ELIGIBILITY

• The Scholarship is open to violinists of all nationalities who are between the ages of 17-23 as of December 1, 2023.

• The competition is open to violinists pursuing an undergraduate degree in music at an accredited university, college, or conservatory in the United States at the time of application. 

• Applicants that are a double-major with music and another subject are also encouraged to apply.

• Graduate students are ineligible.

• Former recipients are not eligible to receive the scholarship again.

 

AGE REQUIREMENTS

• Participants must be between the ages of 17-23 as of December 1, 2023.

• A copy of official identification verifying your birth date (State ID, Driver's License, Birth Certificate, or Passport) must be submitted with this application in order for it to be processed and considered complete.

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APPLICATION

• Participation in the Competition is conditional on a candidate submitting the required documents and recordings in their entirety (See “Video Recording Requirements,” below) by October 1, 2023 in order to be eligible for consideration.

• Incomplete applications will not be considered for eligibility. 

• Please click here to submit your application.

 

APPLICATION FEE

• $40 non-refundable fee is due with the application.

• Fee payments may also be made via Paypal (with 3% surcharge).

• Application form and fee are required of all contestants. 

• Please click here to submit your application fee.

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DEADLINE

• All applications and supporting documents must be submitted by October 1, 2023              in order for it to be processed and considered complete. 

• Applications submitted after October 1st  WILL NOT be accepted.

 

DISQUALIFICATION

• Participants will be automatically disqualified if the participant is found to have exceeded the age eligibility.

• The Mark Zinger Foundation and adjudicators reserve the right to disqualify any applicant  suspected of providing falsified information.

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TEACHER'S RECOMMENDATION

• All applicants are required to have a recommendation form submitted by their current violin teacher.

• Teacher recommendations are to be submitted online by October 1, 2023.

• If recommendations  are not received by this date,  the application will be considered incomplete and will not be accepted.

• Please click here to submit a Teacher's Recommendation.

 

DISTRIBUTION OF SCHOLARSHIP​

• Two scholarships, each in the amount of $2500, will be awarded each year.

• Scholarship recipients will receive notification by November 15, 2023.

• Once recipients have been announced, a copy of the Spring 2024 tuition bill must be sent to the Mark Zinger Scholarship Foundation.

• The Scholarship money will be sent directly to the university/college/conservatory.

 

ADJUDICATION

• Adjudicators are selected by the Mark Zinger Foundation.

• Adjudicators are prohibited from judging their own students.

• Any and all decisions made by the adjudicators are final. If the adjudicators decide that no contestant is sufficiently qualified to receive an award, no award will be awarded.

 

REPERTOIRE

• Two contrasting movements from a J.S. Bach Partita or Sonata.​

• 1st movement of any standard concerto written after 1800, such as Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Tchaikovsky, Prokofiev, Sibelius, Brahms, Saint-Saëns, Barber, or Shostakovich.

• A Paganini Caprice #13 or equivalent showpiece.  

• Repertoire should be chosen so that the entire video submission is approximately 20-25 minutes.

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COLLABORATIVE PIANISTS

• The Mark Zinger Foundation does not assume responsibility for the engagement or compensation of collaborative pianists.

• The concerto must be accompanied by a piano reduction. If the showpiece includes a piano part, it also must be performed with piano.  

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RECORDING REQUIREMENTS

• All videos must be submitted via YouTube

• DO NOT state the applicant’s name, age, or have any spoken commentary information within the video.

• Record each piece or movement in its entirety. Applicants are not required to play repeats, and solos within the piano accompaniment may be cut.

• Each composition must be recorded in a single take. The video must be one single camera angle, with no cuts or edits to the video. The applicant’s face and hands must be clearly visible for the entirety of the video, with no movement from the camera.

• The application audio must not be tampered with in any way. 

• Video recordings must be from September 1, 2022 – September 31, 2023.

 

VIDEO SUBMISSIONS

• To submit the applicant’s video audition, please upload the video file via YouTube in the Private Setting. For instructions on how to do this, click here

• When submitting the video,  you must include the Applicant’s initials (first/middle/last) and title/composer in the title of the email (example: MMZ, J.S. Bach Partita no.1). If you do not have a middle initial, place the number “0” in the middle (example: M0Z, J.S. Bach Partita No. 1)

• All video submissions must be received by 11:59 pm PST on the final application date. No exceptions  will be given. 

• One file per piece will have to be uploaded. Do not include titles, fadeouts, or video transitions.

• Label recordings with repertoire and timing only. DO NOT include names of performers in any spoken commentary. 

• Any submission of videos may be used for the Mark Zinger Scholarship Foundation’s future marketing and advertising purposes

 

VIDEO GUIDELINE & TIPS

• Instructions on how to upload files via Youtube can be found here. If any recording is longer than 15 minutes, please follow the following instructions here.

• It is to your advantage that the recording is of excellent technical quality. We recommend (but do not require) hiring a professional audio technician. Please review your recording and be sure it is something you are proud of.