About the Milton Young Musicians Festival…
2010 Festival: Saturday, May 8, Kellner Performing Arts Center, Milton Academy, Milton
Gold Medal Concert(s): Sunday, May 16, First Parish Church, Milton
General Information:
Now in its 24th year, the Milton Young Musicians Festival has enriched the lives and increased the confidence of countless Milton music students. The Festival operates under the auspice of, and receives both financial and staffing support from the Milton Performing Arts Committee. The Festival is supported in part by a grant from the Milton Cultural Council, a local agency which is supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency.
Mrs. Emma Jean Moulton is the Founder and Director of The Milton Young Musicians Festival. The mission of the Festival is to encourage town wide support of young people with an interest in music, and to foster the development of performance skills.
Eligibility:
The Milton Young Musicians Festival is open to students in Grades 6–12 who
- attend any of the schools in Milton, Massachusetts — public or private
- whose residence is Milton, Massachusetts, or
- who is a student of any Milton teacher.
- Additionally, any person up to the age of 25 years whose residence is Milton, Massachusetts, who attends school in Milton, or who works in Milton may participate.
Categories:
The Festival encourages musicians in almost every imaginable category of musical performance: Voice, Piano, Strings (violin, viola, cello, bass), Percussion, Woodwinds (flute, piccolo, clarinet, saxophone, oboe, bassoon) and Brass (trumpet, french horn, trombone, baritone, tuba).
Repertoire:
A list of pre–approved selections can be found in a notebook located at the Milton Public Library’s Main Branch (Canton Avenue). Any repertoire selection NOT contained in this notebook MUST be approved by the MYMF Committee. Please contact Mrs. Moulton by phone (617-698-3200) or email with our mail form.
Judging:
Participating students will be asked to perform a piece they have prepared in advance (selected from the MYMF Repertoire List). Participants are also expected to have learned all the scales for their Level and instrument (listed on the scale requirements page). The performer will be asked to play one scale of their choice during their audition; the adjudicator will then select one or two scales at random from that list for the student to play. The time and location for each student’s audition will be published well in advance.
Students receive adjudication according to their Level. Medals are awarded on the basis of adjudication sheets completed by judges who are themselves experienced musicians and music educators.
As a recognition of their participation and achievement, every participant will be presented with a medal (Gold, Silver or Bronze) at the Award Ceremony which concludes the day. Students who have been awarded Gold Medals (representing the highest achievement in their Level) will be invited to perform their selection again at the Gold Medal Concert.
Level Listing:
Students must enter the competition at a Skill Level which is indicative of their level of achievement with their instrument. There are six levels of entry for all categories: Level 1 is the Beginner’s level, and Level 6 is the most advanced.
The Level at which the student enters is determined by that student’s ability to play the scale requirements and repertoire which MYMF has established for each level. (The level at which a student competes is a decision determined by the student and music teacher collaboratively.) The prepared piece and the scales are equally important - in fact sometimes the difficulty of the scales will be the determining factor.