu.

How to Enter the Competition 

Return applications by e-mail to the director at rcross@wagner.edu

Go to the web-page called Performance Entry Form. Highlight the Entry From. Copy (Control + C) and paste (Control + V) the application onto a blank page in MS Word.  Save it on your computer. Fill out all of the information on the application. Then double check all information, e-mail addresses, composers names and titles of pieces. (Be sure to "save.")  You can then return the completed application to the Director as an attachment in Microsoft Word. You will thus have a record of what you sent.

If you have not received an acknowledgement of your entry in 10 days, please contact the Director.

Dr. Ronald Cross, Director
rcross@wagner.edu
(718-390-3202) 

Young Musicians Competition
Wagner College
Music Dept.
Campus Hall, Rm. 108
One Campus Rd.
Staten Island, NY 10301