Propositions of competition
Art. 1 – Purpose of the Competition
The purpose of the “Mitteleuropa Musikfest 2025” festival, which is divided into two competitions, the 13thInternational Wind Orchestra Competition “Mitteleuropa Blasmusikfest 2025” and the 2nd International Chamber Music Competition “Mitteleuropa Kammermusikfest 2025”, is to promote and disseminate the music of Wind Orchestras and chamber groups, trying to increase their musical qualities in Croatia, in the Central European region, theso-called Mitteleuropa and, more generally, in the whole of Europe. In addition, the exchange of experiences between professional and amateur musicians of different cultures and languages is promoted, encouraging the study of Music.
Art. 2 – Admission to the Competition
The following are admitted to the Competition:
- Windorchestras and bands;
- composersfor wind orchestras;
- chambergroups with at least one instrument attributable to the Wind Orchestra (e.g. groups of only strings, etc. are not admitted).
Art. 3 – Program
The competition is open to all, without age and/or nationality limits.
Wind orchestras and composers will compete in different categories for the 13th international wind orchestra competition “Mitteleuropa Blasmusikfest 2025”.
Chamber groups, will compete for the 2nd international chamber music competition “Mitteleuropa Kammermusikfest 2025”.
For Wind Orchestras, participating orchestras must perform:
- awarm-up piece, with a degree of difficulty equal to or greater than their category of membership; the warm-up piece will NOT be subject to evaluation;
- twocompulsory pieces of different character/style, indicated in 4; the choice of compulsory pieces determines the category for which the orchestra will be in the Competition;
- apiece of free choice, with a degree of difficulty equal to or greater than their category of membership; the piece of free choice is subject to evaluation.
Solo instrumental or vocal compositions are NOT permitted in any way.
At the Competition, the order of performance is NOT changeable and is as follows:
- Warm-uppiece
- Mandatorypiece
- Mandatorypiece
- Freechoice piece
Participants in cat. D will only have one compulsory piece to perform.
Composers must submit a work for wind orchestra of an original nature and difficulty between levels 2 and 3. Thecomposition submitted must be original. Popular themes can be used, but they must be included on the cover as a source of work that the author must briefly and exhaustively illustrate.
Please refer to the composition "Bright Dawn Overture" by Franco Cesarini as a guide regarding difficulty.
Each author must send the following to the email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. with the subject "NAME OF THE WORK, composition - Blasmusikfest 2025":
- 1PDF file containing the score (with only and exclusively the title of the work, without the name of the author);
- 1attached file containing the author's personal data and the title of the
Each author reserves all publication rights.
Multiple works can also be submitted, taking into account what is written in art. 5.
The winning composition will be selected as a test piece for the Mitteleuropa Blasmusikfest 2026. The winners will be announced on the festival's social media pages (Facebook and Instagram) on April 27, 2025.
For Chamber Music (min. 2 – max. 15 elements), the Competition is divided into two phases, a first online selectionand the Final. Participants, at the time of registration, must attach a video of a maximum duration of 25 minutes, without cuts or post-production operations, in which they must play at least two pieces of different character/style. In addition, each competing group must also attach a program of the pieces played with the name of the group and a copy of the score (all in PDF format).
The video can also be sent via Wetransfer link.
All material must be sent to the email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. with the subject “GROUP NAME,Chamber Music – Kammermusikfest 2025”. The best six chamber groups will be admitted to the Final. The publication date of the results will be March 28, 2025 on the Festival's social channels (Facebook and Instagram).
The Final will take place in Omišalj (Croatia) during the Competition (April 25-27, 2025). Failure to attend the Final will result in immediate disqualification from the Competition.
The program of the Final is free, with a maximum duration of 25 minutes. Pieces already proposed in the first phase cannot be played.
The chamber groups will be divided into 2 subcategories (to be indicated when sending the video):
- AMATEUR(intended for all music schools of all levels)
- PRO(intended for state music academies and conservatories).
The best six admitted to the Final will be chosen on the basis of a combined ranking, in which the six groups with the highest score will participate in the Final, without subcategory constraints.
Art. 4 – Categories, mandatory pieces and maximum performance times
The “Mitteleuropa Blasmusikfest 2025” Competition includes 5 categories (4 for Wind Orchestras and 1 for Composition).
In detail:
- CATEGORYA - GRADE 4,5-6 - Maximum duration of the performance 40
- CATEGORYB – GRADE 3-4.5 – Maximum duration of the performance 35
- CATEGORYC - GRADE 2-3 – Maximum duration of the performance 30
- CATEGORYD – Youth Band – Maximum duration of the performance 25
- CATEGORYE – Composition (online competition - composition for wind orchestras) – Maximum estimated duration of the work 5-8 minutes.
The “Mitteleuropa Kammermusikfest 2025” Competition includes:
- CATEGORYKAMMERMUSIK – Chamber Music (competition divided into two parts: first part online and Final in attendance) – Maximum duration of the performance for each phase 25 minutes.
Competitors are required to respect the maximum times established for the individual categories; for those who do not respect these limits, a penalty of 5/100 will be applied for each minute in excess.
Youth bands are understood to be all those orchestras whose average age of all members does not exceed 25 years.Youth bands may register for categories higher than the one foreseen, if they believe that their preparation allows it.
Competitors cannot register for more than one category, with the exception of cat. KAMMERMUSIK (e.g. if musiciansfrom a chamber group also play in an orchestra in the competition, registration is admissible).
The artistic commission has proposed the following mandatory pieces to the orchestras (A, B, C and D):
Cat. A - Grade 4,5-6
- SlovenskaUvertura – Schonherr/Prasel, Hartman.si
- SymphonicSuite - Clifton Williams, Alfred Music
Cat. B - Grade 3-4.5
- Intermezzofrom the opera Ksenija - Viktor Parma/Firmi, Tierloff Music
- Masquerade- Philip Sparke, Anglomusic
Cat. C - Grade 2 -3
- Suitefrom Dora - Dora Pejačević / Jure Primožič & Stefano Pastorcich, ed. BoraVerlag (available from 1 December 2024 on www.sheetmusicdirect.com)
- BrightDawn Ouverture – Franco Cesarini, Franco Cesarini
Cat. D – Youth Band
- Lamatita di Leonardo – Luciano Feliciani, Scomegna
Art. 5 – Registration
Competitors may register by midnight on February 28, 2025. Late registrations will not be accepted.
The registration fee is set at €350 for each orchestra in categories A, B, C and €300 for each orchestra in category D.
For category E the fee is €50 for each work submitted.
In category KAMMERMUSIK the fee is €30 for each member of the group (e.g. €90 if it is a trio, €150 if it is a quintet).
Registration fees are paid at the time of registration and are not refundable. All bank and/or postal charges are the responsibility of the participant.
The organization of the Competition reserves the right to evaluate any requests for time slots and programming. Such arequest will not be binding for the organization of the competition which will evaluate whether or not to accept it.
The organizer of the Competition also offers overnight accommodation for the competitors at a partner facility, close to the Competition venue.
To obtain the registration form and/or other organizational questions, including accommodation, please contact by e-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
For artistic and logistical questions, please contact by e-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Art. 6 – Rehearsal and competition times
The dates and times of the calls for the rehearsals and for the competitons will be communicated to the individual participants and displayed on the Instagram and Facebook pages of the event. The rehearsals and the competition are open to the public and will be held at the Društveni Dom in Omišalj (Croatia).
Art. 7 – Documents
Competitors will be updated by the organization on the documents to bring on site after registration.
Art. 8 – Jury and evaluation criteria
The jury of the Competition is international and is appointed by the organizer. All competitors are evaluated by a jurycomposed of three to five members, depending on the number of orchestras and ensembles in the competition. The judgment and final decisions of the jury are indisputable and definitive and the competitors have no right of appeal.
Each member of the jury awards a maximum of 100 points according to the criteria listed below. The final score is given by the arithmetic mean of all these criteria of all the jurors.
- Generalimpression of the orchestra
- Tonalquality of the performance
- Articulation
- Performancetechnique
- Rhythmand metrics
- Dynamicsof the performance
- Tempoof the performance
- Balanceof the orchestra's sound
- Musicalexpressiveness
- Interpretationand style
The Jury has the right to have the performance(s) of the individual participants repeated, if it deems it appropriate, aswell as to interrupt them before the conclusion. Participants and their companions are prohibited from communicating with the members of the Jury during all phases of the competition, except as reported in art. 9.
Art. 9 – Private interview with the Jury
Once all the participants in the Competition have finished their performances and before the award ceremony with the official announcement of the results, the presidents of the orchestras and the conductors will hold a private professional interview with the members of the jury, in which the final scores will not be revealed for any reason.
Art. 10 – Final results
During the final ceremony, the position and total number of points won by each orchestra and composition will beofficially announced. Below is the distribution of scores with a final summary judgment:
- 90,1– 100 points: "Excellent"
- 80,1– 90 points: "Very Good"
- 70,1– 80 points: "Good"
- 60,1– 70 points: "Partecipation"
The first three orchestras with the best scores, obtained through a combined ranking, without category constraints, will be awarded the following prizes:
- 1stplace: gold prize (winner of Mitteleuropa Blasmusikfest 2025 Competition)
- 2ndplace: silver prize
- 3rdplace: bronze prize
In addition, a special prize is awarded for the best interpretation of the compulsory composition, a prize for the best conductor of the competition and for the best composer of the competition.
The 2nd International Chamber Music Competition “Mitteleuropa Kammermusikfest 2025” uses the same scoringcriteria as for orchestras. The group with the best score will be the winner of the “Mitteleuropa Kammermusikfest 2025” Competition.
Art. 11 – Acceptance of the rules
The organizers of the “Mitteleuropa Musikfest 2025” Competition decline all responsibility for any risks or damages, of any nature, to people and/or things, both during the trip and during the period of stay in Omišalj for the entire duration of the 2025 Competition. They are not responsible for any theft or damage to instruments, clothes and othervaluables and reserve the right to remove from the Competition any competitor who does not respect the rules and proposals prescribed by the Competition.
In the event of unforeseen circumstances, the organizer has the right to change the program and the location of the program.
All participants will receive a booklet with the Festival program.
In the event of disputes, the rules in Italian and English will be valid.
Registration for the 2025 Competition implies total and unconditional acceptance of the rules contained in this regulation.