Oclef Contemporary Music Festival
Play Today
Celebrating Music of Our Time
tomorrow’s pianists, Play Today.
Showcase your skills and celebrate creativity and innovation in classical music by performing the music of living composers. Nurture your talent as a young pianist. Win prizes, scholarships and receive feedback from professional pianists and world-class judges. Connect with a community of like-minded musicians who push the boundaries of music together.
Winners for Spring 2024
Winners for Spring 2024
See our Results Page with the winners for Spring 2024!
About US
At the crossroads of classical heritage and modern innovation, the Contemporary Piano Festival is proudly sponsored by Oclef. This festival transcends geographical borders and opens the digital stage to a new generation of pianists. We're in search of young artists keen on transforming classical music, providing them an unparalleled digital platform to let their talents shine. True to Oclef's commitment to innovation and creativity, we aspire to redefine the way classical music is experienced and cherished.
We're enthusiastic about challenging the norm and building a bridge between the revered maestros of yesteryears and the dynamic, living composers of today. Embracing the digital age, we bring together young musicians aged 7-17 from around the world through video recordings and virtual sessions on Zoom. This pioneering format allows us to reach a wider spectrum of talent and offer equal opportunities to all, irrespective of geographical barriers. For us, this competition isn't just an event—it's a digital symphony of progression and individuality. Our goal is to create a space where young musicians can learn, evolve, and compete, all while interpreting compositions from contemporary composers.
Through expert feedback, acknowledgment, and scholarship opportunities, we're geared to fuel their passion and stretch their creative limits. The Contemporary Piano Festival is more than just striving to be the world's premier piano competition for living composers—it's about molding the future of music. It's about cultivating an atmosphere that celebrates the uncovering of fresh talents, the genesis of inventive music, and the perpetuation of our mutual musical legacy.
At Oclef, they're zealous about bridging technology, education, and music. By sponsoring the Contemporary Piano Festival, they’re affirming this pledge and propelling their vision for a more artistic, pioneering, and musical globe. We invite you to accompany us on this distinctive musical voyage as we blend the past with today, and collectively, orchestrate the rhythm of tomorrow.
Rules
The competition is open to all pianists aged between 7 and 17. Age is defined as the entering pianist's age on the day of submission of the application. Oclef reserves the right to ask for written proof of age from the participant's parent or guardian. Exclusion This competition is not open to employees, owners, editors, and authors of Oclef or their relatives. Relatives and students of the jurors are also barred from participating. There is no right of appeal.
Compulsory Piece - The compulsory piece is any one piece composed by a living composer.
Music Editions - You may play from memory or use sheet music. Photocopied music is not allowed, and breaching this rule will result in disqualification.
Recording - The pianist will make a video recording of their spoken introduction and the performance of the chosen piece. Entry is limited to one per person. Should the same pianist submit more than one recording, all of their entries will be disqualified.
Publication - The video is to be posted at www.youtube.com by the participant's parent or teacher. Following this, the pianist and a parent or guardian are to fill out and submit the online entry form that can be found on the Oclef website. The Oclef Piano Competition solely takes place in the form of video entries that are posted at www.youtube.com. Other entries or entries on other media are not permitted.
Jury - A panel of experienced pianists and educators will be selected by Oclef to judge the competition. The judges' decision is final, and no correspondence will be entered into.
Age Categories - Icons
7-year-olds category
8-year-olds category
9-year-olds category
10-year-olds category
11-year-olds category
12-year-olds category
13-year-olds category
14-year-olds category
15-year-olds category
16-year-olds category
17-year-olds category
Special Class Categories
Upon paying the initial entry fee of $60, you can opt-in to submit your video to our Special Categories Class.
Enrollment into the Special Categories puts you in the running for the title of Best Performance for that category & the overall Grand prize for your age group.
Best Performance of a Composer from:
European-African
Asia-Pacific
Americas
2. Best performance of a Female Composer
3. Best performance using Multimedia
4. Best performance of an Original Composition
Composition Criteria:
One Character Piece
7-9 yrs: 30 sec-1 min
10-12 yrs: 1-1.5 min
13-15 yrs: 1.5-2 min
16-17 yrs: 2-3 min
Entry Fee & Deadlines
Cost - Entry to the Oclef Piano Competition is $60 per entry.
Prizes - for each age category will be awarded in USD. The exact prize amounts and distribution will be determined by Oclef.
Closing Date - The completed online enrollment form must be received by 23:59 Pacific Time (PT) on Jan 30th, 2024. Deadline for submitting a recording is 23:59 Pacific Time (PT) on April 1st
Publication of the Winners - The names of the winners will be posted on the Oclef website not before April 15, 2024, but at the very latest by the end of April 2024.
Important Information! Please refer to the previous text about the Oclef Piano Competition for detailed guidelines on video requirements, uploading, and entry submission.
Sign up today
Join us in celebrating of the music of our time