• Competition booklet (PDF)

1.1. Sviatoslav Richter International Piano Competition is open to pianists of all nationalities not younger than 23 years old (as of June 15, 2008) who have completed a professional musical education. There is no upper age limit.

1.2. To take part in the qualifying round of the Competition, applicants must complete and submit the attached application. Applications must have been postmarked by February 15, 2008 to be considered.
Please submit applications to the following address:

The application must include:

ŕ) Two 13 x 18 cm. (5 x 7 ins.) and one 4 x 6 cm. (1.6 x 2.3 ins.) glossy photographs. The applicant's first and last names should be written on the back of the photographs. Please do not attach the photographs using pins or staples.

b) A photocopy of the applicant's passport or another official form of identification that confirms the applicant's date of birth.

c) Two letters of recommendation from recognised musicians. The letters must include the author's address, contact telephone, and e-mail address.

d) A DVD meeting the following requirements:

• the recording must be of excellent, preferably professional quality,

• recording duration shall be up to 35 minutes in length,

• the recording must contain only the following works for solo piano:
  • a sonata by Mozart or Haydn,
  • a virtuoso etude by Chopin or Liszt,
  • a romantic composition of the 19th century.

• Editing the recording in any way is forbidden.

• the recording should be clearly labelled, bearing the applicant's first and last names, the titles of the compositions in the order they were recorded, exact duration of each work, and the date of recording.

1.3. The application fee must be transferred onto the following account:

Beneficiary customer: Non-Profit Organization
“Sviatoslav Richter International piano competition Charity Foundation”
Address: 121069, B.Nikitskaya str. 46/17, bld.1, Moscow, Russia
Beneficiary bank: Sberbank, Moscow, Russia
(Head Office – All Russian Offices and Branches)
SWIFT: SABRRUMM
Beneficiary account: 40703840238170201438
INN: 7703510449

1.5. Any changes to an applicant's submitted programme must be communicated to the steering committee not later than May 1, 2008 and are subject to approval. Any later changes to submitted programmes will be allowed only in exceptional cases, subject to the approval by the Jury.

1.6. Should a participant withdraw from the Competition, the documents, video recording, and registration fee shall not be returned.

2. The Competition Procedure:

2.1. Participants of the Competition must arrive in Moscow according to the dates indicated by the organizers of the Competition in the official invitation.

2.2. Once a foreign participant receives an official invitation to appear, he/she should apply to a Russian consulate for a visa.

2.3. Not more than 35 pianists shall be allowed to compete. The Competition consists of three rounds: two solo recitals and a final performance with orchestral accompaniment. All rounds will be open to the public. Applicants shall perform all compositions from memory.

2.4. Twelve semi-finalists shall advance to the second round, six of whom shall advance to the final round.

2.5. The order in which participants appear shall be determined by drawing lots, and will remain in effect until the end of the final round. All participants must be present at the drawing, which will take place on the eve of the first day of the Competition. The drawing will be followed by an informational meeting that is compulsory for all participants.

2.6. All participants must remain in Moscow during their participation in the Competition.

2.7. Winners of the Competition are obligated to perform in the closing concert of the Competition without financial compensation.

2.8. Participants of the Competition will not receive financial compensation for their appearances during the Competition, nor will they receive financial compensation for any use of recordings or video broadcasts of their appearances. The organisers of the Competition will retain the rights to all audio and video recordings of the Competition proceedings, as well as the right to broadcast them.

• The Competition will open on June 15, 2008.
• The final round of the Competition will take place June 26-28. Upon the end of the final performance, the Jury will determine the distribution of the prizes on the basis of the participants' performances during all the three rounds.
• The closing concert and award ceremony will take place on June 29, 2005.

3. Financial Terms:

3.1. a) The Competition participants shall receive a reimbursement of the costs of return travel to Moscow, however not exceeding USD 500.

b) Each participant will be provided with board and lodging free of charge, beginning on the day indicated in the official invitation to appear.

c) Participants who do not advance to the second round may continue to stay in the hotel free of charge for 2 days after the end of the first round.

d) Semi-finalists who do not advance to the final round shall receive a fee of USD 1000. Besides, they may continue to stay in the hotel free of charge until the end of the Competition.

3.2. Participants will have access to practice rooms for at least 5 hours per day, and have the right to one rehearsal in the performance hall before each round.

3.3. The organizers of the Competition will not provide any form of insurance to the participants.

3.4. Signed applications for consideration represent the applicant's acceptance of all conditions listed in this document.

4. Prizes:

4.1. See the Prizes page.

4.2. The Jury has the option to divide the prizes between performers ex-aequo or to declare void any of them.

4.3. The decisions of the Jury are not subject to any review.

Repertoire

See the Repertoire page.

5. Special conditions

5.1. All Competition prize money is exempt from taxes in the Russian Federation.

5.2. All Laureates shall perform free of charge in Closing Concert after the Competition on June 29, 2008.

5.3. The Organising Committee can provide assistance in arranging concerts in Russia as well as abroad for the laureates of the Competition, if they so wish, during the two years after the Competition.

5.4. In the event of a controversy over the present Rules for the Sviatoslav Richter International Piano Competition, the Russian version will be considered as the only valid one.

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