Prizes, Application, Rules & Required Pieces

The Guitar Foundation of America XXVII International Concert Artist Competition will be held from June 16-21, 2009 in Ithaca, New York.

Eligibility: Open to competitors, regardless of nationality or age, who are at the outset of their careers and who are not represented by major management.

Deadline: Entries with all fees and application materials must be received by the GFA no later than May 1, 2009. No late entries will be considered.

New Information: For those who have participated in past years, please note the implementation of a Competitors Orientation Meeting.   The Competitors Orientation Meeting is required of all competitors registered to compete and will take place on Monday, June 15 at 8:00 pm in Hockett Hall.  This meeting will determine the performance order for the three-day Preliminary Round by means of a Lottery - numerical draw. In order to be eligible for a performance timeslot, you must present your proposed program in writing at the meeting.

$20 Rebate Discount Offer: The 2009 Boston GuitarFest will take place June 11-14, 2009 in nearby Boston, Massachusetts.  For competitors who participate in both competitions, $20 will be refunded by GFA after the registration deadline has passed for both events.  Boston GuitarFest will also offer a discount for participants in both competitions.

Prizes

• 1st Prize:$7500*
• 2nd Prize:$3000*
• 3rd Prize:$1500*
• 4th Prize:$750*

*All prizes subject to mandatory 30% federal tax withholding for foreign prize-winners; US prize-winners will be issued a 1099.

All semi-finalists will receive a $500 travel stipend (foreigners must provide receipts to avoid tax withholding).

Other major prizes will include:

• GFA Sponsored Concert Performance Tour of America.
• CD Recording including all production, manufacturing and distribution costs.
• Inclusion on a Mel Bay Publications, Inc. Guitar Foundation of America Winners DVD
• Generous String Packages for all finalists donated by Savarez.
• $100 Gift Certificates for all finalists donated by GSP
• Kling-On products for all semi-finalists donated by Kling-On
• Scores for all finalists donated by Editions Daminus valued at $250 each
• Gift Certificates for all finalists donated by Clear Note Publications:
  1st $100; 2nd $50; 3rd: $30; 4th: $20

Required Piece:

Astor Piazzolla: "Compadre" from Cinco Piezas

Competition Rules

The competition will be conducted in three stages, all taking place at the location named above.

• A Qualifying Round before a panel of judges.
• A Semi-Final Round involving those selected from round A, who will perform for a panel of judges and the public.
• A Final Round in which Finalists will perform for the judges and the public.

Qualifying Round

The required pieces to be performed by all candidates in the Qualifying Round will be:

• A work that has been especially composed for the competition, hereinafter referred to as the "set piece."
• Piazzolla: "Compadre" from Cinco Piezas
• One free piece not to exceed five minutes.

Semi-Final Round

The required pieces to be performed by all candidates in the Semi-Final Round will be:

• One free piece not to exceed five minutes.
• Piazzolla: "Compadre" from Cinco Piezas
• Judge's choice. This piece, or portion thereof, will be chosen from the candidate's proposed program.

Each candidate will be limited to 15 minutes total playing time in the Semi-Final round.

The Qualifying and Semi-Final Rounds

• Each candidate will perform the pieces in the order given above for each respective round.
• All works are to be played from memory with the exception of the set piece, where memorization is optional.
• Performance order will be determined by numerical draw.
• The judges have the option of stopping the candidate during any of the three pieces.

Final Round

• The Finalists will perform their proposed programs along with the set piece in a public recital.
• The total performance time, including the set piece, must not exceed the length of the set piece plus the 25 minute program.
  (The set piece will range from 5 - 10 minutes in length).
• The Finalists will be judged on the following criteria: musicianship, technique, originality, programming, presentation, and variety in programming.
• The performance order will be determined by random draw.
• The decision of the judges will be final.

All Registrations must be made directly through the GFA. Payment must be made online.

* Competition registration requires active GFA Membership, an additional
$50, or $30 for full-time students.

Application

Applications must be submitted no later than May 1, 2009. No late applications will be accepted.

All applications to the competition should include the following:

• The Application/Convention registration fee of $250.00 (plus applicable membership fees for non-members), payable in US dollars to Guitar Foundation of America. Application fee must be paid online. (Note: No refunds will be given after set piece has been distributed)
• This program submitted must not exceed 25 minutes total performance time. The performance will be timed starting from the time the candidate sits down; the candidate will be stopped should the time limit be exceeded. This program may include, at the candidate's discretion, any of the pieces from the previous rounds.

Competitors will receive essential competition materials only upon receipt of the application fee.  Please contact Artistic Director Martha Masters with any questions.

ONLINE APPLICATION FORM