The 1st Osaka International Mandolin Competition & Festival

General Information

• October 7 to 9, 2005

• The Phoenix Hall
  c/o Nissay Dowa General Insurance Co. Ltd.
  4-15-10 Nishi-Tenma, Kita-ku, Osaka, 530-0047 JAPAN

• Mandolin Solo Performance

• Preliminary Screening will be conducted through the closed screening of the recorded performance in June. (For details, see below)
  About 12 entrants will be qualified for the second screening in Japan.
• October 7 7 p.m.
• Receiving (Friday) Opening concert by world class players.(*)
  Fixing of the order of performance for the second screening.
• October 8 10 a.m.
• Second Screening (Semi-final) session by 12 entrants.
  (Saturday) where about five entrants will be chosen for the final competition.
  Fixing of the order of performance for the final competition.
  Gala concert by world class players.(*)
• October 9 10 a.m.
• Final competition by five entrants who passed the (Sunday) second screening on the previous day.
  Announcement of the results of the final competition.
  Concert and closing party.(*1)
• *1.Several people from abroad and within Japan including judges of the competition will perform in these concerts.
• Compulsory Music numbers
• Preliminary screening: One music from Raffaele Calace’s Prelude No.3, No5 or No.10.
• Second screening: Yoshinao Kobayashi’s “Introduction and Allegro”.
• This music was composed for this competition and published from Musikverlag Trekel of Germany. www.trekel.de
• The music will be available after February 1, 2005.

• 10,000Yen
  After receiving application documents, the written acknowledgement for the entrance and the bill for the fee will be send to each applicant.
  Applicants are requested to bear the bank handling charge and the paid fee is not the subject to refund under any condition.
  If the application fee is not paid by the due date, the acknowledgment for the entrance will become null.

• Takashi Kubota [chief]
  (Conductor, Composer, Japan)
• Alexander Tsygankov
  (domra player, People’s Artist of Russia, Russia)
• Steffen Trekel
  (Mandolin Player, Germany)
• Ricardo Sandoval
  (mandolin player and composer, Venezuela)
• Masanobu Nishigaki
  (Guitar player and Composer, Japan)
• Yoshinao Kobayashi
  (Composer, Japan)
• Kenji Sano
  (lute player, Japan)
• Takehisa Hasegawa
  (critic, Japan)

• Applicant Eligibility:
• This competition is open to every person who was born after January 1, 1970.
  Both amateur and professional players are entitled to enter.
• Awards Prize:
• 　1st Place 200,000Yen, certificate and additional prizes
  　2nd Place 100,000Yen, certificate and additional prizes
  　3rd Place 50,000Yen, certificate and additional prizes
• Gala concert for the winners:
  The organizer is to hold gala concerts in Tokyo and Osaka in fall, 2006 and the winners are required to perform in those concerts.
  The organizer will guarantee the performance fee of 100,000Yen pro one concert and bear the cost for accommodations in Japan.
• Judging procedures:
• Preliminary Screening
• Preliminary Screening will be conducted through the closed screening of the recorded performance between June 5 to 20, 2005.
• The names of the players will be withheld to the judges.
• About 12 entrants will be qualified for the second screening in Japan and their names will be announced on July 1 on the Web site. The results will be sent to each applicant later by mail.
• Second screening
• Second screening will be held on October 8 in Japan as stated above.
• The entrants are requested to play Kobayashi’s “Introduction and Allegro” and any pieces of entrant’s selection.
• Within 20minutes, the entrants are requested to enter the stage, tune their intruments, perform and leave.
• About 5 entrants will be qualified for the final competition.
• Final competition
• Final competition will be held on October 9 in Japan as stated above.
• The entrants are requested to play any pieces of their selection. Within 30minutes, the entrants are requested to enter the stage, tune their intruments, perform and leave.
• Both in the second screening and the final competition, the entrants may be accompanied by any other instrument.
• Scoring:
• Scoring will be conducted by means of 25 points system and 50 points system which is the application of 25 points system.(*3)
• Judges must abstain from voting certain entrants who studied under the judge in last two years.
• Judges are not allowed to make contact with any entrants while those entrants are still in the process of competition.
• The decision of the jury is final and not the subject of objection.
• *3.Marking system of 25 points and 50 points
  The performances of Calace’s Preludes in preliminary screening, Kobayashi’s “Introduction and Allegro” and the music of entrant’s selection in the second screening session will be marked out of 25 while the performance in final competition are to be marked out of 50.
• Each entrant will have the score of average mark by six judges after excluding maximum and minimum marks among those of all eight judges.
• This process is introduced to minimize the effect of self-willed marking when one of the judges want certain entrant get extremely high score.
• The final decision will be made through discussions by the judges after reviewing all the entrant’s scores.
• The 1st place winner will be chosen from those who got the score over 45 and the 2nd place winner from those of 42.5 to 45 while the 3rd place winner from those of 40 to 42.5 respectively.
• There may be the same place winner when their scores are in narrow margin.
• The list of marks will be made public.

• Acquiring Visa:
  In case the visa is needed to enter Japan, the entrant is required to acquire him/herself. Invitation letter will be issued by the organizer upon request.
  When asking for the invitation letter, let the organizer know the following data;
  First name and surname in his/her native language, Sex, Date of Birth, Nationality, Occupation, Present address, Telephone number
  Traveling costs (i.e. Ticket price, hotel expenses and food cost
  Name of the person who bear the traveling cost together with his/her sex, occupation, address, telephone number and the relationship with the entrant.
• Insurance:
  The entrants are requested to get insurance themselves over their own health, loss or damage to their belongings if needed since the organizer takes on no responsibility for those matters.
• Copyright:
  Rights on any performances in the competition and concerts in relation with this competition by the entrants including recording, broadcastings and photos belong to the organizer.
• Tax on the cash prize:
  If the cash prizes are subject to be taxed under Japanese law, those prizes will be given after deduction of tax.
• Note:
  Entrants are not allowed to appear in any concerts while they are still in the process of competition.