Purpose:  To provide a venue for students to perform and receive evaluation.  It is not a competition between students but an audition that encourages a high standard of musical achievement.

General Rules:  The National Federation of Music Clubs establishes the rules and guidelines for festivals.  Site chairman implement these.  See pages 1-6 of the Festivals Bulletin available from your site chairman or National Headquarters for a detailed listing of these rules.

Duties of Site Chairmen:  The Site Chair or Director alone or in committee –

          1)  Selects the venue, date and time of audition.

          2)  Organizes the participants and times of audition and publishes same.

          3)  Hires competent and respected judges to judge the auditions.

          4)  Chairs the event day – makes decisions, gives direction, problem solves

          5)  Makes arrangement for a make up day if appropriate

          6)  Keeps year to year records for purposes of festival cup point reporting,

                honors recital qualifying, and record keeping for students who move.

          7)  Orders and signs the small participation certificates for all participants.

               These are the official record of participation and are honored from state

               to state when students move.  (The State Chairman orders and provides

               the Consecutive Superior Certificates.)

          8)  Reports the results of the festival to the State Chairman before May 15,

               using the appropriate official form available on the national web site.

Responsibilities of Teachers:

           1)  Pay state dues for the number of participants.  Submit a list of student

                names with the dues form.  (Students may change as long the number

                of dues paying students remains the same.)

            2) Select repertoire for every student and supervise its preparation.

                See rules at the beginning of every section in the Bulletin.

               (For example:  in the piano solo event, two pieces are played by

                memory – one required from the Bulletin and one choice piece.) 

            3) Complete an application form for every participant (these students are

                under the age of 19 – older students may participate in Adult Festival)

                Copy these forms for your records before you submit them (or keep on                       

                computer) as the information about levels will be needed in

                subsequent years.

           4)  Submit application and festival entry fee in a timely manner

                established by the director.

           5)  Be available to help at the site during the audition day.  Duties to be

                established by the director.

           6)  Make sure that only published copies of music are brought to the

                event – NEVER photo copies.

Selection of Repertoire:  See the Bulletin for specifics in every event.  Examples:  Some repertoire must be memorized and some does not.  There are specific instructions for selecting composers in some events. Piano duets can use the same composer and same book.  Read carefully and follow all rules.

Note:  Music theory participants do not have to play in order to take the test. 

Festival Cup Points:  Participants earn points according to their ratings.  For example, superior ratings receive 5 points.  When a student has earned 15 points and multiples of 15 points, they qualify for a gold cup from National Federation.  Records are kept at the local level and the program is administered at the state level.  See the Festivals Bulletin pages 7-10 for rules governing the Festival Cup Plan.

Your State Chairman is always available to help you understand and interpret the rules, mentor new teachers through the process, provide suggestions for choice repertoire and make new information available to all site chairmen and teachers.  Please feel free to contact the state chairman for help at any time.