Willam Gammon Henry Concerto Competition

The finals of the 2024-25 William Gammon Henry Concerto Competition will take place in Winspear Hall of the Murchison Performing Arts Center on Tuesday, October 15, 2024 from 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM. All finalists and all accompanists must be available for this entire time period. No special scheduling requests allowed.

Contact your applied faculty professor regarding information on the preliminary round(s). 

Approximately 6-7 winners will be selected by a panel of outside judges, for performance with the UNT Concert Orchestra on Wednesday, January 29, 2025 at 7:30 PM.

Concerto Competition Guidelines:

The number of finalists altogether from all performance areas shall not exceed 18. This allows each finalist a maximum of 10 minutes (9 minutes performing; 1 minute of walking on and off the stage) and means that the final round will last for 3 hours. 

Woodwinds: 3

Brass:3

Strings:3

Voice: 3

Percussion, guitar, harp: 3 altogether

Keyboard: 3 (1 organ, 2 piano. If there is no organ finalist, then piano may have 3).

Repertoire:

Students may compete with one movement of a multi-movement work; the entirety of a one movement single work, or multiple movements of a multi-movement work as long as the combined total duration is preferably no longer than 10 minutes.  In addition to the level of performance, factors which may be considered when choosing the winners include length of entire program or difficulties involved (rehearsal time) in preparing a student orchestra and a student conductor to perform a given work. Memorization is required unless it is in the tradition of the instrument to perform as a soloist from score. Students competing in the finals with music will be presumed to have such a performance approved by their department or division.

Finals are performed with piano accompaniment ONLY.

Students who have been past winners of the competition are ineligible to compete as a soloist, regardless of any change in status or degree program. Previous solo winners may compete as part of a double (or other multiple) concerto as long as at least one entire academic year has passed since the student's previous performance with the orchestra.

Competitors selected to the final round must submit the Concerto Competition Materials Acquisition Form to the Orchestral Studies Librarian (patriciogutierrezvielma@my.unt.edu) as soon as they are selected as finalists, but no later than the day of the competition finals. The form is available here:                                                                                   

WILLIAM GAMMON HENRY CONCERTO COMPETITION MATERIALS ACQUISITION FORM 

The purpose of this form is for the Orchestra Librarian to determine if the score already exists in the library and if not, to be able to order it along with parts in time for rehearsals to begin. Additionally, scores and parts which may at one time have been in the library might be missing or might be so old as to no longer be in good condition for rehearsals and performances.

Judges in the final round will include a conductor of a professional orchestra; a director of a chamber or recital series; and a member of a major symphony orchestra.  The conductor will possibly choose one finalist to appear with their orchestra in their 2025-2026 season, and prize money of $2000 will be awarded to the performer at the time of that performance. The conductor has the right to request a different concerto from the one auditioned with, taking into account recent past performances of a given work by their orchestra and/or budgetary or programming considerations. The chamber or recital series director will possibly choose another finalist to perform on their 2025-2026 season, and the prize money of $1000 will be awarded at the time of that performance.