The Queen Elisabeth International Music Competition (section Piano)

The competition is open to pianists of all nationalities, who are aged at least 17, unless special permission is granted by the organisers, and who have not yet reached the age of 27 on the deadline fixed for the submission of applications (i.e. they must be born after 15 January 1983).

The competition has three public rounds. Candidates perform at these in the order established by the drawing of lots. These rounds are preceded by a preselection process on the basis of a DVD-video.

This competition is not open to laureates of a previous Queen Elisabeth Piano Competition.

By entering the competition, candidates agree to participate in all the rounds and concerts for which they will be selected by the jury or the organisers of the Competition.

Applications must be sent by registered post, postmarked 15 January 2010 at the latest, to the Secretariat of the Queen Elisabeth International Music Competition, 20 rue aux Laines, B-1000 Brussels (Belgium). This deadline cannot be extended under any circumstances. Applications sent solely by fax or by e-mail will not be accepted.

The application sent by registered post must include the following documents:
1. A printout of the completed application form, signed by the candidate. This form must first have been completed and submitted online on the Queen Elisabeth Competition website (www.qeimc.be).
2. A recording on DVD-video (audio and video), as set out in Article 12 and the following articles.
3. One or more official documents (originals or certified copies) establishing the candidate's nationality and place and date of birth.
Any application that does not contain these documents will not be accepted.

At the same time, the following documents must be uploaded via the Competition application form (this must also be done by 15 January 2010):
1. A CV including details of higher education, the names of teachers, and principal concerts and recitals.
2. A list of the candidate's principal repertoire (concertos, sonatas, etc.).
3. A photograph in the form of a Tiff file (minimum 300 dpi) for the programme.
4. Documentary proof of what is stated in the CV (higher qualifications obtained, prizes and certificates awarded at other competitions, reports of recent engagements, etc.).

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The public rounds of the Queen Elisabeth International Music Competition are preceded by a preselection round behind closed doors, based on the viewing of the DVDs submitted by the candidates. The public rounds are divided into three stages:
1. The purpose of the first round is to choose the 24 candidates who will be admitted to the semi-final round;
2. The semi-final determines the 12 finalists;
3. The purpose of the final round is to rank the top six laureates.

General remarks concerning programmes:
- Each work performed in the public rounds must be different.
- Candidates are expected to treat each performance as a recital or a concert and should therefore put together their programme with this in mind. The jury will look at each performance as a whole.
- In each round all works must be performed from memory, with the exception of the compulsory unpublished works in the semi-final and the final.
- A candidate may ask to perform some contemporary works using a score. The Artistic Committee has the authority to allow this.
- Repeats are left to the discretion of the candidates, but they must take these into account in working out the timing of their programmes.
- Candidates may not include in their programme works that they themselves have composed.
- Once the closing date for the submission of applications (15 January 2010) has passed, the programme
may not be changed, except at the request of the Artistic Committee.

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Viewing of the DVDs

Programme
Candidates must enclose with their application a good-quality, clearly indexed DVD-video (PAL or Ntsc), which must include, in the following order:
1. A prelude and fugue from the Well-Tempered Clavier by J.S. Bach
2. A classical sonata (Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, or Schubert)
3. A Chopin ?tude
4. A work of the candidate's choice
The works presented on the DVD-video do not necessarily have to be included in the programme for the public rounds of the competition.

The recording must mention the place and date of recording of each piece, which must have been carried out in the year preceding the closing date for the submission of applications (between 1 January 2009 and 15 January 2010). It must also be accompanied by a document in which the candidate certifies its authenticity and confirms that it is not subject to copyright restrictions.

The candidate must be fully visible at all times on the screen; the camera angle must be fixed and the microphones should be positioned at a good distance from the piano.

Video Cassettes ARE NOT Accepted.

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==First round==

Dates: 3 > 8 May 2010
Venue: Brussels Conservatory
Number of participants: unlimited
Duration of the performance: +/- 20 min.

Programme to be prepared:
1. A prelude and fugue from the Well-Tempered Clavier by J.S. Bach
2. A work of the candidate's choice, not included in the programme for the other public rounds Combined duration of 1 + 2 = max. 15 min.
3. Five etudes:
3.1 An ?tude by Chopin
3.2 An ?tude by Liszt
3.3 An ?tude by Debussy
3.4 An ?tude chosen from among those by Prokofiev, Rachmaninov, Rautavaara, Skryabin, and Stravinsky
3.5 An ?tude chosen from among those by Bart?k, Dusapin, Ligeti, Messiaen, and Ohana
Programme to be performed:
Each candidate will play the prelude and fugue by Bach and his/her chosen work. To conclude the programme, the jury will chose one or more ?tudes from those proposed by the candidate.
Number of candidates admitted to the next round: 24

==Semi-final==

Dates: 10 > 15 May 2010
Venue: Brussels Conservatory
Number of participants: 24
Duration of the performance:
Recital: +/- 50 min.
Concerto: +/- 25 min.

Programme to be prepared:
Recital
- An unpublished work (+/- 5 min.), written specially for this year's competition, which will be provided to candidates after they have been definitively admitted to the competition.
- Two coherent recital programmes, each lasting +/- 45 min. Each programme will be made up of a classical sonata and one or more works chosen by the candidate. No more than 25 minutes of music may be common to the two programmes.

Concerto
A Mozart concerto, to be chosen from concertos K. 271 (No. 9 in E flat major), K. 450 (No. 15 in B flat major), K. 453 (No. 17 in G major), K. 459 (No. 19 in F major), K. 466 (No. 20 in D minor), K. 467 (No. 21 in C major), and K. 491 (No. 24 in C minor).

Programme to be performed:
Each candidate will perform twice, over two days.
Recital
Each candidate will play the compulsory unpublished work and one of the two recital programmes proposed. The choice of recital programme will be made by the jury and will be communicated to the candidate +/- 29 hours before the performance, that is to say, at 10 a.m. the day before for those candidates due to play in the session starting at 3 p.m. and at 3 p.m. the day before for those due to play in the session starting at 8 p.m. Each candidate will choose the order in which he or she will play the different works on his/her programme.

Concerto
Each candidate will perform the Mozart concerto chosen, accompanied by the Orchestre Royal de Chambre de Wallonie, conducted by Paul Goodwin. Each candidate will be entitled to one rehearsal (the day before the performance)
and to one balance rehearsal (just before the performance). The order of appearance as determined by the drawing of lots will determine the order of appearance of the candidates in recital.
Number of candidates admitted to the final: 12

==Final==

Dates: 24 > 29 May 2010
Venue: Brussels Centre for Fine Arts (Palais des Beaux-Arts)
Number of participants: 12
Accompaniment: National Orchestra of Belgium, cond. Marin Alsop
Duration of the performance: max. 75 min.

Programme to be prepared:
1. A classical sonata (Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, or Schubert) different from those prepared for the other public rounds of the Competition
2. An unpublished work for piano and orchestra (+/- 10 min.), written specially for this competition and chosen during the Queen Elisabeth Composition Competition 2009 (a candidate in this composition competition may not take part in the piano competition);
3. A concerto chosen by the candidate, other than the Mozart concerto performed in the semi-final and by a composer other than the composer of the sonata chosen for the final.
Combined duration 1 + 3 = max. 60 min.

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There are six prizes:

First Prize: Queen Elisabeth International Grand Prize
Queen Fabiola Prize
EUR 25,000 - numerous concerts - recording on CD

Second Prize: Prize of the Belgian Federal Government, ‘Arthur de Greef’ Prize
EUR 20,000 - concerts - recording on CD

Third Prize: Comte de Launoit Prize
EUR 17,000 - concerts - recording on CD

Fourth Prize: Prize of the Governments of the Belgian Communities
EUR 12,500 - concerts

Fifth Prize: Brussels-Capital Region Prize
EUR 10,000 - concerts

Sixth Prize: City of Brussels Prize
EUR 8,000 - concerts

The six unranked laureates will each receive the sum of EUR 5,000 (donated by the National Lottery) and a recital. They will also receive the title of Laureate of the Queen Elisabeth International Music Competition of Belgium, Piano 2010.

A sum of EUR 1,000 will be given to each of the 12 candidates in the semi-final who have not been selected for the final round. These candidates may also participate free of charge in the master classes given by members of the jury, held just after the semi-final.

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Additional Information here:
http://cand.cmireb.be/files/pia2010_en_2009-01-16.pdf