Competition Guidelines

1. The Piano Competition is limited to the classical genre. Thus, entries should be established pieces from the following musical eras: Renaissance, Baroque, Classical, Romantic, 20th and 21st Century. No original compositions from the applicants may be accepted. Piano concertos are not allowed as the competition will be based on solo performances in its entirety, without any accompaniment.

2. There are two age Categories:

17 years old and below
18 years old and above
Four finalists per age category will be selected.

3. Applicants must submit two (2) audition videos, one for each piece chosen. Each piece should represent a different, contrasting era from the list given above. Musical scores are permitted at this stage. Each video should should be 3 to 8 minutes in length. If the piece is substantially longer, excerpts or abbreviated arrangements are acceptable. Pieces less than three minutes should be avoided.

4. All audition videos must be of high quality, preferably 720p video with 192kbps AAC audio in mp4 format. The sound should be clear, in sync with the video, and clearly identify the performer and his/her performance level.

5. Those who qualify for the final competition will be notified after preliminary judging is complete. Finalists should prepare a final piece that is 6-15 minutes in length. The final piece may be a longer or more complete version of an audition piece already submitted. Final pieces must be played from memory; no scores are permitted during the final competition.

6. ELIGIBILITY: All requirements must be complete. Incomplete and late submissions will not be considered. Submissions which are of questionable quality or authenticity may not be considered. Past winners (1st place) of past INC International Piano Competitions are not eligible to enter. However, past finalists (who placed 2nd or lower) may still join the competition. Each entrant, regardless of placement or age category, may only participate in this competition twice overall.