7th “Làszlò Spezzaferri” International Music Prize – Italy

January 24th 2025
Christine Johnstone

The 7th “Làszlò Spezzaferri” International Music Prize will be held in the beautiful setting of Palazzo della Gran Guardia, in Piazza Bra, Verona, Italy from May 9th to 11th, 2025.

Solo categories include age group classes for accordion, piano, harp etc., plus Chamber music groups (no more than eight members). All entrants will present an own choice program.

An international jury will award prizes and scholarships at a Final Gala Concert for the winners.

Applications close on April 15th, 2025. For further information email: info@spezzaferrimusicprize.it

RULES

Art. 1: COMPETITION
The 7th International Music Prize “Laszlo Spezzaferri” is organized in order to promote the musical culture and draw young people to music study and development. Competition is organized by Talent Music School Musical Association under the Patronage of Municipality of Verona.

The 2025 edition will take place in Verona (Italy) in Palazzo della Gran Guardia, Piazza Brà, on May 9th, 10th, 11th 2025. 
​​
Art. 2: PARTICIPANTS AND INSTRUMENTS
The 7th International Music Prize of Verona “Laszlo Spezzaferri” is opened to participant from all the countries and divided into categories referred to Art. 3:
Solo musicians of any instruments without age limit (piano, harp, accordion, guitar, strings, winds, brass, percussion and voice)
Chamber music groups until 8 musicians
Orchestral ensembles and Choirs

The program is a free choice repertoire. 

Organization will provide for the following instruments:
–  1 grand piano
– 1 celtic Harp “Titan”, Salvi, 38 strings
​- 1 Marimba Adams Solist Padouk 4-1/3 octaves
– 1 Vibraphone Adams Solist Voyager VSWV31 3.1 octaves with motor
– 1 Xilophone Adams Solist Light Rosewood 3-1/2  octaves
– 1 Glockenspiel Yamaha YG250D

– 1 complete drum set Pearl Roadshow Fusion 22”
– 3 timpani 26” 29” 32” 

– “Proel Wave 12a speakers” speaker system with USB input
– Shure Beta 58a microphone with microphone-speaker connection cable

Art. 3: CATEGORIES
SOLOISTS

(piano, harp, accordion, strings, winds, brass, guitar, voice, percussions)
Cat. “Junior” : opened to solo musicians until 9 years old (born from 01.01.2016)
Max. performance duration: 7 minutes 

Cat. A – opened to solo musicians until 12 years old (born from 01.01.2013 to 31.12.2015)
Max. performance duration: 10 minutes 
Cat. B – opened to solo musicians till 16 years old (born from 01.01.2009 to 31.12.2012)Max. performance duration: 13 minutes
Cat. C – opened to solo musicians till 20 years old (born from 01.01.2005 to 31.12.2008)

Max. performance duration: 15 minutes
Cat. D – opened to solo musicians from 21 years old without age limit (born before 01.01.2005).
Max. performance duration: 20 minutes 

NB: Piano Accompanist needs to be requested on the application form, with an additional fee (see art. 7).
​​
CHAMBER MUSIC
Cat. E – opened to chamber music ensembles from 2 to 8 musicians, with a maximum average age limit of 14 years old, considering the birth year of each musician.
Max. performance duration: 8 minutes 
Cat. F – opened to chamber music ensembles from 2 to 8 musicians, with a maximum average age limit of 20 years old, considering the birth year of each musician.
Max. performance duration: 12 minutes 

Cat. G – opened to chamber music ensembles from 2 to 8 musicians, with an average age over 20 years old, considering the birth year of each musician.
Max. performance duration: 15 minutes ​

ENSEMBLE
Cat. H – opened to Ensemble and Choirs with a minimum of 9 components, with a maximum average age limit of 14 years old, considering the birth year of each musician.
max. performance duration: 10 minutes 
Cat. I – opened to Ensemble and Choirs with a minimum of 9 components, with a maximum average age limit of 20 years old, considering the birth year of each musician.
Max. performance duration: 12 minutes

Cat. L – opened to Ensemble and Choirs with a minimum of 9 components, with an average age over 20 years old, considering the birth year of each musician.
Max. performance duration: 15 minutes​

The timing of each audition is considered started from the first played note. Breaks between different works are included in the minutage calculation.

​​Art. 4: JURY​

The judges, excellent reputation musicians/masters, will express a mark out of 100. Awards and scholarship cannot be assigned in case the jury consider the competitors non-deserving.
Actions and decisions of the judges are unquestionable and irrevocable.

Judges that tutored/taught one or more of the competitors during the previous two years are requested to abstain from participating to dealings/votes related to the nominated competitors performances; the occurrence should be clearly reported in the competition memorandum. At assignment, each judge will issue a declaration related to the mentioned teaching/tutorial activity with the competitors. 
In view of what above reported, the competitors are requested to report in the application form the name of their teachers.

Art. 5: AWARDS
All these prizes will be awarded for each category:
First Absolute prize (with a mark from 98/100 to 100/100) : diploma & cup
First Prize (with a mark from 95/100 to 97/100) : diploma & gold medal
Second Prize (with a mark from 90/100 to 94/100) : diploma & silver medal
Third Prize (with a mark from 85/100 to 89/100) : diploma & bronze medal
All the other contestants will receive a Participation Certificate.​​

SCHOLARSHIPS
The contestant that obtains the first absolute prize with the highest mark of each category, will receive the following scholarships:

SOLOISTS

Cat. Junior: 80 Euro
Cat. A: 120 Euro
Cat. B: 180 Euro
Cat. C: 200 Euro
Cat. D: 250 Euro

CHAMBER MUSIC
Cat. E: 150 Euro in total

Cat. F : 180 Euro in total
Cat. G : 200 Euro in total

ENSEMBLE
Cat. H: 200 Euro in total
Cat. I : 250 Euro in total

Cat. L : 300 Euro in total
Every scholarship has to be considered as brutto.

All the scholarships will be given only during the awarding ceremony on May 11th. It warns that in case of absence of the winner, the scholarship will not be awarded.

Art. 6: AWARDING PROCESS

All the FIRST ABSOLUTE, FIRST, SECOND and THIRD PRIZES will be awarded during the days of the competition, during the daily awarding ceremonies following the calendar.

First absolute prize winners with the highest mark of each category will receive a scholarship ONLY during the awarding ceremony planned on May 11th, 2024.
All the scholarships will be given only during the awarding ceremony on May 11th. It warns that in case of absence of the winner, the scholarship will not be awarded.

With the application to the 7th International Prize “Làszlò Spezzaferri”  – May 2025, in compliance with the GDPR and the Italian Legislative Decree no. 196 dated 30/06/2003, I authorize the organization on publishing the rankings of the competition and the musical /photo material on its official website or social media for didactical and cultural aims.


Art. 7: HOW TO APPLY

1) Sending application
The application form must be FILLED COMPLETELY and sent starting from November 1st, 2024, and not after April 15th, 2025 with the receipt of the bank transfer of the application fee.​​

Application form :

Application fees: 
SOLOISTS

Cat. Junior:  € 25,00​
CAT. A: € 30,00
CAT. B: € 35,00
CAT. C: € 40,00
CAT. D: € 45,00

CHAMBER MUSIC
CAT. E:  € 15,00 for each musician
CAT. F:  € 18,00 for each musician

CAT. G: € 18,00 for each musician

ENSEMBLE
CAT. H:  € 8,00 for each musician
CAT. I:  € 10,00 for each musician

CAT. L:  € 12,00 for each musician

PIANO ACCOMPANIST:  
€ 30,00 for each audition of Junior, A, B categories
€ 35 for each audition of C, D, E, F, G, H categories​

Piano accompanist fee must be transferred together with application fee.​​
Way of payment through BANK TRANSFER ONLY to:
Associazione Culturale “Talent Music School”
Via Antonio Salieri, 32
37060 – Nogarole Rocca (VR)


Bank details: BANCO BPM
Piazza R. Bolognese Trevenzoli, 9
37060 – Trevenzuolo (Verona)
IBAN: IT 29 C 05034 59920 0000 0000 1147
BIC: BAPPIT21089


Object:
SPEZZAFERRI PRIZE + NAME, SURNAME AND CATEGORY OF THE APPLICANT


​The application to the competition entail the unconditional acceptance of the rules/regulations of this present announcement.

Art. 8 : CALENDAR AND AUDITIONS ORGANIZATION

​Auditions calendar will be published on Sunday April 20th, 2025 here on the website and on the social media pages. 
Candidates will be not informed individually, therefore we invite them to take the informations on the channels mentioned above.Auditions will be organized by category as follows:Friday May 9th: Cat. D​Saturday May 10th: Cat. D – C (soloists); cat. E – F – G (chamber music)
Sunday May 11th: Cat. J – A – B (soloists); cat. H – I – L (ensemble).Detailed calendars will be published on this website and on the socil medis pages on April 20th. Contestants will be informed on their audition time only in this way, not singularly. We invite to check the website page on time. 
Absence at the own audition time will be considered as renunciation, with no possibilities to re-plan the audition. Contestants are invited to attend the audition with their ID document and n.2 copies of the chosen repertoire.

Entry application