Competition Overview & Application Process

Applicants to all divisions of the solo competition will find details below. It is the responsibility of each applicant to read and understand all the information contained in this section and abide by the guidelines published herein. To quickly see contents of any topic, click on the topic link listed below.

Dates of interest to all applicants:
     Applications typically open middle to late January
     Midnight March 31: Deadline to apply
     Early May: All applicants notified of selection of semi-finalists and alternates
     Early June: Comments, if selected and paid for, are sent to applicants
     August 9-12, 2024: Competition Hosted by Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp

Competitor Eligibility  |  Festival Awards  |  COVID-19 Protocols |  Competition Process  |  NEW for 2024  |  Recording Guidelines | Application Fees  | Cancellation & Refund Policy | Scholarship Program  |  Competitor Responsibilities  |  Application Process | Problems with Application/Registration  |  Questions

Competitor Eligibility

Artist Eligibility

Participants must not currently be or have formerly been a full-time paid professional in either a performance position or a college teaching position as of August 1 of the Festival year. There is no age limitation, and participants may be of any gender, race, or nationality. Prospective applicants may email us if there are any concerns about eligibility.

Student Eligibility

IMPORTANT NOTE FOR STUDENT DIVISIONS FOR THE 2025 FESTIVAL: There is an age limit for applicants in the student divisions. Participants must not have reached their 20th birthday prior to September 1 of the Festival year. For the 2025 Festival, a participant who will be 20 years old or older on September 1, 2025, is not eligible to apply in either student division. To put it another way, if you answer the question “How old will I be on September 1, 2025?” with the answer “20,” you are not eligible to apply in either student division. There are no exceptions. Applicants in either student division will also need to supply proof of age with their application. Acceptable proof includes a scanned copy of a birth certificate, passport photo page, driver's license, or officially issued government ID that includes date of birth. Allowed file formats are .jpg, .gif, and .png. File size for proof of age is limited to 500KB. No exceptions.

Participants may be of any gender, race, or nationality.

Previous first place (gold medal) winners of the Student Level Competition must enter the Artist Level should they compete in ensuing years.

Applicants in Multiple Divisions

Applicants may apply in multiple divisions in the following cases. In any of the cases presented, application fees shall be refunded only in circumstances outlined in the Cancellation and Refund Policy.

This applies to applicants who:

• Are within student age eligibility who wish to apply in both student and artist divisions, playing the same instrument
• Choose to apply in the two artist divisions
• Are within student age eligibility who wish to apply in both student divisions

IN ALL CASES, if the applicants are successful in becoming a semi-finalist in both divisions entered, they must choose one division in which to compete. Logistics at Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp make it difficult to accommodate transporting applicants competing in both student and artist divisions. In addition, the Board wishes to encourage as many competitors as possible.

Festival Awards

The Festival Awards page lists the competition cash prizes (all listed in US Dollars) are underwritten by foundations, companies, and friends who believe in the values of the Festival. 

COVID-19 Protocols

For the 2023 Falcone Festival, our host, Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp, required all participants (competitors, judges, volunteers) to take a brief health quiz and bring the results with them to Blue Lake. No actual COVID test was required. We do not know what the conditions might be for the 2024 Festival, but we wanted potential applicants to be aware that some requirement might be in place. Any such requirement involves the safety of not only Festival participants and personnel, but all campers, counselors, and faculty normally in residence during the session in which Blue Lake hosts the Falcone Festival.

Competition Process

Preliminary Round

The Preliminary Round deadline is midnight, March 31. The midnight deadline is determined by the applicant’s time zone. The registration program we use will read the time the application was submitted from the server used to submit the application and accept the application as valid or not. Thus, someone in Europe will have to submit their application and materials sooner than someone on the West Coast of the United States.

Online registration is addressed under the Application Process section below. You must be prepared to pay your fees and upload audio/video recording and proof of age (for student divisions) during this application process. Only credit cards (MasterCard and Visa) will be accepted (unless special accommodation is made prior to March 29, 2023).

The Falcone Festival Competition for 2024 includes updated integrity standards. All applicants MUST submit a video entry; no audio-only submissions will be accepted. This shift to a video format is a proactive measure in response to recording practices and technology concerns, ensuring that the Falcone Competition maintains the highest integrity in alignment with evolving technology standards and practices. The Board has also implemented a policy of no editing of audio/video recording. Edits in a video recording are much more evident than those of an audio-only recording. Once submissions are received, a non-adjudicator will verify recording integrity before blind evaluation by the judges, ensuring competitor anonymity throughout the process. This means that judges will not have access to, nor any means of ascertaining, the identity of any competitors throughout the evaluation process.

While pre-recorded accompaniment is allowed as part of your preliminary video recording, live pianists are preferred. If pre-recorded accompaniment is used, it should be of high quality and in keeping with the style and character of the piece. However, if a live pianist is available, it is strongly encouraged to use them for the recording. The judges may take into consideration the quality and effectiveness of the accompaniment in their evaluation of the performance. If you have any questions about recording, please follow this link to our Recording Guidelines for 2024. NOTE: For all rounds following the preliminary round, accompaniment must be with the Festival-assigned collaborative pianist—unless you choose to bring your own (live) accompanist with you, at your own cost.

For information about using pre-recorded accompaniment for preliminary round video recording, see frequently asked questions (FAQ).

Multiple work/movement and multiple excerpt submissions must be contained on ONE (1) audio/video file, and ONLY in the order specified in the Required Music listing. The audio/video recording of the preliminary round music must contain no spoken words or have identifying information in the title or inside the file (i.e. no names of individuals, schools, or teachers in the file title or in the metadata). More detailed information about recordings can be found in the Recording Guidelines for 2024.

The (audio only from the video submission) recordings will be presented to the preliminary round adjudicators anonymously. They will listen to (not see) and rank the recordings for selection of Festival participants (semi-finalists and alternates) in each division. Written comments may be requested at the time of application. An applicant will receive comments on their audio recording from three preliminary judges for their division. These judges will make comments as if teaching a private lesson: suggesting ways to improve, referencing literature and recordings, etc. Comments will be sent out early June.

Semi-finalists and alternates are announced in early May. If a semi-finalist cannot attend, the alternate list would be consulted for the next person to be invited to attend. Because historically we have had contestants withdraw from the competition even within a week prior to the competition, we encourage ALL alternates to keep up their preparation of the competition pieces. We have had alternates who have placed first!

During the Falcone Festival held at Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp in August, contestants will be photographed and finalists will have their performances live streamed. These photographs may be used by the Falcone Festival on its website and published in the Falcone Festival albums on Flickr. No images will be sold nor any compensation given to the contestant. All semi-finalists and alternates will be asked to fill out and sign a Photo, Live Stream and Recording Release Form.

Semi-Final Rounds

Participants prepare required music, both unaccompanied and accompanied pieces. Festival adjudicators listen to and rate the performances at the Festival, but competitors are identified by letters and/or numbers, not by name. The order of performance within each division will change between Saturday (Day 1) and Sunday (Day 2). Performances are NOT open to the public. It is the responsibility of the contestant to bring the piano sheet music accompaniment.

Final Round

Finalist competitors are announced at the Sunday luncheon and have until the following day to polish and rehearse. All Festival adjudicators rate the final round competitors. The public is invited to attend all finals and the Festival will live stream them. It is the responsibility of each contestant to bring the piano sheet music accompaniment unless they are playing with band accompaniment.

NEW and NOTABLE for 2024

• We have instituted updated integrity standards involving requiring preliminary round audio/video recording to our application process. This shift to a video format is a proactive measure in response to recording practices and technology concerns, ensuring that the Falcone Competition maintains the highest integrity in alignment with evolving technology standards and practices. No editing of the audio/video recording is allowed. See Recording Guidelines for 2024 for details.
• For information about using pre-recorded accompaniment for preliminary round video recording, see frequently asked questions (FAQ).
  
• We have updated our frequently asked questions (FAQ).
  
• A reminder for those applicants who are named alternates to keep practicing, since as late as the week prior to the competition, we have invited alternates to attend.

Recording Guidelines for the Preliminary Round

Please reference Recording Guidelines for 2024.

Specific details concerning repertoire are provided on the Required Music page. This is where you find the errata or important notes for your division's music. Be sure to look at the appropriate division for your application to be sure that you have the correct edition/publisher.

One audio/video recording is required for 2024. You may choose to use https://filmora.wondershare.net/ or another video editor to combine recorded videos if you have recorded the preliminary round music in more than one video.

Consult the frequently asked questions (FAQ) for additional information.

The (audio only from the video submission) recordings will be presented to the preliminary round adjudicators anonymously. They will listen to (not see) and rank the recordings for selection of Festival participants (semi-finalists and alternates) in each division. Be sure to read How to Post Your Video prior to beginning your application.

Application Fees

All fees are listed in US dollars.

Cancellation and Refund Policy

If an applicant cancels their application prior to April 1, there will be a refund of application fees paid, minus a $25 processing fee.

There will be no refund given for cancellation of an application after preliminary judges have begun their ranking of recordings for selection to compete at the Festival. There will be no refund given if an applicant is disqualified for violation of the Recording Guidelines 2024.

Scholarship Program

The Leonard Falcone International Euphonium and Tuba Festival Board of Directors has approved a scholarship program for the 2024 Festival to award up to five scholarships to semi-finalists. These scholarships are intended to provide financial assistance to contestants as they travel to and participate in the Festival. The scholarship awards will be based on an application process and will include essay responses and demonstrated financial need. Awards will be allocated throughout the four competition divisions of the Festival. The Scholarship Committee will send specific information to semi-finalists around the end of May. All forms requested by the Festival staff must be submitted to be granted a scholarship. Grantees will be notified prior to the Festival week.

We encourage semi-finalists to seek other sources of financial assistance, such as grants from school/university, churches, local service clubs, or arts/music organizations.

Competitor Responsibilities

Applicants to all divisions of the solo competition will find details below. It is the responsibility of each applicant to read and understand all the information contained in this section and abide by the guidelines published herein. Applicants will be asked to affirm that they have followed the Recording Guidelines for 2024 as part of the registraion process.

All semi-finalists and alternates will be asked to fill out and sign a Photo, Live Stream, and Recordings Release Form. They also are expected to fill out all forms requested by the Festival staff.

Once an applicant is selected as a semi-finalist to compete at Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp in August, they are responsible for travel and accommodations at the Festival. Detailed information about accommodations, etc. will be provided by the Festival Logistics Co-chairs around the end of May for each semi-finalist and alternate selected. Semi-finalists at the Festival will either provide their own accompanist or pay a fee ($45 for Artist divisions; $40 for Student Divisions) to utilize the appropriate Festival collaborative pianists for the accompanied rounds. It is the responsibility of each contestant to bring the piano sheet music accompaniments where applicable. For more details about events happening at the Festival, please refer to Daily Events and What to Expect at the Festival on this website.

Application Process

Applications typically open middle to late January.

There is no need to log into the Falcone website! The application/registration website is reached by pressing the Apply Now button below. In addition to your contact information, you will need to have these things ready when you apply:
1. Your one audio/video file already saved on YouTube. Refer to How to Post Your Video before beginning your application!
2. Your proof of age of the correct type and size (if you are applying in one of the student divisions)
3. A credit card for payment (MasterCard or Visa). If you do not have a credit card, you will need to contact Scott Myckowiak, Falcone Festival Treasurer, prior to March 29.

You will ALSO be asked to supply additional information for the program:
1. Name as you want it to appear in the program.
2. Your home town including state/province, and the country (e.g. USA, Brazil, Germany, Japan).
3. Your current school or university.
4. Your current or latest teacher.
5. Up to three (3) additional teachers whose names you would like included.
6. You will be required to affirm that all the materials you submit in the application process are in compliance with this Competition Overview and Application Process, the Recording Guidelines for 2024, and How to Post Your Video. 

Please follow the directions on the application/registration site. When submitting registration, please wait for the final completion screen to load as it may take a while for your information to be recorded. When completed, a confirmation screen with a transaction number will appear. You can write this number down or take a screen shot. A confirmation email will also be sent to the address you used. Please check your spam or junk folders if you do not receive it. See Problems with Application/Registration for additional information.

Remember the deadline of midnight March 31. The midnight deadline is determined by your time zone.

Problems with Application/Registration?

Problem: I cannot get my materials to upload

Check to see that you have followed all the steps listed in How to Post Your Video
-OR-
Check to see that your proof of age is in .jpg, .gif, or .png format AND file size does not exceed 500KB

Problem: After completing my registration, I did not receive any receipt from either Authorize.net (the company processing your credit card payment) OR from the Falcone Festival indicating my application had been received

DO NOT RE-REGISTER! Check your SPAM folder first, and if what you are missing is not there within 15 minutes of your application, then contact the Applications Team and explain your problem, including your name, division, and the transaction number if you have it.

Problem: After completing my registration, I discovered a problem with either my personal information (missing or errors) OR with the audio/video file

DO NOT RE-REGISTER! Contact the Applications Team and explain your problem, including your name, division, and the transaction number if you have it. (Most likely problems: I uploaded an incorrect file by mistake; I filled in personal information incorrectly)

Problem: My problem is not listed here OR the solutions suggested above did not work

Contact the Applications Team and explain your situation, including your name, division, and the transaction number if you have it.

Questions?

• For music questions contact Mark Cox, music coordinator
• For application/recording issues be sure that you have read Recording Guidelines for 2024, How to Post Your Video, and FAQ; if you still have questions, contact the Applications Team
• If a credit card is not available, contact Scott Myckowiak, Falcone Festival Treasurer, prior to March 29