Competitor Eligibility
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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: 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 2026 Festival, a participant who will be 20 years old or older on September 1, 2026, is 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. File size for proof of age is limited to 500KB; allowed file formats are .jpg, .gif, and .png. 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.