SummerArts Piano
Competition 2023

The University of Utah SummerArts Piano Festival will be held at Gardner Hall on the University of Utah campus August 10 & 12, 2023.

Thursday: In-person Performance Competition, Evaluations and Young Artist Skills

Saturday: Awards Ceremony at 6:00 PM, we will post the winners and concerto performance assignments on the SummerArts webpage.  All prizes and judging sheets will be mailed to you.

SummerArts Application - Due July 28, 2023*

*Application fee for late entries (after July 28) will be an additional $25 accepted on a space available basis. Please add the late application fee to your order before you check out.

Eligibility: Competitors must be Utah residents or currently attending Utah schools. Teachers of participating students will be required to help during the competition. First-prize winner may compete in the same division again only with new repertoire. Contestants may only enter one level per year. Competitors may not play with a SummerArts orchestra in two consecutive years. Competitors in the Young Artist Division must be full time, currently enrolled University of Utah piano performance majors (Fall 2023). Young Artists must be enrolled full-time in the semester of performance awards. Young Artist competitors must have a current University of Utah GPA of 3.0 or higher.

Competition Rules

  • Age is determined as of August 10, 2023.
  • All competition pieces must be played from memory.
  • The order of performance will be by random drawing.
  • Contestants must compete in the designated order of performance or be disqualified.
  • We strongly encourage all contestants to report to monitor’s table 15 minuets prior to scheduled time.
  • An original, unmarked copy of the music to be performed must be given to the monitor at this time.

Concerto Competition

Concerto performances in the competition will be without accompaniment. For the orchestra performance, pre-college students will be limited to 15 minutes. If the concerto is longer than the allotted time, the teacher with the assistance of the conductor will prepare a cut. Each soloist will be given 10 complimentary tickets for the performance.

Contestants must prepare their entire selections for the competition without cuts. Judges will hear the entire concerto movement.

All concerto competitors must be Utah residents or attending a school in Utah. They must also be currently studying with a faculty member or recent graduate of the University of Utah School of Music. Past winners must wait one year before becoming eligible to perform with the orchestra again.  Past winners can compete in the same division with new repertoire only.

*Contestants wishing to perform a concerto that is not part of the University of Utah School of Music holdings will be responsible for the cost of rental/purchasing the music. For a complete listing visit http://music.utah.edu/community/summer-music/summerarts.php

Solo Competition

Competitor will perform two contrasting solo works from the standard repertoire, one selection must be from either Baroque or Classical.   The length of the program should not exceed 15 minuets for the pre-college divisions, and 20 minuets of Young Artist.  All pieces must be memorized.

Video Teaching Competition

Competitor must submit a YouTube link of a 30-45 minute video of a one-on-one piano private lesson.

Arne Oldberg composition

Visit https://music.utah.edu/community/summer-music/summerarts.php for music to be preformed. Memorization is required.

Competition times will be posted after August 8, 2023 at http://music.utah.edu/community/summer-music/summerarts.php.

AGE DIVISIONS & PRIZES

(In case of a tie, prizes will be shared. *All prizes subject to fundraising)

Young Elementary Division: Ages 10 and under

  • Solo Competition: $100, $75, $50
  • Concerto Competition (entire movement required)**

Elementary Division: Ages 11-12

  • Solo Competition: $125, $100, $75
  • Concerto Competition (entire movement required)**

Junior I Division: Ages 13-14

  • Solo Prizes: $150, $125, $100
  • Concerto Competition (entire movement required)**

Junior II Division: Ages 15 – 16

  • Solo Prizes: $150, $125, $100
  • Concerto Competition (entire movement required)**

Senior Division: Ages 17-18

  • Solo Prizes: $175, $150, $125
  • Concerto Competition (entire movement required)**

Young Artists Division*: College Students
*Young Artist competitors must be enrolled full-time Fall 2023 as Piano Performance Major at the University of Utah to be eligible to compete.

  • Solo Scholarship Prizes-Graduate: $500, $450, $400, $350
  • Solo Scholarship Prizes-Undergraduate: $500, $450, $400, $350
  • Concerto Competition (entire movement required)**
  • Arne Oldberg Scholarship (Young Artist only): Scholarship Prize
  • Teaching Award (Young Artist only): Scholarship Prize

** Concerto Awards: Performance with the Salt Lake Symphony or the American West Symphony or the SummerArts Orchestra in 2023-2024 session in Libby Gardner Concert Hall.

Gift Certificates: Gift certificates may be given for an outstanding performance of a work from each of the following periods: Baroque, Classical, Romantic, Impressionist, and Twentieth Century.

Refund Policy: The fees are non-refundable.