1. Students
  2. Aria/Concerto Competition

Aria/Concerto Competition

Aria/Concerto Competition Rules

  1. The Competition is open to any UConn junior, senior, or graduate student in any music degree program who is currently registered for applied study (MUSI 1221, 1222, 3222, 5323) during the Fall Semester, when the Competition takes place.
  2. Any person who has won the competition in the previous academic year is ineligible.
  3. Submit your entry form. The signatures of the entrant, applied instructor, and conductor of the relevant ensemble (Symphony Orchestra or Wind Ensemble) are required on the entry form. Please provide an instrumentation list and either a full score or piano score to the ensemble conductors before they sign off. Please also locate and identify the source of orchestral/wind ensemble parts for your selections prior to submitting your entry form. Submissions will begin on Monday, October 7th, 2024 at 9:00 am and will close at 4:30 pm on Friday, October 18th, 2024. Entries received after the deadline will not be eligible for one of the eighteen (18) audition time slots available. Time slots will be assigned by the Music Office and communicated to all applicants. It is your responsibility to communicate your audition time slot with your accompanist. 
  4. Contestants’ selected works:

Vocalist contestants will prepare and perform at the audition and the concert a selection or selections that are no more than fifteen minutes in total length.

Instrumentalist contestants will prepare and perform at the audition and the concert one selection that is at least ten minutes in length and not longer than fifteen minutes.

While the judges will make an effort to strike a balance between vocalists and instrumentalists as well as graduates and undergraduates, quality will be the main consideration for determining the winner and/or winners. A maximum of three winners for the entire competition will be selected.

  1. The maximum audition time in the Competition is eight minutes exactly. Entrants should select for the audition an excerpt from the entire work(s) that best represent both their abilities and significant features of the music to be performed. Vocalists should be prepared to perform the entire selection.
  2. Any work for soloists with an orchestral or wind ensemble accompaniment is acceptable for performance. Suitable genres include concert/operatic arias, songs, and concerti. Budget, time constraints, and ensemble technical demands may render some works unsuitable. Professor McShee and Dr. Kim will be the sole judges of suitability. Potential entrants are advised to consult with them before committing to a work.
  3. The music must be memorized for the performance, and it is recommended, but not essential, that it be memorized for the competition as well. The memorization requirement can be waived only if the work is relatively new and the student has approval from both his/her studio teacher and the conductor (refer to item #6 regarding suitability).
  4. Any accepted contestant who is unable to attend the Competition on November 1st, 2024 or the Concert on February 20th, 2025 (Wind Ensemble) or March 6th, 2025 (Symphony Orchestra) will be disqualified. Arranging an alternative audition day and time or an alternative performance time is not possible.
  5. Students must provide three copies of their musical selections for the Competition jury.
  6. The competition will be open to students and faculty. Designated seating will be available in von der Mehden Recital Hall. Contestants should be prepared for quiet circulation in and out of the hall during the Competition.
  7. The results of the Competition will be announced by the Music Department Office soon after the competition.