(Updated Fall 2015)
Sonatina-Sonata Competition Guidelines
Treasure Valley Music Teachers Association (TVMTA)
Set Guidelines (no voting necessary):
I. Purpose
A. To provide students with the opportunity to perform before a judge
B. To provide students with a positive, professional critique of his / her performance
C. To provide students with a healthy atmosphere for competition
II. Overview:
A. Eligible Students:
1. Students of members of TVMTA in good standing
2. Students of non-TVMTA members who pay non-member fee
3. Students who are in high school or younger
4. Students will be entered solely by the teacher from whom they take lessons; teachers may not enter students of other teachers under their own name.
B. Fees
Members: Levels 1 – 8, $19 / student
Members: Levels 9 – 15, $22 / student
Non-members: Levels 1 – 8, $24 / student
Non-members: Levels 9 – 15, $31 / student
(Non-member teachers are also charged a $15 non-member fee)
C. Music
1. Repertoire is announced each year on a repertoire list, found on the TVMTA website
2. All music must be original and measures must be numbered.
3. Music printed from the public domain (ex: IMSLP) or from a sheet music CD is acceptable if properly documented at the top of the first page.
D. Repeats and Ornamentation
Instructions for repeats are given on each year’s current repertoire list. Ornamentation or additional embellishments are acceptable on repeats. Judges will follow these guidelines.
E. Teacher Volunteering
1. All teachers who enter students in the competition will volunteer for at least a half-day on the day of the competition or through assigned committees.
2. Preferences for volunteering duties / times will be noted in the on-line registration process. Preferences are given on a first-come, first-served basis.
3. Teachers who are unavailable on the day of the event will provide an adult substitute to fill in their place.
F. Results
Results are posted within an hour of the preliminary round for each group and can be found on the bulletin boards on the first floor of the Morrison Center. They will also be available on the TVMTA website. Any additional means of posting results will be communicated to the participating teachers.
III. Competition
A. The competition is divided into 15 solo levels of graded difficulty, with each level represented by one sonatina or sonata movement selected from various composers, to be performed by memory.
B. Students may enter just one level / event. Levels with large registrations are divided into sublevels, each group judged individually. Adjudicators work as objectively as possible without information of the students’ teachers, ages, grades, etc. Students present their original music to the judge, so they are judged by the edition from which they learned.
C. Students are assigned individual performance times for the preliminary round, each student performing for one adjudicator in a private studio without audience. Parents, families, teachers, etc. remain outside the studio to insure objectivity in the preliminary round. Door monitors are available to help a student with a pedal extender or footstool. All students receive a participation ribbon following their preliminary performance.
D. Two students from each group are chosen to perform in a 4:30p, 6:00p, or 7:30p Honors Recital. The Honors Recitals are the final round of the competition and are open to the public. Three judges sit in each recital and select first and second place winners for each level based on live performances; the judges’ votes are then tallied to declare the winners. First place winners receive a trophy and second place winners receive a rosette in a short awards ceremony following each recital.
E. During the preliminary round, up to three additional students from each group may be chosen to receive Honorable Mention awards as well. Honorable Mentions are awarded a rosette ribbon at the Honors Recitals but do not perform. Choosing students to perform at the Honors Recital is at the discretion of the judges and judges are given the option of not declaring a winner.
Sonatina-Sonata Competition Guidelines
Treasure Valley Music Teachers Association (TVMTA)
Set Guidelines (no voting necessary):
I. Purpose
A. To provide students with the opportunity to perform before a judge
B. To provide students with a positive, professional critique of his / her performance
C. To provide students with a healthy atmosphere for competition
II. Overview:
A. Eligible Students:
1. Students of members of TVMTA in good standing
2. Students of non-TVMTA members who pay non-member fee
3. Students who are in high school or younger
4. Students will be entered solely by the teacher from whom they take lessons; teachers may not enter students of other teachers under their own name.
B. Fees
Members: Levels 1 – 8, $19 / student
Members: Levels 9 – 15, $22 / student
Non-members: Levels 1 – 8, $24 / student
Non-members: Levels 9 – 15, $31 / student
(Non-member teachers are also charged a $15 non-member fee)
C. Music
1. Repertoire is announced each year on a repertoire list, found on the TVMTA website
2. All music must be original and measures must be numbered.
3. Music printed from the public domain (ex: IMSLP) or from a sheet music CD is acceptable if properly documented at the top of the first page.
D. Repeats and Ornamentation
Instructions for repeats are given on each year’s current repertoire list. Ornamentation or additional embellishments are acceptable on repeats. Judges will follow these guidelines.
E. Teacher Volunteering
1. All teachers who enter students in the competition will volunteer for at least a half-day on the day of the competition or through assigned committees.
2. Preferences for volunteering duties / times will be noted in the on-line registration process. Preferences are given on a first-come, first-served basis.
3. Teachers who are unavailable on the day of the event will provide an adult substitute to fill in their place.
F. Results
Results are posted within an hour of the preliminary round for each group and can be found on the bulletin boards on the first floor of the Morrison Center. They will also be available on the TVMTA website. Any additional means of posting results will be communicated to the participating teachers.
III. Competition
A. The competition is divided into 15 solo levels of graded difficulty, with each level represented by one sonatina or sonata movement selected from various composers, to be performed by memory.
B. Students may enter just one level / event. Levels with large registrations are divided into sublevels, each group judged individually. Adjudicators work as objectively as possible without information of the students’ teachers, ages, grades, etc. Students present their original music to the judge, so they are judged by the edition from which they learned.
C. Students are assigned individual performance times for the preliminary round, each student performing for one adjudicator in a private studio without audience. Parents, families, teachers, etc. remain outside the studio to insure objectivity in the preliminary round. Door monitors are available to help a student with a pedal extender or footstool. All students receive a participation ribbon following their preliminary performance.
D. Two students from each group are chosen to perform in a 4:30p, 6:00p, or 7:30p Honors Recital. The Honors Recitals are the final round of the competition and are open to the public. Three judges sit in each recital and select first and second place winners for each level based on live performances; the judges’ votes are then tallied to declare the winners. First place winners receive a trophy and second place winners receive a rosette in a short awards ceremony following each recital.
E. During the preliminary round, up to three additional students from each group may be chosen to receive Honorable Mention awards as well. Honorable Mentions are awarded a rosette ribbon at the Honors Recitals but do not perform. Choosing students to perform at the Honors Recital is at the discretion of the judges and judges are given the option of not declaring a winner.
