Contest for Young Polish, Czech and Slovak Classical Musicians

Get Together and Play Music!




Sponsored by the International Visegrad Fund (IVF)




Goal of the project



One of the biggest problems facing young classical musicians is the lack of sufficient opportunities to perform in concerts and gain the experience and exposure they need. In many cases, young classical musicians from Eastern Europe can only dream of international concerts and major concert series. For this reason, Klassik Star – the online competition and concert tour for classical musicians – represents a fantastic opportunity. The goal of the project is to provide an opportunity for young (under age 28) classical musicians from the V4 countries (Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary) to perform in concert, develop concert experience and gain exposure. Another important goal is to nurture the classical music tradition in these countries and to strengthen cultural cooperation among them. The leader and producer of this project is Sándor Mester, the Hungarian classical guitar musician, who is the most active guitar artist in East Central Europe. The project is sponsored by the International Visegrad Fund (IVF), headquartered in Bratislava.


Sandor Mester


On-line music competition
The project will be launched with an on-line (internet-based) competition. We are seeking three musicians: a cellist from Poland, a violinist from the Czech Republic, and a flute player from Slovakia. The three young musicians chosen via the online competition will go on a concert tour together with Hungarian guitar artist Sándor Mester. The four-person group, including project leader Sándor Mester, represents the four Visegrad countries and together compose a baroque chamber ensemble, which will perform in Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary. The four-person formation (the Polish cellist, the Czech violinist, the Slovak flutist and the Hungarian guitar player) will give a total of 12 concerts – four in each country.


The concert tour is preceded by the online musical concert, whose winners will receive an award of 1,000 euros each. The internet-based musical competition proceeds as follows: the competition takes place over a three-month period; entrants must upload a video. The videos may be recorded using any device, from a mobile telephone to a video camera. It is key that the entrant’s hands and face be recognizable in the video. Based on the videos, a five-member jury will choose the winners. No personal auditions will take place. The jury will be composed of recognized Hungarian artists and musical experts, who will be able to choose the winners without prejudice.

Rules of the competition
1.Entrants’ date of birth must fall between January 1, 1983 and January 1, 1993.
2.The competition is open for a three-month period: March 15 through June 15, 2011.
3.The videos should be uploaded, if possible, to youtube, and a link to the video sent to the contest organizers via email.
4.The videos will be available at www.klassikstar.com.
5.Entrants must provide videos of themselves on which their hands, head and face are clearly visible.
6.The technical quality of the videos does not count in the competition; each entry is judged based on the quality and artistic merit of the performance and the musical ability of the performer.
7.Entrants can freely choose any piece to play in their video, which must be between 3 and 5 minutes long.
8.Only citizens of the V4 countries may enter. The three instruments and three countries eligible are as follows:
Cellists from Poland
Violinists from the Czech Republic
Flutists from Slovakia

Awards
1.1,000 euros for the winner in each instrument category
2.Participation in the concert tour, to take place from the end of September through mid-October of 2011, in Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary.
Costs associated with the concert tour (transport, lodging and meals) are covered by the project. During the tour, the four musicians will demonstrate their abilities through solo as well as chamber pieces, playing solo pieces during the concerts as well as baroque chamber music as a group. A video/photo blog will be produced about the tour. The performers will gain wide exposure through the concerts and related media.