Description and Purpose of Event

This piano competition distinguishes outstanding performances of solo classical repertoire by students in their junior or senior year of high school and provides the winner with a monetary award and an opportunity to perform for the Houston Music Teachers Association.

Eligibility

High school junior or senior

Repertoire Requirement

One solo piano work from each of the three categories:

1. Any Bach Prelude & Fugue from the WTC, or comparably challenging work by Bach.

2. Any Haydn, Mozart or Beethoven sonata movement, complete set of variations, or other major work.

3. Any substantial work from the Romantic, 20th Century or 21st Century

Time Limitations: none

Registration Deadline and Info

April 7, 2024

To register your students, use the HMTA online application (found here).

Event Fees

$40 per student

Please make your online payment via the HMTA payment page.

Event Requirements and/or Rules

1. No first-place winner may re-enter.

2. All music must be memorized. Repeats are optional.

3. An original score without identifying marks, with measures numbered, must be provided for the judge. Photocopies that meet the requirements of Standing Rule #10 must be submitted to the Chair for approval prior to the event.

4. Students are allowed a short “warm-up” before beginning their program.

5. To be eligible for awards, participant must be studying with an HMTA member

6. If a student has been taught less than 6 months by the entering teacher, and the previous teacher is also a member, the previous teacher’s signature must follow the entering teacher’s name on the application.

7. Winners will be declared if, in the opinion of the judge, the performance merits the award. The judge’s decision cannot be refuted.

Teacher Responsibility: See standing Rules #1 and #6.

Dress Code

Formal Attire

Results and Awards

Results: Results will be sent by email to all performers and their teachers immediately following the event. Winners will be posted on the HMTA website

Awards: 1st place: $800, 2nd place: $600, 3rd place: $400.

All performers will receive a critique and a certificate of participation.

Performance: The 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners will perform at the May HMTA meeting.

Special Circumstances

In case of an ongoing pandemic: If there are strong social distancing orders connected to the coronavirus pandemic, the applicants will compete through the submission of a recorded video performance. The membership will be informed about this in a timely manner.

The date of the competition will serve as the deadline to submit the recording. The rest of the event rules and requirements will remain the same.

The recording should be of reasonable audio and video quality. It should display the profile of the performer, with the hands and the pedals being visible. Please record horizontally and from the right of the piano. Please have each piece as a separate file. Prelude and fugue should be done in one uninterrupted recording.

You may submit the recordings as a YouTube video (by sharing the link), through Dropbox, or a similar file sharing format.