Performance Scholarship Competition
OVERVIEW
The Music Scholarship Series was inaugurated in 1948 through the Winnipeg Branch of the Manitoba Registered Music Teachers’ Association. For over seventy years the competition has provided performance opportunities for developing musicians, constructive adjudication from esteemed music professionals and financial awards.
In 2011 administration of the competition became the responsibility of the Provincial Executive. This change compelled the MRMTA to review the value of the scholarship series. The priorities included raising the profile of the competition, making it inclusive, accessible and fiscally viable. The restructured scholarship series allows for the addition of new competitions in the future.
Currently, the repertoire requirements for the most advanced piano competitors mirror those set by Canadian Federation of Music Teachers' Associations (CFMTA) for the biennial National Competition. This is offered in odd-numbered years in the same location as their convention. All advanced students competing in this scholarship series should be aiming to compete at the National Competition. It is an opportunity to travel to a new destination, to grow a professional network, to perform for an international audience, to be adjudicated by some of Canada’s most influential musicians, and to compete for additional financial awards. For information on the CFMTA National Competitions go to their website www.cfmta.org and click on the link under Programs and Competitions.
GENERAL INFORMATION FOR 2024
COMPETITION DATES:
- Monday, January 29 / Wednesday, January 31 / Thursday, February 1 / Friday, February 2, 2024
- Gala to take place Sunday, February 4, 2024 at 7:30 p.m.
The dates and times for piano, vocal and instrumental competitions will be posted on the MRMTA website after December 1st, 2023.
VENUE:
- Sterling Mennonite Fellowship - 1008 Dakota Street
SCHOLARSHIPS AWARDED:
ONE PERSON MAY WIN IN EACH CATEGORY (PIANO, VOCAL, INSTRUMENTAL) PER LEVEL:
- One Advanced Scholarship of $500 for students at the ARCT or Undergraduate level of study.
- One Senior Scholarship of $400 for students at the Grade 9 or 10 level of study.
- One Intermediate Scholarship of $300 for students at the Grade 7 or 8 level of study.
- One Junior Scholarship of $200 for students at the Grade 5 or 6 level of study.
AGE RESTRICTIONS:
- There are no age restrictions except in the Advanced Level.
STUDENTS MUST SUBMIT:
- Completed online application form by the closing date of November 1st, 2023.
- Competition entrance fee:
- Advanced $70
- Senior $60
- Intermediate $45
- Junior $35
Please Note:
-
- Late applications will be accepted until 9pm November 15, 2023. A late fee of $20 per application will apply.
- All correspondence with the convenor MUST include full name (both the competitor and their teacher), discipline, and level of competition. Email correspondence to [email protected]
ADJUDICATORS FOR 2024:
TO BE ANNOUNCED
Registration - 2024 Performance Scholarship Competition
REGULATIONS & ELIGIBILITY
All Regulations & Eligibility requirements are up-to-date as of October 2, 2023.
APPLICANT ELIGIBILITY:
- Be a resident of Manitoba;
- Study with an MRMTA member at the time of application;
- A scholarship winner in the junior, intermediate and senior categories will not be eligible to compete in the same scholarship level in subsequent competitions;
- At the advanced level a competitor may win twice, making them eligible to compete a maximum of two times at the CFMTA national competition. If a student has won any award at the CFMTA national competition they may not compete at the MRMTA advanced level a 2nd time.
STANDARDS:
- Scholarship recipients must achieve a minimum of 85% to win their category. You do not automatically win if you are the only competitor. The awarding of scholarships is at the discretion of the adjudicator.
- Recommendation for advancement to National competitions is at the discretion of the Scholarship Committee.
APPLICATIONS:
- Must be received by 9pm November 1st, 2023.
- Repertoire changes cannot be made after the application is submitted.
- IF your application is rejected for any reason, you will receive a refund minus a $25 processing fee. In all other cases, fees are non-refundable.
REPERTOIRE APPROVAL:
- For pieces not in the current RCM or CC syllabus: a copy of the piece must be emailed to the convenor for approval at the time of application. Music printed from IMSLP, or digital copies used by competitors and/or accompanists will only be permitted if documentation of copyright permission or digital purchase is scanned and emailed to the convenor.
MEMORY:
- All competitors must perform from memory in the piano and vocal disciplines.
- Competitors in the instrumental discipline are highly encouraged to perform from memory but it is not mandatory. In the event that two competitors score the same mark, preference may be given to the memorized performance.
Applicants who do not adhere to the above regulations will be disqualified.
Recent Winners of the Scholarship Competition
JUNIOR
Instrumental
Winner - Isla Johnson (Laurel Howard)
Runner Up - Amelia Cheung (Erica Schultz)
Piano
Winner - Sophia Liang (Erica Schultz)
Runner Up - Steven Bi (Bennet Charter)
Vocal
Winner - Abigail Ferencz (Tiffany Wilson)
Runner Up - Melissa Barnes (Elizabeth Rotoff)
INTERMEDIATE
Instrumental
Winner - Annika Regehr (Rachel Regehr)
Runner Up - None
Piano
Winner - Nathaniel Liu (Bennet Charter)
Runner Up - Aurora Zhang (Jacqueline Ryz)
Vocal
Winner - Chiara Wilson (Tracy Dahl)
Runner Up - Sophie Caron (Valdine Anderson)
SENIOR
Instrumental
Winner - Audrey Marche (Laurel Howard)
Runner Up - Elazar Schwartz (Laurel Howard)
Piano
Winner - Yifei Sun (Jane Petroni)
Runner Up - Austin Wang (Erica Schultz)
Vocal
Winner - Sloan Smith (Tracy Dahl)
Runner Up - Charlton Rodrigues (Tiffany Wilson)
ADVANCED
Instrumental
No Competitors
Piano
Winner - Anna-Lucia Mena Shevchenko (Yaroslava Shevchenko)
Runner Up - None
Vocal
Winner - Alice Macgregor (Tracy Dahl)
Runner Up - Joanna Loepp Thiessen (Tracy Dahl)
Many thanks to our adjudicators:
- Jenny Regehr & Madeline Hildebrand - Piano
- Lara Ciekiewicz - Vocal
- Vijay Chalasani - Instrumental
"MUSIC gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and life to everything" - PLATO
Voice Scholarships - Due March 1st
Grace Rich-Bastin Memorial Award
Holtby Scholarship Criteria and Application Form (Voice) - Due May 1st
Instrumental Scholarships - Due March 1st
Recent Recipients of the Paper Scholarships
Winners of Paper Scholarship Awards 2023
Judith Ritchie Memorial Music Scholarship
Juliana West - Teacher: Valdine Anderson
Harry Rowlin Strings Award
Xiaomo (Jenny) Xu - Teacher: Annette Hay
Madeleine Gauvin Scholarship For Strings
Lynnea Unger - Teacher: Andrea Bell
Nita Eamer Memorial Scholarship Award
Marek Song - Teacher: Jacqueline Ryz
Eric Wang - Teacher: Jane Petroni
Dorothy Lother Scholarship
Grace Lu - Teacher: David Moroz
Grace Rich-Bastin Keyboard/Instrumental Award
Raymond Ding - Teacher: Shirley Elias
Marian Nelson Memorial Piano Pedagogy Award
Evelyne Hiuszok - Teacher: Caron Hare
Phyllis & Dorothy Holtby Scholarship
Victoria Lee - Teacher: Jacqueline Ryz