Awards
Winner of The Choir of Choirs Competition
The Sir Karl Jenkins Trophy and £1,500
Category Winners
£150
90+ Points
Gold Award Certificate
80 – 89 Points
Silver Award Certificate
70 – 79 Points
Bronze Award Certificate
Conductor Prize will be awarded to the most outstanding conductor from across all the competitive choirs at the Festival.
Sacred Music Award will be awarded to the choir that presents the best interpretation of a sacred piece of music during the Festival.
Category 1: Mixed Choirs
A mixed choir of no fewer than 16 voices. Singers must be aged 16 or over on the day of the competition. Each choir should prepare a contrasting programme which must include at least:
- One unaccompanied piece;
- One original piece by a living composer;
- One original piece composed or arranged by a composer from the choir’s native country.
The contrasting programme should comprise between 3 and 5 pieces and the total performance time (excluding applause) should be between 12 and 15 minutes in duration. Time penalties will apply to choirs whose performance does not adhere to these limits.
Up to 3 musicians are allowed to provide the accompaniment for the pieces. It is the choir’s responsibility to organise and pay any fees and expenses to their musicians.
Category 2: Single Voice Choirs
Any female voice choirs (SSAA / SSA / SAA / SA) or male voice choir (TTBB / TTB / TBB / TB) of no fewer than 16 voices. Singers must be aged 16 or over on the day of the competition. Each choir should prepare a contrasting programme which must include at least:
- One unaccompanied piece;
- One original piece by a living composer;
- One original piece composed or arranged by a composer from the choir’s native country.
The contrasting programme should comprise between 3 and 5 pieces and the total performance time (excluding applause) should be between 12 and 15 minutes in duration. Time penalties will apply to choirs whose performance does not adhere to these limits.
Up to 3 musicians are allowed to provide the accompaniment for the pieces. It is the choir’s responsibility to organise and pay any fees and expenses to their musicians.
Category 3: Open Category
A choir of no fewer than 16 voices. There are no upper or lower age limits in this category. This category is ideal for singing groups that include a mixture of children and adults and/or specialise in a particular cultural tradition or style of music (for example, barbershop, pop, show, glee, jazz, gospel, etc.) Each choir should prepare a contrasting programme which must include at least:
- One unaccompanied piece;
- One original piece by a living composer;
- One original piece composed or arranged by a composer from the choir’s native country.
The contrasting programme should comprise between 3 and 5 pieces and the total performance time (excluding applause) should be between 12 and 15 minutes in duration. Time penalties will apply to choirs whose performance does not adhere to these limits.
Up to 3 musicians are allowed to provide the accompaniment for the pieces. It is the choir’s responsibility to organise and pay any fees and expenses to their musicians.
Category 4: Young Voices (under 25 years old)
A youth choir of no fewer than 16 voices. All singers must be younger than 25 years old on the day of the competition. Each choir should prepare a contrasting programme which must include at least:
- One unaccompanied piece;
- One original piece by a living composer;
- One original piece composed or arranged by a composer from the choir’s native country.
The contrasting programme should comprise between 3 and 5 pieces and the total performance time (excluding applause) should be between 12 and 15 minutes in duration. Time penalties will apply to choirs whose performance does not adhere to these limits.
Up to 3 musicians are allowed to provide the accompaniment for the pieces. It is the choir’s responsibility to organise and pay any fees and expenses to their musicians.
Choir of Choirs Competition
The five highest-scoring choirs from across all categories will compete against each other in the Choir of Choirs competition. These five highest scoring choirs should prepare a contrasting programme which must include at least:
- One unaccompanied piece;
- One original piece by a living composer;
- One original piece composed or arranged by a composer from the choir’s native country.
The contrasting programme should comprise between 3 and 5 pieces and the total performance time (excluding applause) should be between 12 and 15 minutes in duration. Time penalties will apply to choirs whose performance does not adhere to these limits.
Up to 3 musicians are allowed to provide the accompaniment for the pieces. It is the choir’s responsibility to organise and pay any fees and expenses to their musicians.
Choirs are advised to vary their programme from their Category performance.