Azle High School Band

UIL Solo Contest Day!

1. Wake well-rested.         
2. Eat a nutritious breakfast.
3. Dress-up. Solo contest is traditionally a “dress-up” affair. The judge sees you.
4. You will need: Your instrument (be sure the case is labeled with your name and your school); your music (copy); judge’s music (original) with measures numbered; extra good reads; and money for snacks or the phone.
5. Listeners are welcome to be in the room when you perform, so encourage your family to attend.
6. Arrive at the contest site 45 minutes before your scheduled performance time.
7. Locate your assigned room and check-in with the monitor at the door. The monitor will be able to tell you if the room is running on schedule, ahead, or behind. Make sure that the monitor has your judge’s critique sheet. Sometimes the sheets get placed in the wrong rooms. If there is a mix-up, find one of your directors and they will solve it.
8. You will need about 20 minutes to warm-up in the warm-up room. Be careful not to tire yourself out. To guard against “flatness”, the instrument needs warm air circulating through it for about 20 minutes leading up to the performance.
9. Try to keep tabs on the schedule of your room, and report to the monitor 8-10 minutes early.
10. Wait at your room for your accompanist.
11. Conduct yourself in a calm, courteous, business-like manner.
12. Give the judge the original to your music with the measures numbered. Sometimes the judge is still writing comments about the previous performer, so be patient.
13. Tune to whatever note(s) you have previously planned. Key notes in your solo should be checked with the piano. Play your note first, then stop your note when the piano begins its note.
14. If you are performing at the UIL Contest, and playing by memory, then make sure you do not have the music or stand anywhere near you. Tell the judge “I am performing by memory.”
15. Position yourself where the judge can best hear you, and where you and the accompanist can see each other.
16. Play! Concentrate, do your best, enjoy it, and be proud of it. When in doubt, play out!
17. When you are finished, see if the judge has any comments for you. Then quietly leave the room.
18. Wait outside the room for the judge to return your original.
19. Ratings are usually posted within 30 minutes to one hour after the performance.
20. Do not ask the monitor what rating you received. Be patient.
21. The judge will be specifically listening for the following:

 TONE

• QUALITY – you want a clear, full, rich, mature sound.

• INTONATION – Tuning

• CONTROL – Make the high notes as pretty as the low notes, etc.

TECHNIQUE

• RHYTHMIC ACCURACY – Count carefully. Hold out notes full value. Enter after rests correctly.

• PITCH ACCURACY – Don’t play wrong notes!

• SMOOTHNESS

• FINGERING

• EMBOUCHURE

• BREATHING – Take breaths where they are supposed to be taken.

• TONGUING

• ARTICULATION

INTERPRETATION:

• DYNAMICS – Most people do not do enough with their dynamics.

• TEMPO – Keep it steady.

• PHRASING

• STYLE

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