Young Soloists Rules

Rules for a competition to be allowed to perform at a concert with the Iceland Symphony Orchestra cf. contract of the day 21.12.04, with changes Sept. 2007, Sept. 2010 a.g. 2018, Sept. 2020 and a.g. 2024.

1) The competition is an annual event organized by the Iceland Academy of the Arts (LHÍ) and the Iceland Symphony Orchestra (SÍ). LHÍ is the executive member of the competition. The competition takes place in two rounds. In the first round, applicants are evaluated according to the video recordings submitted and the candidates who advance are invited to the second round of the competition. The winners will perform at the concert Young soloists which are generally held in April.

2) The competition is open to students aged 30 and under who study instrumentation or singing at an independent school level and are Icelandic citizens or foreign nationals who have lived in Iceland for at least one year. The former winners of the competition do not have the possibility of repeated participation. 

3) The project manager of the music department provides information about the competition and accepts applications. Applications must be accompanied by confirmation that the contestants are studying instrumentation or singing when the application is submitted With the application to the competition, the participant agrees to have familiarized themselves with its rules and that the information provided is correct and in accordance with the rules of the competition Applications must be submitted through an electronic application system.

Project description:
I) Instrumentalists: Solo work with full-length orchestra.
II) Singers: Solo work with a band for a maximum of 25 min. 

4) In the previous round, applicants are evaluated according to submitted video recordings. Recordings can be submitted in first round of the competition in the period Sept. 1 - October 15 onr each. The video footage may be a maximum of 6 months old. It is not necessary to perform the entire program in one continuous take than each piece of music, or a show must be performed in one take without cuts The recording must show the contestant the entire time.  The applicant sends a link to the recording where it is saved, whether it is on a closed Youtube, or Vimeo channel, Dropbox or Google drive. Desirable is that the recording is not available to the public during the competition The project selection is based on the traditional band structure and the co-star plays the band part in the competition.  The result from the first round of the competition will be announced less than 6 weeks from the application deadline. As a general rule, 8-10 contestants will be invited to participate in the second round of the competition. It will take place at the beginning of January in the premises of the LHÍ music department at the jury present. All recording costs and accompaniment in both rounds of the competition are the responsibility and expense of the competitor. The competition is closed to the audience 

5) The president of the LHÍ Music Department appoints a jury in consultation with the executive director of the Iceland Symphony Orchestra The principal conductor of the Symphony Orchestra is automatically entitled to sit on the committee or a substitute in his place None of the jury members may have direct connections with the participants in the competition, it is assumed that the jury will consist of five members, but they may be increased in order for expertise on individual instrumental groups to be present in the committee. 

6) The jury's assessment shall be based on grading Its arrangement is presented to the jury well in advance of the competition The points are equally awarded a secret ballot in the committee The chairman's vote determines the outcome, the points will be again tied. The jury's decision is final and non-appealable. The jury can select up to four participants to perform at the concert. The competition's promoter determines the order of the participants in the competition.