Moores School Symphony Orchestra 2021 Concerto Competition

The 2021 concerto will accept applicants from enrolled MSM students in the following divisions:   
Strings  
Voice  

Announcement of winners - October 16, 2021,  immediately following the Final Round of judging deliberations.  

Prizes will be awarded as follows.  

Final Round:              Grand Prize (2) $1,500  (Presented in addition to the Division Prize) 

                                   Audience Choice Prize $500   

Preliminary Rounds:   Division Prize (4) $750  

    Honorable Mention (2) $250  

Grand Prize winners will also be invited to perform with the Moores School Symphony Orchestra on a concert in the 2021-2022 season.  

 Application Process: 

• Application portal: https://form.jotform.com/201954384818161
  
  
• The application portal will open Monday, August 30 at 9 a.m. and will close on Monday, October 4 at 5 p.m. All application processes and requirements will be listed in the application portal. All steps, including payment, must be completed by application deadline.
    
• There is a non-refundable Concerto Competition fee of $35 for entering the  competition.  The link for payment is available at the application portal. 

Preliminary Round: October 16, 9 a.m.— 6 p.m. in MSM 175/185. Each Division will be judged by an external panel of three (3) distinguished individuals from the appropriate areas (strings and voice). Each set of adjudicators will be tasked with selecting two (2) Division Winners who will advance to the final round (four finalists in all). An Honorable Mention prize may also be awarded at the judges' discretion but will not advance to the final round.  

Final Round: October 16, 7:00 p.m. in Dudley Recital Hall. The final round will be judged by the six (6) Division Judges (three in strings & three in voice) plus one (1) additional adjudicator not affiliated with the MSM, for a total of seven (7) judges. Two (2) Grand Prize Winners (one in each division) will be chosen from the four finalists. An Audience Choice Prize will also be awarded.  

Performance times for the Preliminary Round (morning/afternoon) will be assigned after the application deadline has passed. Following completion of the Preliminary Round, a randomization program will determine the order for the Final Round, and finalists will be notified immediately.  

The final round of competition performances will be recorded professionally by the Moores School of Music and livestreamed from Dudley Recital Hall on Saturday, October 16.  

Competition Rules and Procedures:  

All applicants must be currently enrolled at the Moores School of Music to be eligible to compete.  

Repertoire: All competitors must perform a complete work written for solo string instrument or voice (see vocal rep. requirements below) with orchestra.   

 Vocal repertoire requirements:   

•  Multiple solos/works/arias are acceptable. Total performance time must be 12 minutes (minimum) to 15 minutes (maximum).  
•  Vocal orchestral works/song cycles are also acceptable but may not exceed 20 minutes maximum).  

 All competitors must perform the entire work from memory, with piano accompaniment. Competitors are responsible for engaging their own accompanists and arranging rehearsals with the pianist.  

 Competitors must provide PDF files of their work (preferably the piano reduction) in advance to the MSSO for use by the judges. PDF files are likely available online from IMSLP.   

 In the Preliminary Round, suitable standard cuts are acceptable in orchestral tuttis, but as the Final Round will be live-streamed, accompanists should avoid disrupting the flow of the music unnecessarily.  

If the adjudicators feel that no Division competitor is suitable for advancement to the Final Round, they may choose NOT to award a Division Prize. In this case, no one from that Division will advance.  

Contact Orchestra Management at uhmsso@uh.edu with any questions.