Piano Competition 2026

Registration:

Due Date: Sunday, October 18, 2025

General Information:

• All questions/comments should come from teachers only
  • Email competition@azmusicfest.org
• Parents and students are not allowed to contact Musicfest staff to discuss any portion of the competition.

Teachers should take time to review all of the current Guidelines, and go over these Guidelines with the participating students and their parents.

• Performers must complete the application and submit the registration fee in order to perform. Early application is advised. It is possible that all available slots for performers will be filled before application deadline.
  • The application must include the complete and accurate titles of the pieces to be performed, along with the full composer names, opus/catalog numbers (if applicable), movement designations (if applicable), and key signatures (if applicable).
• Performers must be Arizona residents.
• Performers must be in grades 7 through 12, no younger than 13 (acceptable if student is turning 13 within the school year) and no older than 18 years of age.
• Schedule conflicts may be submitted in the application form’s comments section, but Arizona Musicfest does not guarantee that we will be able to accommodate all conflicts. No conflicts will be accepted after the application deadline.
• To edit your application information after submission, please return to the original confirmation email you received and follow the instructions in that email. No changes are allowed after the application deadline.
• No application refunds will be given in the event of performer withdrawal.
• Each teacher and performer must abide by all requirements and deadlines stated herein. Non-compliance will result in disqualification.

Date & Time:

• The Competition will be held on Saturday, October 31 from 9:00 am – 6:00 pm, and Sunday, November 1 from 1:00 pm – 6:00 pm
  • The times in the table below are the estimated window for each division.
    • Divisions may begin earlier or later depending on the number of entrants
    • Exact performance timeslots will be emailed out the week following the application due date.
    • Performers may only perform during their division’s window

Divisions:

Music:

• Music chosen for the competition must be standard literature chosen from the Baroque, Classical, Romantic, Modernist, or Contemporary periods by composers of renown and/or established pedagogical composers. Simplified versions and transcriptions are not accepted.
  • Multiple movements from the work may be entered as one selection.
  • If the performer’s piece(s) exceed the length of the allotted competition time, please note the judges may stop a performance in order to stay on schedule, with no penalty to the performer.
• Music must be memorized.
• Performers must provide three total copies of their score(s):
  • Scores should not have markings that would indicate the performer or teacher’s identities.
  • Score(s) must have measures numbered and cuts marked (if any) so the judges can use them as a reference during the performance.
  • Scores will be checked at the Welcome Table for the above requirements and will be returned directly after the performance.
• One Steinway piano will be provided.
• Please dress in appropriate concert attire.

Location:

1. The competition will be held at Arizona Musicfest: 7950 E Thompson Peak Pkwy. Scottsdale, AZ 85255
2. The piano for the competition is a 2001 Steinway Model B Grand Piano
3. Performers will receive an arrival time that is before their scheduled warm-up time. Please plan to arrive no later than your assigned arrival time.

Prize:

1. Up to three performers from each division may be awarded monetary prizes in the amounts detailed below.
2. Awarded performers may be invited to perform in the Young Musicians Concert Series in the MIM Music Theater.
3. Awarded performers may receive performance opportunities as they are available and announced.

Adjudication:

• Judges will stop performers if their performance exceeds the competition time limits. There is no penalty if a performer needs to be stopped.
• Judges may elect to award Honorable Mentions to performers demonstrating high levels of artistry in their performances.
• Prizes are awarded at the end of each division to performers who display the highest level of artistic excellence.
• Judges have the option to withhold prizes.
• All teachers will receive the judges’ comments within a week of the competition date. 
• Musicfest’s competitions do not have a prescribed scoring system, and thus require that all judges hear all the competition participants to allow for proper verbal deliberation and a fair outcome. Since selective recusal is not allowed, by agreeing to be on this jury panel, the judges agree that they will not submit their own students as competitors. Furthermore, performers are ineligible to participate if they or their principal teacher have a familial relationship with a judge.
• The judges have full discretion over awarding decisions, which are final and cannot be challenged.