State Honors Recital

2024 James R. Anthony Honors Recital Information

Online Registration – Click Here

Please email questions to Karali Hunter (karali@hammerandstrings.com) or Chenbaixue Yang (cyang132@asu.edu). Many questions can be answered by reading the guidelines.
Changes have been made regarding repertoire, deadlines, and other matters. It is your responsibility to read all guidelines thoroughly.
Fill out all information requested on the entry forms, including repertoire and teacher contact details.
ALL QUESTIONS/INQUIRIES SHOULD COME FROM TEACHERS ONLY.

General Honors Recital Information 2024

Committee Chair: Karali Hunter & Chenbaixue Yang

The purpose of the Arizona State Music Teachers Association’s James R. Anthony Honors Recital is to promote the development of musicianship, technique, and performance to the highest level possible. A two-tiered auditions process is used to select some of the most outstanding students in the state to perform during the state conference. Final Auditions, and the Honors Recital itself, are open to the public.

Dates

Applications open: Monday, February 19, 2024
Application deadline: Friday, April 19, 2024 at 11:59pm
Preliminary auditions time & date (as needed): Wednesday, May 1, 2024 at 11:59pm
Final audition time & date: Saturday, June 1, 2024 at the Northern Arizona University Kitt School of Music

Eligibility

The Honors Recital and auditions are open to pre-college instrumentalists, vocalists and chamber music ensembles. Participants who do not currently study with an ASMTA member (who has renewed their membership dues prior to the Honors Recital application date) are subject to an additional fee. Students must have studied with their current teacher for at least six (6) consecutive months prior to preliminary auditions. Exceptions are ensembles whose members could be combined from different students and coached by the teacher for a shorter period than six (6) months. Students must be a resident of Arizona. There is no age restriction or ASMTA membership requirement for accompanists.

Teacher Responsibilities

Teachers must volunteer during the final auditions day. An Honors Recital committee member will contact teachers regarding their volunteer times and duties. If the teacher is unable to fulfill this responsibility, they should find a replacement.
Teachers should take time to review all of the current Guidelines, and go over these Guidelines with the participating students and their parents.
Questions and comments pertaining to any phase of this event must be conducted between teacher and chairperson(s) only. Parents and students are not allowed to discuss any portion of this event with event staff.
We recommend that teachers be present at the competition, in case any issues arise.

Application & Procedures

Applications

Online applications will open on the ASMTA website on Monday, February 19, 2024 and must be submitted no later than 11:59pm on Friday, April 19, 2024. The application should include the complete and accurate names of the two works to be performed, including: full names of composers, opus numbers, movement designations, and key signatures if possible.
On the application, list accurate timings of each piece to be performed.
Application fees must be submitted by a teacher in a single payment online or one (1) check for all participating students. Payment from parents or students will not be accepted. The fees may be paid in two ways:
* online through the ASMTA web site at www.asmta.org/events/state-honors-recital/
* by personal check postmarked by Friday, April 19, 2024 and sent to Karali Hunter, 905 N. Heritage, Mesa, AZ 85201.
All fees are non-refundable.

Preliminary Round

If the number of applicants requires that preliminary auditions be held, they will be held via video recordings. We recommend that all applicatns plan to have video recordings available in advance of preliminary audition notification.

Preliminary Video Submission Guidelines

Video recordings must be:
1. Posted on YouTube
2. The link(s) to your video(s) must be emailed to Karali Hunter (karalihunter@gmail.com) by Wednesday, May 1, 2024 at 11:59pm.
3. The YouTube videos must be unlisted, and must remain posted and available until Friday, May 10, 2024.
4. Audio and picture of videos must be completely unedited. Both pieces may be recorded and uploaded separately.
5. Only the titles of the pieces should be labeled under the video but no competitor names.

Final Round

For the Final Auditions, scores for each piece must be presented to the desk monitors before the performance. Measures must be numbered and the books should not have teachers’ or students names marked. Books/published scores are required. No photocopies. Exceptions can be made if the music is in public domain and not easily accessible. Please email chairperson to gain an exception (see Repertoire Requirements – General – #4 below).

Performers must present proof of their age upon checking in at the final round. Acceptable documents include a birth certificate, passport, or other valid picture ID that shows a birth date. A digital photo of an original document is also acceptable. Students who cannot produce a proof of birth date will be allowed to participate for comments only, but will be ineligible for any award. Students’ ages must be within their division specification on the day of the final round. No exceptions can be made for moving students to a different division, either higher or lower.

Winners Recital

All the competition winners are required to perform at the Winners Recital in order to receive the award. Winners unable to fulfill this performance obligation will forfeit their award.

Categories/Division Requirements

INSTRUMENTAL
Strings – violin, viola, cello, string bass, harp (with optional piano accompaniment)
Winds – flute, clarinet, oboe, bassoon (with optional piano accompaniment)
Brass – trumpet, trombone, French horn, tuba, euphonium (with optional piano accompaniment)
Piano – solo
VOICE
Solo (with piano accompaniment)
ENSEMBLES
Piano Duet – (four hands, one piano)
Chamber Music Ensembles (up to six players, maximum one piano per group allowed)

Age and Time Requirements for Instrumental Solo and Vocal Divisions

Division	Age Range	Performance Time Limit	Entrance Fee Per Person
Elementary 1	8 and under	8 minutes	$25
Elementary 2	9-10	10 minutes	$25
Intermediate 1	11 -12	12 minutes	$30
Intermediate 2	13-14	14 minutes	$30
Advanced 1	15-16	16 minutes	$35
Advanced 2	17-18	18 minutes	$35

Age and Time Requirements for Ensembles Divisions (Piano Duets & Chamber Ensembles)

Division	Ages Range	Performance Time Limit	Entrance Fee Per Person
Mixed	13-18	15 minutes	$30 per student

Piano Duets (Four Hands, One Piano) will be placed in a separate category from “solo piano,” and therefore, are also adjudicated separately. At least one student in the ensemble must meet the age specification (13-18), and no members can be older than 18.

Chamber Music Ensembles will be placed together in one category separate from Solo Instruments and Piano Duets. At least one student in the ensemble must meet the age specification (13-18), and no members can be older than it. Requirements are as follows:

		Fee for students of a Nonmember Teacher (any division) $100 per student

LIMITATIONS

If five (5) or more competitors participate in an instrumental or voice division, the co-chairs will appoint a specialist to adjudicate that division.
If less than two (2) piano duets or two (2) chamber ensembles enter the competition, they will be performing for comments only. At the discretion of the judges, they may still be considered for inclusion in the Final Recital. Notice will be given to teachers before the final round if this is the case.

Repertoire Requirements

General

All students must perform two pieces of contrasting style.
All pieces will be performed from memory except in the case of chamber ensembles and piano duets.
Both pieces must be performed within the time limit listed above.
All entrants must abide by the Federal Copyright Law. Photocopies of published editions are not allowed. Entrants using public domain or hard-to-find scores downloaded from the Internet need to complete the MTNA Music Release Form verifying their permission to use this music.
Miniature scores are not acceptable.
Performers who choose to disregard the repertoire requirement guidelines will be disqualified.

Alterations and Exclusions

Repertoire changes: will not be permitted.
Masterclass: Students who participate in the masterclass during the Conference cannot play the same repertoire in the Honors Recital Competition.
Cuts: Any performances containing cuts will be disqualified. Exceptions to this will be in the orchestral reductions to concerto or operatic selections (piano accompaniment) as long as the solo part is complete.
Repeats: If endings of repeats are the same, repeats are optional. If endings of repeats are different, repeats must be taken.

Special Repertoire

Original Compositions: Only original compositions by composers of renown are acceptable. (contact the competition chair for clarification if needed – Karali Hunter (karali@hammerandstrings.com)).
Concerti: Pianists and ensembles may not perform concerti; other instruments may perform individual movements.
Variations: The entire set of variations will be performed (no cuts)
Sonatas/Sonatinas: One movement will be considered one piece.
Prelude & Fugue: If preludes or fugues are composed as a set, they must be performed as a set; one may not be performed without the other.
Collections and cycles (i.e. character pieces, works with many different pieces put together as one): Selections from one collection or opus number by one composer (i.e. Shostakovich Preludes, Op. 34; or Chopin Mazurkas, Op. 7) may be grouped at will. The total time of this grouping may not exceed the performance time of the other work submitted.

Dress Code

Appropriate concert attire is required for both the Competition and the Winners Recital. This may include dresses (knee-level or longer), button-down shirts, slacks or dress trousers, and dress shoes; optional attire: sport coats, ties, or suits.

No jeans, sweatpants or sweatshirts, sneakers, gym attire, tennis shoes, flip flops, boat shoes, or platform shoes with a sole greater than 1/2 inch. All apparel must be modest and non-revealing. Hair should not hide a performer’s face. Please do not wear clothing that will detract from the performance or the dignity of the event.

Etiquette

At the discretion of the chairperson(s) and ASMTA president, inappropriate behavior (such as disruptive or confrontational outbursts by parents, students, or teachers) or disregarding of the guidelines stated herein will results in the immediate disqualification of the student and forfeiture of any awards or certificates.

Competition Awards

The funds for the awards are generously provided by the Arizona State Music Teachers Association and the Arizona Study Program. Decisions made by the jury of the competition are final and are not subject to query, review or appeal. Teachers, students, and parents must not engage in converation with or identify themselves to judges at any time. Doing so will result in disqualification.

In each division, First, Second, and Third place for each division will be awarded at the discretion of the judges.

Special Awards

Each division that has a piano category will have one (1) winner selected to receive the PEE-YAW WILKES ENDOWMENT AWARD. This award was established in honor of Pee-Yaw Lim Wilkes, a long-time ASMTA member and teacher in the Flagstaff area, who produced some of the highest caliber, competitive pianists during her tenure. It serves to promote support and encouragement to promising, talented young pianists. The amount of the award will vary annually.

The JAMES SAVERIO RUCCOLO PIANO SOLO AWARDS will be awarded to students in these categories: one award for Intermediate 1 division, one award for Intermediate 2 division, one award for Advanced 1 division, and one award for Advanced 2 division. These awards are offered in memory of Dr. James Saverio Ruccolo, a pianist/composer and a Professor Emeritus of Arizona State University. Dr. Ruccolo was also an active contributor to the Arizona State Music Teachers Association, Piano Division between 1975 and 1985.

For More Information

Further questions regarding repertoire and competition procedure, please contact Karali Hunter at karali@hammerandstrings.com or 801-360-0039 (teachers only).
Co-Chair – Chenbaixue Yang (cyang132@asu.edu)

Registration link (coming in Spring 2024)

A PDF copy of the 2024 information can be downloaded here: Honors Recital Guidelines 2024.

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